According to scholars, which script was used to write the earliest inscription discovered in the Indian subcontinent?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Prakrit
Note: The given answer is as per the official NTA Answer Key. However, the question is not properly framed: it asks for a script, while Prakrit is a language, as explained below.
The earliest inscriptions were in Prakrit, a name for languages used by ordinary people. Scholars who first studied early inscriptions sometimes assumed that they were in Sanskrit, but the earliest inscriptions were, in fact, in Prakrit. The scripts used in the earliest inscriptions were Brahmi and Kharosthi, deciphered by James Prinsep in the 1830s. Neither script is among the options, so the question can be answered only by reading ‘script’ as the language of the inscriptions, and that is Prakrit.
NCERT (2026-27): “1. Prinsep and Piyadassi … This was when James Prinsep, an officer in the mint of the East India Company, deciphered Brahmi and Kharosthi, two scripts used in the earliest inscriptions and coins.… 7.1 Deciphering Brahmi … The earliest inscriptions were in Prakrit, a name for languages used by ordinary people. Names of rulers such as Ajatasattu and Asoka, known from Prakrit texts and inscriptions, have been spelt in their Prakrit forms in this chapter. You will also find terms in languages such as Pali, Tamil and Sanskrit, which too were used to write inscriptions and texts.… 7.1 Deciphering Brahmi … Scholars who studied early inscriptions sometimes assumed these were in Sanskrit, although the earliest inscriptions were, in fact, in Prakrit.…” |