Crypto-linguistics in Singapore : deciphering the Singapore Stone

The Singapore Stone was a sandstone with around 50 lines of inscription, but was blown up in 1843. A fragment of the original stone now lies in the National Museum of Singapore. Three legends in the Sejarah Melayu detail possible origins of the Stone. This study is a methodical attempt at decipherin...

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Main Author: Chua, Sock Hui
Other Authors: Perono Cacciafoco Francesco
Format: Final Year Project (FYP)
Language:English
Published: Nanyang Technological University 2019
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10356/76546
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author Chua, Sock Hui
author2 Perono Cacciafoco Francesco
author_facet Perono Cacciafoco Francesco
Chua, Sock Hui
author_sort Chua, Sock Hui
collection NTU
description The Singapore Stone was a sandstone with around 50 lines of inscription, but was blown up in 1843. A fragment of the original stone now lies in the National Museum of Singapore. Three legends in the Sejarah Melayu detail possible origins of the Stone. This study is a methodical attempt at deciphering the Singapore Stone and comprises a fieldwork at the nearby Karimun Besar with a deciphered inscription. By examining the legends on Badang and Sang Ranjuna Tupa and the historical-geographical background of Singapore, this paper postulates that the unknown script could be the Kalinga script from Kling or Kawi script used in Java. Comparisons of the inscription on the fragment with the Kalinga and Kawi scripts yield no results due to the lack of available information. However, certain phonetic values of the Kawi script can be assigned to signs on the fragment, but reading does not mean understanding. The fieldwork showed that the legend associated with the landscape features is passed on although information on the Karimun Inscription remains unknown amongst the locals. This study also serves as a starting point for the decipherment of the Singapore Stone, and further research can look into finding the other fragments sent to Calcutta.
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spelling ntu-10356/765462020-04-30T05:07:24Z Crypto-linguistics in Singapore : deciphering the Singapore Stone Chua, Sock Hui Perono Cacciafoco Francesco School of Humanities fcacciafoco@ntu.edu.sg DRNTU::Humanities DRNTU::Humanities::Linguistics The Singapore Stone was a sandstone with around 50 lines of inscription, but was blown up in 1843. A fragment of the original stone now lies in the National Museum of Singapore. Three legends in the Sejarah Melayu detail possible origins of the Stone. This study is a methodical attempt at deciphering the Singapore Stone and comprises a fieldwork at the nearby Karimun Besar with a deciphered inscription. By examining the legends on Badang and Sang Ranjuna Tupa and the historical-geographical background of Singapore, this paper postulates that the unknown script could be the Kalinga script from Kling or Kawi script used in Java. Comparisons of the inscription on the fragment with the Kalinga and Kawi scripts yield no results due to the lack of available information. However, certain phonetic values of the Kawi script can be assigned to signs on the fragment, but reading does not mean understanding. The fieldwork showed that the legend associated with the landscape features is passed on although information on the Karimun Inscription remains unknown amongst the locals. This study also serves as a starting point for the decipherment of the Singapore Stone, and further research can look into finding the other fragments sent to Calcutta. Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics and Multilingual Studies 2019-03-26T02:56:22Z 2019-03-26T02:56:22Z 2018 Final Year Project (FYP) http://hdl.handle.net/10356/76546 en Nanyang Technological University 52 p. application/pdf Nanyang Technological University
spellingShingle DRNTU::Humanities
DRNTU::Humanities::Linguistics
Chua, Sock Hui
Crypto-linguistics in Singapore : deciphering the Singapore Stone
title Crypto-linguistics in Singapore : deciphering the Singapore Stone
title_full Crypto-linguistics in Singapore : deciphering the Singapore Stone
title_fullStr Crypto-linguistics in Singapore : deciphering the Singapore Stone
title_full_unstemmed Crypto-linguistics in Singapore : deciphering the Singapore Stone
title_short Crypto-linguistics in Singapore : deciphering the Singapore Stone
title_sort crypto linguistics in singapore deciphering the singapore stone
topic DRNTU::Humanities
DRNTU::Humanities::Linguistics
url http://hdl.handle.net/10356/76546
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