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Cha is the seventh consonant of Indic abugidas. In modern Indic scripts, cha is derived from the early "Ashoka" Brahmi letter , which is probably derived from the Aramaic letter ("Q") after having gone through the Gupta letter .
Aryabhata used Devanagari letters for numbers, very similar to the Greek numerals, even after the invention of Indian numerals.
The values of the different forms of छ are:[1]
There are three different general early historic scripts - Brahmi and its variants, Kharoṣṭhī, and Tocharian, the so-called slanting Brahmi. Cha as found in standard Brahmi, was a simple geometric shape, with variations toward more flowing forms by the Gupta . The Tocharian Cha did not have an alternate Fremdzeichen form. The third form of cha, in Kharoshthi () was probably derived from Aramaic separately from the Brahmi letter.
Brahmi Cha
The Brahmi letter , Cha, is probably derived from the altered Aramaic Tsade, and is thus related to the Greek San (letter). Several identifiable styles of writing the Brahmi Cha can be found, most associated with a specific set of inscriptions from an artifact or diverse records from an historic period.[2] As the earliest and most geometric style of Brahmi, the letters found on the Edicts of Ashoka and other records from around that time are normally the reference form for Brahmi letters, with vowel marks not attested until later forms of Brahmi back-formed to match the geometric writing style.
The Tocharian letter is derived from the Brahmi , but does not have an alternate Fremdzeichen form.
Tocharian Cha with vowel marks
Cha
Chā
Chi
Chī
Chu
Chū
Chr
Chr̄
Che
Chai
Cho
Chau
Chä
Kharoṣṭhī Cha
The Kharoṣṭhī letter is generally accepted as being derived from the altered Aramaic Tsade, and is thus related to the Greek San (letter), in addition to the Brahmi Cha.
Cha (छ) is the seventh consonant of the Devanagariabugida. It ultimately arose from the Brahmi letter , after having gone through the Gupta letter . Letters that derive from it are the Gujarati letter છ and the Modi letter 𑘔.
Devanagari-using Languages
In most languages, छ is pronounced as [t͡ʃʰə] or [t͡ʃʰ] when appropriate, while in standard Nepali, it is pronounced as [t͡sʰ]. Like all Indic scripts, Devanagari uses vowel marks attached to the base consonant to override the inherent /ə/ vowel:
Devanagari छ with vowel marks
Cha
Chā
Chi
Chī
Chu
Chū
Chr
Chr̄
Chl
Chl̄
Che
Chai
Cho
Chau
Ch
छ
छा
छि
छी
छु
छू
छृ
छॄ
छॢ
छॣ
छे
छै
छो
छौ
छ्
Conjuncts with छ
Half form of Cha.
Devanagari exhibits conjunct ligatures, as is common in Indic scripts. In modern Devanagari texts, most conjuncts are formed by reducing the letter shape to fit tightly to the following letter, usually by dropping a character's vertical stem, sometimes referred to as a "half form". Some conjunct clusters are always represented by a true ligature, instead of a shape that can be broken into constituent independent letters. Vertically stacked conjuncts are ubiquitous in older texts, while only a few are still used routinely in modern Devanagari texts. The use of ligatures and vertical conjuncts may vary across languages using the Devanagari script, with Marathi in particular preferring the use of half forms where texts in other languages would show ligatures and vertical stacks.[3]
Ligature conjuncts of छ
True ligatures are quite rare in Indic scripts. The most common ligated conjuncts in Devanagari are in the form of a slight mutation to fit in context or as a consistent variant form appended to the adjacent characters. Those variants include Na and the Repha and Rakar forms of Ra. Nepali and Marathi texts use the "eyelash" Ra half form for an initial "R" instead of repha.
Repha र্ (r) + छ (cʰa) gives the ligature rcʰa: note
Eyelash र্ (r) + छ (cʰa) gives the ligature rcʰa:
छ্ (cʰ) + rakar र (ra) gives the ligature cʰra:
Stacked conjuncts of छ
Vertically stacked ligatures are the most common conjunct forms found in Devanagari text. Although the constituent characters may need to be stretched and moved slightly in order to stack neatly, stacked conjuncts can be broken down into recognizable base letters, or a letter and an otherwise standard ligature.
The Bengali script ছ is derived from the Siddhaṃ, and is marked by a similar horizontal head line, but less geometric shape, than its Devanagari counterpart, छ. The inherent vowel of Bengali consonant letters is /ɔ/, so the bare letter ছ will sometimes be transliterated as "cho" instead of "cha". Adding okar, the "o" vowel mark, gives a reading of /cʰo/.
Like all Indic consonants, ছ can be modified by marks to indicate another (or no) vowel than its inherent "a".
Bengali ছ with vowel marks
cha
chā
chi
chī
chu
chū
chr
chr̄
che
chai
cho
chau
ch
ছ
ছা
ছি
ছী
ছু
ছূ
ছৃ
ছৄ
ছে
ছৈ
ছো
ছৌ
ছ্
ছ in Bengali-using languages
ছ is used as a basic consonant character in all of the major Bengali script orthographies, including Bengali and Assamese.
Conjuncts with ছ
Bengali ছ exhibits conjunct ligatures, as is common in Indic scripts. Unlike most Bengali letters, conjuncts with ছ do not tend towards stacked ligatures.[4]
চ্ (c) + ছ (cʰa) gives the ligature ccʰa:
চ্ (c) + ছ্ (cʰ) + র (ra) gives the ligature ccʰra, with the ra phala suffix:
চ্ (c) + ছ্ (cʰ) + ব (va) gives the ligature ccʰva, with the va phala suffix:
ঞ (ñ) + ছ (cʰa) gives the ligature ñcʰa:
র্ (r) + ছ (cʰa) gives the ligature rcʰa, with the repha prefix:
শ্ (ʃ) + ছ (cʰa) gives the ligature ʃcʰa:
Gujarati Cha
Gujarati Cha.
Cha (છ) is the seventh consonant of the Gujaratiabugida. It is derived from the 16th century Devanagari Cha with the top bar (shiro rekha) removed, and ultimately from the Brahmi letter .
Gujarati-using Languages
The Gujarati script is used to write the Gujarati and Kutchi languages. In both languages, છ is pronounced as [cʰə] or [cʰ] when appropriate. Like all Indic scripts, Gujarati uses vowel marks attached to the base consonant to override the inherent /ə/ vowel:
Cha
Chā
Chi
Chī
Chu
Chū
Chr
Chl
Chr̄
Chl̄
Chĕ
Che
Chai
Chŏ
Cho
Chau
Ch
Gujarati Cha syllables, with vowel marks in red.
Conjuncts with છ
Gujarati છ exhibits conjunct ligatures, much like its parent Devanagari Script. While most Gujarati conjuncts can only be formed by reducing the letter shape to create a "half form" that fits tightly to following letter, Cha does not have a half form. A few conjunct clusters can be represented by a true ligature, instead of a shape that can be broken into constituent independent letters, and vertically stacked conjuncts can also be found in Gujarati, although much less commonly than in Devanagari. Lacking a half form, Cha will normally use an explicit virama when forming conjuncts without a true ligature.
True ligatures are quite rare in Indic scripts. The most common ligated conjuncts in Gujarati are in the form of a slight mutation to fit in context or as a consistent variant form appended to the adjacent characters. Those variants include Na and the Repha and Rakar forms of Ra.
ર્ (r) + છ (cʰa) gives the ligature RCha:
છ્ (cʰ) + ર (ra) gives the ligature ChRa:
Gurmukhi script
Chhachhaa[t͡ʃʰət͡ʃʰːɑ] (ਛ) is the twelfth letter of the Gurmukhi alphabet. Its name is [t͡ʃʰət͡ʃʰːɑ] and is pronounced as /t͡ʃʰ/ when used in words. It is derived from the Laṇḍā letter cha, and ultimately from the Brahmi cha. Gurmukhi chachaa does not have a special pairin or addha (reduced) form for making conjuncts, and in modern Punjabi texts do not take a half form or halant to indicate the bare consonant /t͡ʃʰ/, although Gurmukhi Sanskrit texts may use an explicit halant.
Telugu Cha
Telugu independent and subjoined Cha.
Cha (ఛ) is a consonant of the Teluguabugida. It ultimately arose from the Brahmi letter . It is closely related to the Kannada letter ಛ. Most Telugu consonants contain a v-shaped headstroke that is related to the horizontal headline found in other Indic scripts, although headstrokes do not connect adjacent letters in Telugu. The headstroke is normally lost when adding vowel matras.
Telugu conjuncts are created by reducing trailing letters to a subjoined form that appears below the initial consonant of the conjunct. Many subjoined forms are created by dropping their headline, with many extending the end of the stroke of the main letter body to form an extended tail reaching up to the right of the preceding consonant. This subjoining of trailing letters to create conjuncts is in contrast to the leading half forms of Devanagari and Bengali letters. Ligature conjuncts are not a feature in Telugu, with the only non-standard construction being an alternate subjoined form of Ṣa (borrowed from Kannada) in the KṢa conjunct.
Malayalam Cha
Malayalam letter Cha
Cha (ഛ) is a consonant of the Malayalamabugida. It ultimately arose from the Brahmi letter , via the Grantha letter Cha. Like in other Indic scripts, Malayalam consonants have the inherent vowel "a", and take one of several modifying vowel signs to represent syllables with another vowel or no vowel at all.
Malayalam Cha matras: Cha, Chā, Chi, Chī, Chu, Chū, Chr̥, Chr̥̄, Chl̥, Chl̥̄, Che, Chē, Chai, Cho, Chō, Chau, and Ch.
Conjuncts of ഛ
As is common in Indic scripts, Malayalam joins letters together to form conjunct consonant clusters. There are several ways in which conjuncts are formed in Malayalam texts: using a post-base form of a trailing consonant placed under the initial consonant of a conjunct, a combined ligature of two or more consonants joined together, a conjoining form that appears as a combining mark on the rest of the conjunct, the use of an explicit candrakkala mark to suppress the inherent "a" vowel, or a special consonant form called a "chillu" letter, representing a bare consonant without the inherent "a" vowel. Cha does not form ligatures or other combining forms, and Cha conjuncts can only be formed with post-base forms of other letter or an explicit candrakkala. Texts written with the modern reformed Malayalam orthography, put̪iya lipi, may favor more regular conjunct forms than older texts in paḻaya lipi, due to changes undertaken in the 1970s by the Government of Kerala.
Thai script
Cho ching (ฉ) is the ninth letter of the Thai script. It falls under the high class of Thai consonants. In IPA, cho ching is pronounced as [tɕʰ] at the beginning of a syllable and may not be used to close a syllable. The eighth letter of the alphabet, cho chan (จ), is also named cho but represents a different initial consonant sound ([tɕ]) and falls under the middle class of Thai consonants. The tenth and twelfth letters of the alphabet, cho chang (ช) and cho choe (ฌ), are also named cho, however, they all fall under the low class of Thai consonants. Unlike many Indic scripts, Thai consonants do not form conjunct ligatures, and use the pinthu—an explicit virama with a dot shape—to indicate bare consonants. In the acrophony of the Thai script, ching (ฉิ่ง) means ‘cymbals (ching)’. Cho ching corresponds to the Sanskrit character ‘छ’.
Odia Cha
Odia independent and subjoined letter Cha.
Cha (ଛ) is a consonant of the Odiaabugida. It ultimately arose from the Brahmi letter , via the Siddhaṃ letter Cha. Like in other Indic scripts, Odia consonants have the inherent vowel "a", and take one of several modifying vowel signs to represent syllables with another vowel or no vowel at all.
Odia Cha with vowel matras
Cha
Chā
Chi
Chī
Chu
Chū
Chr̥
Chr̥̄
Chl̥
Chl̥̄
Che
Chai
Cho
Chau
Ch
ଛ
ଛା
ଛି
ଛୀ
ଛୁ
ଛୂ
ଛୃ
ଛୄ
ଛୢ
ଛୣ
ଛେ
ଛୈ
ଛୋ
ଛୌ
ଛ୍
Conjuncts of ଛ
As is common in Indic scripts, Odia joins letters together to form conjunct consonant clusters. The most common conjunct formation is achieved by using a small subjoined form of trailing consonants. Most consonants' subjoined forms are identical to the full form, just reduced in size, although a few drop the curved headline or have a subjoined form not directly related to the full form of the consonant. The second type of conjunct formation is through pure ligatures, where the constituent consonants are written together in a single graphic form. This ligature may be recognizable as being a combination of two characters or it can have a conjunct ligature unrelated to its constituent characters. The "infinity" shaped subjoined form of Cha used in a few conjuncts is identical to the normal subjoined form of Tha and should not be confused with Tha.
ଚ୍ (c) + ଛ (cʰa) gives the ligature ccʰa:
ଞ୍ (ñ) + ଛ (cʰa) gives the ligature ñcʰa:
ଶ୍ (ʃ) + ଛ (cʰa) gives the ligature ʃcʰa:
Kaithi Cha
Kaithi consonant Cha.
Cha (𑂓) is a consonant of the Kaithiabugida. It ultimately arose from the Brahmi letter , via the Siddhaṃ letter Cha. Like in other Indic scripts, Kaithi consonants have the inherent vowel "a", and take one of several modifying vowel signs to represent syllables with another vowel or no vowel at all.
Kaithi Cha with vowel matras
Cha
Chā
Chi
Chī
Chu
Chū
Che
Chai
Cho
Chau
Ch
𑂓
𑂓𑂰
𑂓𑂱
𑂓𑂲
𑂓𑂳
𑂓𑂴
𑂓𑂵
𑂓𑂶
𑂓𑂷
𑂓𑂸
Conjuncts of 𑂓
As is common in Indic scripts, Kaithi joins letters together to form conjunct consonant clusters. The most common conjunct formation is achieved by using a half form of preceding consonants, although several consonants use an explicit virama. Most half forms are derived from the full form by removing the vertical stem. As is common in most Indic scripts, conjucts of ra are indicated with a repha or rakar mark attached to the rest of the consonant cluster. In addition, there are a few vertical conjuncts that can be found in Kaithi writing, but true ligatures are not used in the modern Kaithi script.
𑂩୍ (r) + 𑂓 (cʰa) gives the ligature rcʰa:
Comparison of Cha
The various Indic scripts are generally related to each other through adaptation and borrowing, and as such the glyphs for cognate letters, including Cha, are related as well.
^The middle "Kushana" form of Brahmi is a later style that emerged as Brahmi scripts were beginning to proliferate. Gupta Brahmi was definitely a stylistic descendant from Kushana, but other Brahmi-derived scripts may have descended from earlier forms.
^Tocharian is probably derived from the middle period "Kushana" form of Brahmi, although artifacts from that time are not plentiful enough to establish a definite succession.
^Pyu and Old Mon are probably the precursors of the Burmese script, and may be derived from either the Pallava or Kadamba script
^May also be derived from Devangari (see bottom left of table)
^The Origin of Hangul from 'Phags-pa is one of limited influence, inspiring at most a few basic letter shapes. Hangul does not function as an Indic abugida.
^Although the basic letter forms of the Canadian Aboriginal Syllabics were derived from handwritten Devanagari letters, this abugida indicates vowel sounds by rotations of the letter form, rather than the use of vowel diacritics as is standard in Indic abugidas.
^Masaram Gondi acts as an Indic abugida, but its letterforms were not derived from any single precursor script.
Character encodings of Cha
Most Indic scripts are encoded in the Unicode Standard, and as such the letter Cha in those scripts can be represented in plain text with unique codepoint. Cha from several modern-use scripts can also be found in legacy encodings, such as ISCII.
Kurt Elfering: Die Mathematik des Aryabhata I. Text, Übersetzung aus dem Sanskrit und Kommentar. Wilhelm Fink Verlag, München, 1975, ISBN3-7705-1326-6
Georges Ifrah: The Universal History of Numbers. From Prehistory to the Invention of the Computer. John Wiley & Sons, New York, 2000, ISBN0-471-39340-1.
B. L. van der Waerden: Erwachende Wissenschaft. Ägyptische, babylonische und griechische Mathematik. Birkhäuser-Verlag, Basel Stuttgart, 1966, ISBN3-7643-0399-9
Fleet, J. F. (1911). "Aryabhata's System of Expressing Numbers". The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. 43: 109–126. doi:10.1017/S0035869X00040995. JSTOR25189823.
^note Conjuncts are identified by IAST transliteration, except aspirated consonants are indicated with a superscript "h" to distinguish from an unaspirated cononant + Ha, and the use of the IPA "ŋ" and "ʃ" instead of the less dinstinctive "ṅ" and "ś".
("Q") after having gone through the Gupta letter 
.
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