Analyze the linguistic and paleographic features of the Tamil-Brahmi script recovered from rock shelters such as Edakkal in Kerala: 1. The inscriptions reflect a transitional Tamil-Prakrit hybrid language that records early royal titles, individual donor names, and mercantile affiliations. 2. They are engraved exclusively in the Devanagari script using classical Sanskrit grammar rules established during the Gupta period. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

💡 Solution & Explanation

Statement 1 is correct because the Edakkal rock-shelter inscriptions utilize the Tamil-Brahmi writing system to express early Tamil vocabulary intertwined with administrative designations. Statement 2 is incorrect because Devanagari evolved centuries later and was not used in Sangam-era epigraphs, which predate the Gupta imperial epoch. The Edakkal inscriptions remain vital benchmarks for dating early literacy and trans-ghat communication routes in Malabar.