Both scripts have served as cultural ambassadors, by creating mutual understanding among ethnic groups or inspiring linguistic pride. Sri Lanka, the birthplace of Amma, needed a common language. The country was riven by civil war for more than 25 years, ending in 2009 with the defeat of the rebel Tamil Tigers by Sinhalese-majority government forces. Some have labeled both the civil war and previous government policies as genocidal against the Tamil minority, but allegations of massive war crimes have been made against both sides.Īgainst this backdrop, Pathum Egodawatta unveiled Amma-not just a new font, but actually an entirely new writing system. It ambitiously attempts to be midway between the Sinhala and Tamil writing systems, mutually intelligible to the readers from these two formerly feuding families while not being the same as either. To the people of Sri Lanka it is a surprising idea, about as likely as a genetically engineered crossbreed between a cat and a dog-yet it seems to be gaining traction. Not for general use, perhaps, but it’s under consideration for select Sri Lankan signage.
The Sinhala and Tamil letterforms share similarities because they both descended from the Brahmi script of ancient India. The newborn Amma forms a hybrid between the two letterforms.Īs you can see in the chart above, the Sinhala and Tamil letterforms always have some slight, distant relationship, which enabled Egodawatta to create Amma.
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