Indus Script - Attempts at Decipherment

Attempts At Decipherment

Further information: Harappan language

Over the years, numerous decipherments have been proposed, but none has been accepted by the scientific community at large. The following factors are usually regarded as the biggest obstacles for a successful decipherment:

  • The underlying language has not been identified though some 300 loanwords in the Rigveda are a good starting point for comparison.
  • The average length of the inscriptions is less than five signs, the longest being only 17 signs (and a sealing of combined inscriptions of just 27 signs).
  • No bilingual texts (like a Rosetta Stone) have been found.

The topic is popular among amateur researchers, and there have been various (mutually exclusive) decipherment claims. None of these suggestions has found academic recognition.

Read more about this topic:  Indus Script

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