Aadarsha Ratne font set is developed in dedication to our beloved father Ratneswar Deka; he left us for his heavenly abode on September 30, 1998 (aahin shukla nabami tithi 550 sankarabda, Vaishnava Incurnation Day). This project is carried out under project name Ratne Prakalpa that started in October 1998. Aadarsha Ratne is World's first 32-bit TrueType font-set supporting languages such as Assamese, Baro, Bengali, Kamrupi, Karbi and Manipuri. Aadarsha Ratne font set supports all type of "juktkshyar" or conjuncts. Now all Aadarsha Ratne scripts are OpenType.

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In brief, I would like to write about my father and, thus, I have looked for a suitable font-set available in the market. Upon investigating, I observe that none of the font-sets available is complete to support all Kamrupi sounds and or "juktyakshar". As a result I have decided to design a font-set that will support all sounds and or "juktyakshar". 

It is good idea, as because I can improve the font-set to an extent by the time I complete the manuscript on my Father. 

Initially the font-set is called "Asomi Ratne" but later on changed to "Aadarsha Ratne". This is done because it brings the font-set to the top of the menu in any word-processor. 

The name "Ratne" is in dedication to our beloved father; he were called "Ratne" by his friends. 

Aadarsha Ratne Internet font-set license is free for the people of Assam especially for personal use; for the use in educational institutes, non-profit non-printing organizations and or institutes, and religious institutes. 

Aadarsha Ratne Internet font-set can be used to send/read/write e-mails. 

The very first version of Aadarsha Ratne scripts sets is called Aadarsha Ratne _A. This version has been discontinued. 

Technical Highlights

The font set is designed using Trigonometry and Geometry concepts using the Vector Font Design method. At the time of first development, this is the only TrueType font-set that supports Assamese, Bengali and Manipuri languages, and font-set is designed for 32bit quality. Most commercially available font-sets have been 16 bit scan fonts converted to TrueType by software tools. 

Latest versions of any Aadarsha Ratne scripts sets are OpenType. 

Aadarsha Ratne font uses a conjugate vector design technique. In this technique, common elements of various fonts are designed once but used repetitively. 

Aadarsha Ratne also has professional version of scripts set. In this version, there are a total of 400 fonts and other characters available enabling to support all type of professional writing in languages such as Assamese, Bengali and Manipuri. Any Aadarsha Ratne font-set is small in size because of its design method. 

Aadarsha Ratne supports four different types of mapping techniques, i.e., (a) any Microsoft utility (b) any Apple MAC utility (c) Unicode (visit http://unicode.org/ for more information) and (d) an Unknown mapping. Here (a) and (b) are modified from ASCII to help use any existing utility for Assamese, Bengali and Manipuri. This modified ASCII mapping is calle Ratne Mapping for languages such as Assamese, Bengali and Manipuri. 

Unicode mapping is proposed by Unicode Consortium. While the forth Unknown Mapping feature will allow to incorporate a special mapping to a specific user of Ratne fonts, but it got to be done by Aadarsha Ratne script developer upon request as this will make a different default mapping for the user. 

Scholarship from Ratne Fund

Two full-time scholarships covering both tuition and maintenance have been awarded. 

University Projects

Aadarsha Ratne Font is right now used in Tezpur University for their M.Tech Projects and other research activities. Utpal Sarma, Lecturer of Department of Computer Science Tezpur University speaks in the following passage how he wishes to use Aadarsha Ratne font-set for his NLP research activities for the Assamese language. 

In our NLP research work for Assamese, we shall anyway require some fair amount of Assamese texts (corpus). As far as the processing of the texts is concerned, fonts are not vital. The unambiguous representation of the content is important, i.e., a proper set of codes for the characters. But we want the fonts for the creation of correct texts. Without the fonts, we may use a suitable convention based on the roman characters (as normally we do according to phonetics). But that may leave too many errors in the texts. If we can at least review the created texts in Assamese fonts, it will be much simpler to ensure correctness. --Utpal Sarma, Lecturer, Tezpur University (if you are interested to help with projects or ideas for M.Tech projects please contact Utpal Sarma via e-mail utpal@agnigarh.tezu.ernet.in as this may be helpful for Assam).

In addition, Gauhati university as well as IIT Guwahati use Aadarsha Ratne scripts for research projects.

Panchanath Taranga

Acknowledgement

The developer is grateful to his family, brother, sisters his parents.

He owes thanks to Late Paresh Chandra Haloi, M.A, formerly Artfet Chairman, Govt of Assam and Dr Ramesh Chandra Pathak, Professor of Assamese, Cotton College, Guwahati Assam, and Prakash Das of California. In addition, there has been a long list of well-wisher friends of Aadarsha Ratne scripts and the developer is grateful to them. 

Kamrup or Kamarupa

Until seventh century Kamarupa was a mighty Kingdom and its border, as well as other description, is found in traveler's note of Chinese traveller Huen Tsang who travelled Kamarupa during the time King Kumar Bhaskara Varma ruled Kamarupa. According to this note, present Northeast Indian State Assam and surrounding areas including parts of present Bangladesh West Bengal Bihar, and Mountain Kingdom Bhutan was in Kamarupa. Its capital was Pragjyotisapura with present location would be around Rangia/Guwahati - Guwahati, Kamrupi people pronounces Gauhati [ , in Kamrupi script ] is present capital of the State of Assam.

The Kingdom name became Kamarupa from Pragjyotisa, according to legend, after Kamadeva god of love, kama, was reborn, rupa. He was burnt to ash by anger-sight of Lord Siva in the Kingdom of Pragjyotisa in a mountain, known as Kamarupa as well in some scriptures, for wakening Him up from deep meditation, but later on Kamadeva was reborn upon His blessing.

"Jyotisa" in Sanskrit equals electric/flash or lightning; "prag", also a Sanskrit word, equals begin or early or start. It could be that the land was called Pragjyotisa as the monsoon begins lightning appears in Sky - happens even year now as well. The Capital of Pragjyotisa was Pragjyotisapura. This city was in present Darrang district of Assam during King Bhauma. Later on, the capital might have moved to present Rangia/Gauhati area by King Naraka, keeping the same name.

Pragjyotisa, Pragjyotisapura and Kamarupa finds frequent mention in Srimad Bhagavad and other Epic lore such as Mahabharata.

Present day undivided Kamrup was a district of Assam during 1970's. It is observed that each time an Ahom became Chief Minister of Assam in the past, Kamrup district gets divided into pieces. But first division was observed during British India who broke Kamarupa into two big districts - one Cooch Behar added to Bengal and the other Kamrup added to Assam.

Srimad Bhagavad 10.59.2-3:

sri-suka uvaca:
indrena hrta-chatrena hrta-kundala-bandhuna
hrtamaradri-sthanena jnapito bhauma-cestitam
sa-bharyo garudurudhah prag-jyotisa-puram yayau
giri-durgaih sastra-durgair jalagny-anila-durgamam
mura-pasayutair ghorair drdhaih sarvata avrtam

Saint Suk says: After Bhauma, King of Pragjyotisa, sieged demigods' playground at the peak of Mandara mountain along with Varuna's umbrella and Indra's mother's earrings, Indra went to Lord Krisna and informed Him of these misdeeds. The Lord, taking His wife Satyabhama with Him, then rode on Garura to Pragyotisa-pura, which was surrounded on all sides by fortifications consisting of hills, unmanned weapons, water, fire and wind, and by obstructions of mura-pasa wire.

Kamrupi

Kamrupi means the people of Kamrup and the language they speak. Since after independence Kamrupi lost its writing status, and its grammar is not adopted in the state language Assamese. As a result Kamrupi variation is observed in greater undivided Kamrup. But amazingly Sanskritize pronunciation usage as part of grammar is very visible among Kamrupi speakers - see some examples; see same in Kamrupi scripts.

Kamrupi Wisdom:

A community is not a playground of their messy mind, but a community is, to equate feelings, to equate needs, to equate thoughts, …, for beings for each other.