Tai Tham letter ma

It marks the m consonant; the rest of the spelling shapes the syllable. Like other consonants in this abugida (a script where consonant letters carry a default vowel), ᨾ has a vowel value that vowel signs can change. Tone marks also affect the syllable, and a subjoined consonant is written beneath another consonant. So the letter name “ma” is not a translation of every word containing it.

How did Tai Tham develop?

Tai Tham grew from Mon writing and was adapted for Tai languages.

A bilingual inscription dated 1376 is early evidence of the script. In Lan Na, the earliest evidence for Tai vernacular alongside Pali—a language used in Buddhist texts—is dated 1465; a handwritten palm-leaf manuscript follows in 1471.

Tai Tham served Buddhist texts, especially in Pali, and also carried commentaries, Jātaka stories (tales of the Buddha’s previous lives), chronicles, law, astrology, medicine, and poetry. A 2015 survey described its use as liturgical in Laos and as a marker of identity elsewhere. Lanna (Northern Thai), Khuen, Tai Lue, and other Tham traditions span northern Thailand, Laos, Shan areas, and Yunnan; local languages and styles differ. In Lan Na, Tai Tham existed alongside writing traditions such as Fak Kham and Thai Nithet.