Tintin in Tibet: Tibetan, Hindi and Devnagiri script

Hello

I'm doing a thesis on the presence of Orientalism in Tintin.
Apart from focusing on how some ethnic groups are portrayed in the comics, I'm interested in the graphics that Hergé used.
In Tintin in Tibet, the title page is bordered with script. I can identify some of it as Devnagiri, but the rest is alien to me.
Does anyone have any information on this?

Thanks

Divya

I don't think it's sanskrit, but it's something similar. It must be a Tibetan written language, but then, wouldn't that be sanskrit. I might be wrong here.

Orientalist wrote: In Tintin in Tibet, the title page is bordered with script. I can identify some of it as Devnagiri, but the rest is alien to me.

I suspect the rest is mock Tibetan - put in there for decorative purposes.

midnightblueowl wrote: I don't think it's sanskrit, but it's something similar. It must be a Tibetan written language, but then, wouldn't that be sanskrit.

The Tibetan script is derived from the Brahmi script, hence the similiarities with the Indian alphabets.

Hello

Thanks for the responses.

Marsbar, I think you may be right. He uses Devnagiri script (Hindi) again inside the book (when they're in Nepal, which is odd), when the guy carrying the load is giving it right back to the Captain.

He uses Devnagiri script (Hindi) again inside the book (when they're in Nepal, which is odd), when the guy carrying the load is giving it right back to the Captain.

Yes I was going to talk about that. The guy carrying the load says "Kya hai ji ?", which roughly translates as, "What is it, sir ?" or "What the hell is it, sir ?" (more appropriate going by the emotions on the face of the person).
The language used is Hindi (widely popular/national language in India).

It's not odd, because Hindi is also spoken/understood in Nepal,and Indian labourers often cross borders (illegally) to earn money in there.

In fact https://www.tintinologist.org/guides/books/20tibet.html gives the complete translation for this & the subsequent usage of Hindi & Chinese language.

As for the characters on the title page, since I dont have the book myself, I dunno about it. (I couldnt find the page online) :-(

$

Tibetan is very similar to Sanskrit(devnagari) script. The letter says "Mamami..." something or other deffinately in Tibetan.
The spoken languages of Nepal and Tibet are dialects of Hindi and all of them have their root in Sanskrit.
I will check some more and provide more information when I have it.

22 May 2017 15:02 - Merged topic:
Tintin in Tibet: Someone speaking Hindi?

InTintin in Tibet, where Tintin travels to India, there is actual Hindi spoken by the Tibetan coolie! Is it a mistake that a Nepali/Nepalese coolie would speak Hindi?

My son, is a linguist and Tintin fan who studied in Nepal. Here's what he has to say on this:

"Good question! There are lots of Hindi speakers in Nepal now (check Ethnologue), including in Kathmandu, but probably most Hindi speakers, especially at that time, were in the far south of Nepal, and the porter would be more likely to be a northerner than a southerner. However, Hindi is pretty similar to Nepali - a short, written comment such as appears in Tintin might be quite similar."

Both Hindi and Nepali are written in devanagari, the characters in the porter's speech bubble.

A correspondent once e-mailed me with a translation of the porter's comments. If I can dig that up, I'll post it.

The Gurkhas in Tibet and Nepal also speak perfect Hindi, and the script including the text is authentic.
This is on pages 11 & 14 of Tintin in Tibet.
Let me know if anybody is interested in the translation.

I'm interested. What are they saying?