The Indus Script: Preliminary Lexical and Functional Decipherment (Version 1.0)
Dominik
- Publisher
- Zenodo
- Language
- en
Abstract
This dataset presents the first integrated lexical and functional framework for deciphering the Indus script, covering 417 standardized glyphs (G001–G417). It proposes consistent semantic groupings across economic, administrative, and ritual domains, grounded in contextual frequency and functional morphology. The release includes three core components: Phase 1 High-Frequency Function Matrix (Top 25): a quantitative study of the most recurrent signs and their syntactic co-occurrence. Phase 2 Clause Typology and Grammar Rules: a structural outline of clause formation, relational markers, and compositional syntax. Indus Script Master Catalogue (G001–G417): a complete lexicon detailing each glyph’s proposed meaning, form, usage context, and confidence level. Together these files establish a reproducible foundation for future validation, peer commentary, and comparative epigraphic study.All material is original and released for scholarly use under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license.
Full text
Addendum: Variant Policy, Register Labels, and Core Set Author: Matthew Dominik (Hollis Black) Project: Indus Script Functional Framework and Clause Grammar Date: October 2025 1. Variant Policy A subset of glyph codes exhibit dual functions depending on form or context. They are now labeled with suffixes (a/b) distinguishing administrative from iconographic variants. Code Variant Register Functional Role G-208a Administrative Institution determinative Clause-initial; civic/temple marker G-208b Administrative Verification variant Mid-final; certification mark G-342a Administrative Container / Receipt Final; vessel/jar (gha) G-342b Iconographic Animal mark Ritual context only G-383a Administrative Agent / Account holder Near verb/object G-383b Iconographic Maternal/creative icon Excluded from grammar counts G-220a Administrative Closure / validation Final G-220b Administrative Boat (import) Logistics subset 2. Register Labels The corpus shows two registers: Administrative (economic/record) and Iconographic (ritual/symbolic). Grammar rules apply only to the Administrative register. 3. Core 60 Dataset Baseline glyphs defining grammatical behavior and positional logic. Code Primary Role Typical R→L Position Confidence G-171 Measure / unit Medial, before totals 0.80 G-118 Tally / total Final or penultimate 0.85 G-149 Exchange / trade Medial 0.75 G-342a Container / receipt Final 0.80 G-208a Institution determinative Clause-initial 0.70 4. Falsifiability Clause
The framework can be falsified if any of the following are demonstrated: (1) systemic reversal of R→L syntax; (2) administrative glyphs in incompatible contexts; (3) random positional distribution; (4) absence of determinative→agent→object→closure structure. 5. Summary This addendum does not alter hypotheses or results. It formalizes internal controls and variant labeling to ensure transparency and reproducibility. © 2025 Matthew Dominik (Hollis Black) — CC BY-NC 4.0
