AMHARIC (ETHIOPIC)  

FUNCTIONAL SUMMARY

The Amharic (Ethiopic) tables support print-to-braille translation of literary text written in Ethiopic script for Amharic and other Ethiopic languages with similar braille, following the document "Braille" (Ethiopian National Association for the Blind, 1998), and also English literary text according to the codes and customs established by the Braille Authority of the United Kingdom (BAUK), as revised 2004-2005. Several other languages may also be processed as sub-languages, and transcribed in accordance with BAUK practice. Technical codes for math and science (BAUK Math Code) and computer notation (BAUK's Braille Computer Notation [BCN]) are also supported.

Normally, the text is first prepared on Microsoft Word using a Unicode font that supports the Ethiopic script (such as Ethiopic WashRa), and imported to DBT prior to translation.

As of this writing (December 2006), these tables are still in the early stages of development as so should be regarded as experimental. For the same reason, this documentation should be regarded as preliminary.

REFERENCES, HISTORY AND CREDITS

These Amharic tables were developed by Duxbury Systems, starting in October 2006 with the then-current English/British tables, working from the document "Braille" provided by Lemma Regassa, Educational Affairs Department Head of the Ethiopian National Association for the Blind. Duxbury Systems is grateful to Tigabu Gebremedhin of Christoffel-Blindenmission (CBM), Deputy Regional Chairperson for East Africa in the International Council for Education of the Visually Handicapped (ICEVI), for assistance obtaining the necessary information and for guidance and feedback.

Duxbury Systems also thanks Tamru E. Belay, PhD, of the Adaptive Technology Center for the Blind (ATCB), who has also provided helpful feedback and information, and who adds the following thoughts: "Ethiopic script has been in use since 100 BC. It is the only indigenous African alphabet still in use today. Each character in the Ethiopic alphabet represents a syllable: a combination of consonant plus vowel. There are 33 consonants and seven vowels. Just as we have computerized Braille in Arabic, Hausa, Kiswahili, and Somalia, there was no reason why one cannot develop Ethiopic Braille."

The aspects of these tables related to English literary usage, mathematics and computer notation are all the same as for the English/British tables.

(Documentation reviewed: December 2006.)

Duxbury DBT: Braille Translation in Many Languages.