Compte-Rendu De La Troisieme Conference Internationale (Proceedings of the Third International Conference Seminar) - An Old and Rare Book

The papers included in this volume have been collected by Father X.S. Thani Nayagam, and the printing process carried out in Pondicherry by Dr. F. Gros.

Apart from a few specialists, most of the authors- to say nothing of their reader- pay to diacritical marks a very unequal and meager tribute, each one usually following (steadily or not) a system of his own. Although some attempt has been done for consistency according to the transliteration adopted in this collection, some discrepancies still remain. Some very common words (e.g. sangam) have ordinarily received the most common spelling as well as many historical names (e.g. Thesawalamai or Polygar) and toponyms (e.g. Tanjore), while proper names were often spelt as usual in their owners’ bibliographies or bio-data. But what if one finds Tamilnad or Tamil Nadu side by side with the hybrid Tamilnadu, when the only correct transliteration (at least in our system) is Tamil natu, the only one to be conspicuously ignored since IATR exists? The editor can crave for indulgence by claiming that he paid to diacritics at least as much respect as the authors. He takes the opportunity to thank the printers, The Shri Aurobindo Ashram Press in Pondicherry, for their cooperation in heartily speeding up the task.