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98 The Journal of the Royal Institute of Thailand Volume III - 2011 98 The Dhamma Script Cultural Domain as a Contested Space in the Tai Lao World The Dhamma Script Cultural Domain as a Contested Space in the Tai-Lao World Volker Grabowsky Department of Thai Language and Thai Culture Asia-Africa-Institute, University of Hamburg Abstract This article seeks to explore first the interconnectedness of the Tai-Lao polities ( mueang ) in the çDhamma Script Cultural Domainé (DSCD) by focusing on the regionûs historical sources that are imbedded in the manuscript culture based primarily on the unique Dhamma script. This manuscript culture with its distinct local variants was essential for shaping and preserving ethnic identities among the various Tai ethnic groups such as Lao, Tai Yuan and Tai Lue. A short overview of the cultural, political and economic interrelationship within the DSCD will be provided. Then it will be briefly discussed how the disintegration of the DSCD in the wake of colonialism and the rise of nationalism as well as the emergence of the modern nation-state has been reflected in the narratives of the indigenous historical sources. The central focus will be on the intricate question whether the DSCD can form a meaningful geographical space for the Lao history or the çhistory of the Lao peopleé both with regard the period before the emergence of the modern nation-state and thereafter. Key words : the Dhamma Script, the Tai-Lao World Introduction The çDhamma script cultural domainé (DSCD) comprises an area of more than 400,000 square kilometres, with a population of roughly 30 million inhabitants, of which more than 80 percent are native speakers of Tai languages. The earliest evidence of the Dhamma script, probably a derivative of the ancient 98-112_mac9 4/26/12, 9:10 PM 98