The first Pali grammar was written by Kaccayana (Kaccaayana). The other important texts of Pali grammar are those of Moggallana (Moggallaana) and Saddaniiti. The authors of the first two were Sri Lankan Buddhist teachers, and the third was written by Aggavamsa (Aggava.msa). Many commentaries and super-commentaries were written on these three grammars.
The following list of ancient Pali philological texts is found in CSCD Version 3:
- [Byaakara.na gantha-sa`ngaha - Grammar text collection] -
. Kaccaayanabyaakara.na 《迦旃延文法》 [CPD class 5.1]
. Moggallaanabyaakara.na 《目犍連文法》 [CPD class 5.3]
. Saddaniitippakara.na (padamaalaa) 《語法论》 [CPD class 5.2]
. Saddaniitippakara.na (dhaatumaalaa) [CPD class 5.2]
. Padaruupasiddhi 《句身成就》 [CPD class 5.1.4]
. Moggallaanapa~ncikaa [CPD class 5.3.111]
. Payogasiddhipaa.tha 《前方便成就》 [CPD class 5.3.5]
. Vuttodayapaa.tha 《巴利詩學》 [CPD class 5.7.1]
. Abhidhaanappadiipikaapaa.tha 《同義字》 [CPD class 5.6.1]
. Abhidhaanappadiipikaa.tiikaa 《同義字疏》 [CPD class 5.6.1.2]
. Subodhaala`nkaarapaa.tha 《莊嚴明瞭》 [CPD class 5.8.1]
. Subodhaala`nkaara.tiikaa 《莊嚴明瞭疏》
. Baalaavataara ga.nthipadatthavinicchayasaara 《新入門》 （巴利初學入門）
Padaruupasiddhi is a commentary on Kaccayana's Grammar written by Buddhappiyo, while Moggallaanapa~ncikaa and Payogasiddhipaa.tha are commentaries on Moggallana's Grammar.
Vuttodayapaa.tha is a work on metrics.
Abhidhaanappadiipikaa is a dictionary (kosha) by Moggallana. As a matter of fact, it is a thesaurus of synonyms, antonyms and homonyms.
Subodhaala`nkaara is the only one important work on poetics and rhetoric, written by Sangharakhita, who also produced one work on prosody.
Baalaavataara is a grammar by Bhikkhu Dharmakirti.
These texts are also available online in Unicode format: http://www.tipitaka.org/cell/booklist4.html
The Sri Lanka Tipitaka Project (SLTP) project has made available the following:
- [Grammar] -
. Baalaavataara [CPD class 5.1.5]
. Kaccaayana Dhaatuma~njuusaa (incomplete)
. Dhaatupaa.tha Vilaasiniya [CPD class 5.5.1]
. Kaccaayanavyaakara.na
. Moggallaayanavyaakara.na
. Moggallaana Vuttivivara.napa~ncikaa
. Padama~njarii
. Padasaadhana
. Mahaaruupasiddhi (includes Ruupasiddhi.tiikaa at the back) [CPD class 5.1.4]
. Saddabindu pakara.na [CPD class 5.4.5]
. Vaakyamaalaava
- [Misc:Dictionary] -
. Abhidhaanappadiipikaa [CPD class 5.6.1]
- [Misc:Rhetoric] -
. Subodhaala`nkaara [CPD class 5.8.1]
These are available for download from the Journal of Buddhist Ethics (JBE) website: http://www.buddhistethics.org/palicanon.html
The texts are also available online on GRETIL and La Trobe University sites:
. http://www.sub.uni-goettingen.de/ebene_1/fiindolo/gretil.htm
. http://www.chaf.lib.latrobe.edu.au/dcd/pali.htm
Pali Text Society (PTS) has published the following ancient texts:
1. The Paali Dhaatupaa.tha and the Dhaatuma~njusaa
ed. Dines Andersen and Helmer Smith, 1921
Two grammatical texts with lists of roots.
2. Saddaniiti
ed. Helmer Smith, 1928-66, reprint 2001
Saddaniiti is the most comprehensive Pali grammar ever written. Its author was Aggavamsa of Arimaddana in Myanmar (Burma). The work consists of three parts: Padamaalaa, Dhaatumaalaa, and Suttamaalaa (The last one is not included in CSCD Ver. 3) The second part deals with roots, their meanings, words formed with the roots and detailed explanation. It also gives us the examples of the roots from the Texts and Commentaries as much as possible.
Pali Roots in Saddaniti
An electronic book available from CMBT
A Root is an essential and basic element of a word. Most words in Pali as well as in Sanskrit are made up of a root and a suffix. In this work all the Pali roots are presented, approximately 1717 roots, together with their meanings, English and Spanish translation of the meanings, and a comparison with the respective Sanskrit roots.
http://www.cmbt.org/libroselectronicos/psroots.htm
An extensive list of ancient Pali works can be found under the philology section in the bibliography of the Critical Pali Dictionary (CPD). Other texts include:
Ekakkharakosa: a Pali vocabulary by Saddhammakitti. [CPD class 5.6.2]