Scripts

Introduction

In the field of information technology, the term Chinese writing systems (中文 zhōngwén) refers to all the writing systems that are or have been used by the various minzu (for recording their languages) in China throughout history (Dai, 2020), and therefore does not refer to the national common writing system of China.

This concept is based on the writing systems used by various minzu in China. When referring to a writing system, the most common expression is to add the word writing system to the name of the minzu, as in the case of Mongol minzu using “Mongolian writing system”, Zang minzu using “Tibetan writing system”, and so on. Considering that the Jingpo branch and the Zaiwa branch of the Jingpo minzu use the “Jingpo writing system” and “Zaiwa writing system” respectively, which is also related to the fact that Jingpo and Zaiwa are different languages spoken by different branches of the same minzu, the word writing system is actually added to the name of the language.

Furthermore, even when recording the same language, different scripts have been used at different times in history. For example, the Old Uyghur script was initially used to record the Mongolian language, known as the Mongolian writing system with Old Uyghur script, which was later developed into the Mongolian writing system with Mongolian script, and in the early 1950s the Mongolian writing system with Cyrillic script was also tried out. Another example is that the Arabic script was used to record the Uygur language, known as the Uygur writing system with Arabic script, and in 1964 the Latin letters were introduced, known as the Uygur writing system with Latin script.

Further investigation reveals that even writing systems that use the same script to record the same language have developed different orthographies at different times in history. For example, after the Arabic script was used to record the Uygur language, people continued to improve its orthography, with the 1937 orthography containing 32 letters, the 1954 orthography containing 30 letters, and the 1984 orthography containing 32 letters, with the order of the letters also adjusted. In another example, the Modern Han script was used to record the Zhuang language, and later the Latin script was used, with the 1957 orthography containing 32 letters, and the 1982 orthography containing 26 letters.

Thus, in the context of Chinese writing systems, it takes three parts to accurately refer to a writing system: the language, the scripts (a writing system may use more than one script, e.g. the Han writing system actually uses Modern Han script, Latin script, Greek script, and so on), and the version of the orthography. The concept of script is the result of a reorganization and generalization of the textual elements used by these writing systems.

A List of Chinese Writing Systems

A List of Chinese Symbols

  • pre-script symbols / 前文字现象
    • Liangzhu symbols / 良渚图符
    • Jiahu symbols / 贾湖契刻符号
    • Banpo pottery symbols / 半坡陶符
    • Ba-Shu symbols / 巴蜀符号
  • religious symbols
    • Mosuo Daba symbols / 摩梭达巴文
    • Namuzi Pazi symbols / 纳木依帕孜经书
    • Ersu Shaba symbols / 尔苏沙巴文
    • Minyag symbols / 木雅经书
    • Taliu Duoxi symbols / 他留铎系文
    • Malimasa symbols / 玛丽玛萨文
    • Jingpo Biedang symbols / 景颇别当文 (景颇牛皮文字)
    • Xuanhan Tujia symbols / 宣汉土家祭司文字
    • Yunzhuan symbols / 云篆文 ▷ Found in 云篆度人经.
    • Fulu symbols / 符箓
  • pictographs
    • Jingpo pictographs / 景颇图画文字 (景颇实物表意文字)
    • Poya pictographs / 坡芽歌书
    • Babao pictographs / 八宝歌书
    • Miao Gebang pictographs / 苗族歌棒文字
    • Li Bamboo pictographs / 黎族刻竹木文字
  • cloth symbols
    • Miao cloth symbols / 苗族衣饰文字
    • She cloth symbols / 畲族织锦文字
    • Yao cloth symbols / 瑶族织锦文字
  • architectural symbols
    • Dong architectural symbols / 侗族墨师文
  • bone symbols
    • Changle bone symbols / 昌乐骨刻文
    • Shouguang bone symbols / 寿光骨刻文
    • southern Guangxi bone symbols / 桂南骨刻文
  • stone symbols
    • Dankou stone symbols / 丹口石刻苗文 (城步古苗文)
    • Leigongshan stone symbols / 雷公山苗文碑 (雷公山古苗文)
    • Gansang stone symbols / 甘桑骆越石刻文
    • Xianju stone symbols / 仙居高凉石刻文 (中央坑摩崖石刻)
    • Hua’an stone symbols / 华安仙字潭摩崖石刻
  • ancient symbols
    • Hongya symbols / 红崖天书 ▷ Found in 红岩碑.
    • Yelang symbols / 夜郎天书
    • Goulou symbols / 岣嵝碑文 ▷ Found in 岣嵝碑.
    • Xianju symbols / 仙居蝌蚪文
    • Cangjie symbols / 仓圣鸟迹书碑 ▷ Found in 仓圣鸟迹书碑.
    • Xiayushu symbols / 夏禹书 ▷ Found in 淳化秘阁法帖.
    • Cangjieshu symbols / 仓颉书 ▷ Found in 淳化秘阁法帖.
    • Jianghua Yao symbols / 江华瑶篆, 江华瑶族古文字
    • Chenshu Tujia symbols / 陈书土家古文字
    • Jiutian Gelao symbols / 九天书仡佬文 ▷ Found in 九天大濮史录.
    • Sawgoek (Sawva) Zhuang symbols / 壮族本源书 (花纹书)

Reference

  1. 徐琳, 赵衍荪. 白语简志. 北京: 民族出版社, 1984. ↩

  2. 毛宗武, 蒙朝吉, 郑宗泽. 瑶族语言简志. 北京: 民族出版社, 1982. ↩

  3. 周有光. 汉字和文化问题. 沈阳: 辽宁人民出版社, 2001. ↩ ↩2

  4. 中央民族大学中国少数民族语言文学学院 (编). 戴庆厦文集 第 5 卷: 汉语和非汉语比较研究. 北京: 中央民族大学出版社, 2012, p. 233. ↩

  5. 牛林杰 (主编), 刘宝全 (主编). 中韩人文社会科学研究 第 2 辑. 济南: 山东大学出版社, 2007, pp. 230-232. ↩

  6. 陈康. 土家语研究. 北京: 中央民族大学出版社, 2006. ↩

  7. 中国民族古文字研究会 (编). 中国民族古文字研究 第 3 辑. 天津: 天津古籍出版社, 1991, pp. 215-220. ↩

  8. 人民政治协商会议怒江傈僳族自治州委员会文史资料研究委员会. 怒江文史资料选辑 第 12 辑: 兰坪普米族社会历史调查专辑. 政协怒江僳僳族自治州委员会兰坪白族普米族自治县委员会文史研究委员会, 1989, p. 148. ↩

  9. 吉呷, 林强. 木雅藏语方言词汇. 成都: 四川民族出版社, 2023. ↩

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