Cyrillic

Daur Language

Daur written with Cyrillic in 1916 orthography

In 1916, Qin Tongfu (钦同甫) created this writing system using Cyrillic letters to write the Daur language. This writing system was once promoted in the Butha (布特哈) region and had some influence.

The only surviving record of this script is a photograph taken by the renowned photographer Siqin (思勤) at the Molidawa (莫力达瓦) Cultural Center; the original documents were later destroyed in a fire. The photograph was published in the Daur Material Collection. Based on this photograph, Enghebatu (恩和巴图) compiled an entry for the Daur Encyclopedia Dictionary, which subsequently became the source for all later descriptions, including Wu (2015) ¹ and Ding Shiqing’s Outline of the Daur Language. However, due to the poor quality of the photograph, several letters were misidentified in this chain of transmission.

Based on a re-examination of the original photograph by Liu (2025) ², the alphabet is shown below:

Remark:

1. The relationship between letters and phonemes is entirely inferred, as no text samples with known readings survive. The assignments above are based on the letter positions in the original table and comparison with later Daur Cyrillic schemes (such as the 1956 orthography) and other Mongolic Cyrillic alphabets.
2. ⟨є⟩ (Ukrainian Ye) likely represents the front vowel /e/.
3. ⟨ѣ⟩ (Yat) was misread as ⟨е⟩ or ⟨ъ⟩ in earlier descriptions due to the poor quality of the photograph. It probably represents /jə/.
4. ⟨і⟩ (dotted I) may represent /jɔ/ or serve as a palatalizing element. It may also have been used for diphthongs such as /ai/ and /ei/.
5. ⟨ы⟩ may have been used for diphthongs (/ai/, /ei/, /oi/) or to transcribe apical vowels in Chinese loanwords, similar to its function in the 1956 orthography.
6. ⟨ь⟩ and ⟨ъ⟩ are modelled on the Russian situation: ⟨ь⟩ for palatalization, ⟨ъ⟩ as a hard sign indicating a hiatus. However, ⟨ъ⟩ may also have been used for reduced vowels, as in early Kalmyk Cyrillic.
7. ⟨ѳ⟩ (Fita) is of uncertain function; it may mark labialized consonants or serve another auxiliary purpose.
8. ⟨в⟩ is considered in some literature to record /t͡sʰ/, which is here assigned to ⟨ц⟩. The absence of ⟨з⟩ and ⟨щ⟩ is expected, as Daur lacks /z/ and the sounds they typically represent.

Daur written with Cyrillic in 1956 orthography

In May 1956, a scientific symposium on the Mongolian language was held in Hohhot city. The draft of the writing system was discussed at the meeting, and was sent out for extensive consultation and trial teaching in some areas, which received a favorable response; a working conference on the Daur language was held in Hohhot in December, and the writing system was adopted. The orthography was compiled by Oonan Ujur (欧南·乌珠尔) and published as Daur Orthography (Draft) in April 1957. In the same year, Inner Mongolia established a specialized institution, published a series of textbooks and readers, and conducted trial teaching. However, the script promotion was halted in 1958. The writing system records the Daur phonology based on the Nawen subdialect (纳文土语), Butha dialect (布特哈方言) in Molidawa Daur autonomous banner (莫利达瓦达斡尔族自治旗), Hulunbuir city (呼伦贝尔市).

According to the official Daur Orthography (Draft) compiled by Oonan Ujur (欧南·乌珠尔) ³, the alphabet consists of 32 letters:

Remark:

1. ⟨я⟩, ⟨е⟩, ⟨ё⟩, ⟨ю⟩ are single letters representing the sequences of ⟨й⟩ + ⟨а⟩, ⟨э⟩, ⟨о⟩, ⟨у⟩.
2. ⟨е⟩ has two readings: after a consonant it represents the front vowel /je/; elsewhere it represents /jə/. When conditions do not permit ⟨ё⟩, ⟨е⟩ may be used instead, distinguished by meaning and vowel harmony.
3. ⟨ы⟩ has two readings: (1) a diphthong /əj/ (/aj/, /ej/, /oj/) that does not appear word-initially; (2) an apical vowel /ɨ/ used in Chinese loanwords.
4. ⟨ь⟩ and ⟨ъ⟩ are similar to Russian written with Cyrillic: ⟨ь⟩ for palatalization, ⟨ъ⟩ as a hard sign.

Uygur Language

Uygur written with Cyrillic in 1957 orthography

In May 1954, the State Council approved the report on helping creating writing systems, and suggested that it is possible to use Cyrillic letters for writing systems in Xinjiang. From August 13 to 22, 1956, the scientific symposium on the Xinjiang languages adopted the draft of this writing system.

According to Xinjiang Daily (1957) ⁴, the alphabet is shown below:

Remark:

1. ⟨ъ⟩ is used to indicate a pause, like Russian written with Cyrillic. See also Uygur written with Arabic ⟨ئ⟩.

Kazak Language

Kazak written with Cyrillic in 1957 orthography

In May 1954, the State Council approved the report on helping creating writing systems, and suggested that it is possible to use Cyrillic letters for writing systems in Xinjiang. From August 13 to 22, 1956, the scientific symposium on the Xinjiang languages adopted the draft of this writing system.

According to Xinjiang Daily (1957) ⁴, the alphabet is shown below:

Remark:

1. ⟨ъ⟩ and ⟨ь⟩ are similar to Russian written with Cyrillic.
2. ⟨э⟩, ⟨щ⟩, ⟨я⟩, ⟨ё⟩ and ⟨ю⟩ are used for loan words.
3. There is no phoneme i in Kazak phonology, i is the corresponding vowel of j, as in ḵaraḡai (should be ḵaraḡay).

Kirgiz Language

Kirgiz written with Cyrillic in 1957 orthography

In May 1954, the State Council approved the report on helping creating writing systems, and suggested that it is possible to use Cyrillic letters for writing systems in Xinjiang. From August 13 to 22, 1956, the scientific symposium on the Xinjiang languages adopted the draft of this writing system.

According to Xinjiang Daily (1957) ⁴, the alphabet is shown below:

Remark:

1. ⟨ъ⟩ and ⟨ь⟩ are similar to Russian written with Cyrillic.
2. ⟨ц⟩, ⟨щ⟩, ⟨я⟩, ⟨е⟩, ⟨ё⟩ and ⟨ю⟩ are used for loan words.

Mongolian Language

Mongolian written with Cyrillic in 1957 orthography

In May 1954, the State Council approved the report on helping creating writing systems, and suggested that it is possible to use Cyrillic letters for writing systems in Xinjiang. From August 13 to 22, 1956, the scientific symposium on the Xinjiang languages adopted the draft of this writing system.

According to Xinjiang Daily (1957) ⁴, the alphabet is shown below:

Remark:

1. ⟨ъ⟩ and ⟨ь⟩ are similar to Russian written with Cyrillic.
2. ⟨э⟩, ⟨щ⟩, ⟨я⟩, ⟨ё⟩ and ⟨ю⟩ are used for loan words.

Sibe Language

Sibe written with Cyrillic in 1957 orthography

In May 1954, the State Council approved the report on helping creating writing systems, and suggested that it is possible to use Cyrillic letters for writing systems in Xinjiang. From August 13 to 22, 1956, the scientific symposium on the Xinjiang languages adopted the draft of this writing system.

According to Xinjiang Daily (1957) ⁴, the alphabet is shown below:

Remark:

1. ⟨ь⟩ is similar to Russian written with Cyrillic.
2. ⟨я⟩, ⟨е⟩, ⟨ё⟩ and ⟨ү⟩ are used for loan words.

Uzbek Language

Uzbek written with Cyrillic in 1957 orthography

In 1940, Uzbek SSR was switched to the Cyrillic script. According to the resolution of the Xinjiang conference, this writing system was also adopted in Xinjiang.

The letters are shown below:

Remark:

1. ⟨ъ⟩ and ⟨ь⟩ are similar to Russian written with Cyrillic.

Tatar Language

Tatar written with Cyrillic in 1957 orthography

On 5 May 1939, Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of Tatar ASSR issued the decree ‘On switching Tatar writing from the Latin-based alphabet to an alphabet based on Russian glyphs’, and during a conference in July 1940, the Cyrillic alphabet was amended. The updated alphabet was accepted on 10 January 1941. According to the resolution of the Xinjiang conference, this writing system was also adopted in Xinjiang.

According to the standard Tatar Cyrillic alphabet, the letters are shown below:

Remark:

1. ⟨ъ⟩ and ⟨ь⟩ are similar to Russian written with Cyrillic.

Russian Language

Russian written with Cyrillic in 1700 orthography

The letters are shown below:

Remark:

1. The letter ⟨ъ⟩ is a so-called “hard sign”, indicating a slight pause between syllables.
2. The letter ⟨ь⟩ is a so-called “soft sign”, indicating that the preceding consonant is palatalized.

Reference