Role in Early Studies of Fuzhou Dialect
For centuries, Qī Lín Bāyīn had been utilized by local people as an authoritative reference book of the Foochow pronunciation. Furthermore, it also greatly assisted the earliest Western missionaries in Fuzhou in learning and studying the native language.
M. C. White, a Methodist from the United States, is the first missionary that attempted to romanize Qī Lín Bāyīn, as he specifically pointed out in his work: "... the system of initials and finals used in the 'Book of Eight Tones,' ... would form a complete alphabet for the Fuh Chau dialect. They have been so used by missionaries for writing colloquial phrases, in their private study of the language. Three of the gospels have been written out in this manner by Chinese teachers in the employment of missionaries." M.C. White made a careful analysis of all phonemes and romanized them by using the System of Sir William Jones. The scheme consists of fourteen consonants (null initial excluded) and nine vowels:
- Consonants
- ch, ch', h, k, k', l, m, n, ng, p, p', s, t, t'
- Vowels
- a, e, è, ë, i, o, ò, u, ü
William Jones Phonetic Alphabet had varied over time, and became standardized as Foochow Romanized (Bàng-uâ-cê) several decades later.
Read more about this topic: Qi Lin Bayin
Famous quotes containing the words role in, role, early, studies and/or dialect:
“If women’s role in life is limited solely to housewife/mother, it clearly ends when she can no longer bear more children and the children she has borne leave home.”
—Betty Friedan (20th century)
“If women’s role in life is limited solely to housewife/mother, it clearly ends when she can no longer bear more children and the children she has borne leave home.”
—Betty Friedan (20th century)
“Although good early childhood programs can benefit all children, they are not a quick fix for all of society’s ills—from crime in the streets to adolescent pregnancy, from school failure to unemployment. We must emphasize that good quality early childhood programs can help change the social and educational outcomes for many children, but they are not a panacea; they cannot ameliorate the effects of all harmful social and psychological environments.”
—Barbara Bowman (20th century)
“What happiness did poor Mother’s studies bring her? It is the melancholy tendency of such studies to separate people from their friends and neighbors and fellow creatures in whom alone lies one’s happiness.”
—Mary Potter Playne (c. 1850–?)
“The eyes of men converse as much as their tongues, with the advantage that the ocular dialect needs no dictionary, but is understood all the world over.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)