Re: Chinese writing systems

In a message dated 11/03/2002 07.05.24 PM, mat mcv@HOTMAIL.COM writes:

>Suppose China becomes split up in the future - the present regime collapses.
>Suppose there is no more China, and people no longer feel Chinese. They
>feel Pekinese, Cantonese, Shanghainese, Fukienese etc. Their leaders, wanting
>to preserve their own power in their own area, encourage people to support
>the new regional reality rather than the older united past, and see their
>regional state as their nation, distinct from other 'Chinese' nations...
>
>Suppose times are hard and people don't have much time to do calligraphy.
>Why shouldn't they spell their language the way they speak? Which, since
>there is no Chinese language, is the *real* language, Northern,
>Shanghainese, Cantonese etc. That is now the language of the new smaller
>nations.
>
>Are they going to continue with the old method of Hanzi, symbolic of a
>unity that no longer exists?
>
>Or are they going to prefer a writing system that actually brings out their
>differences - their diversity indeed?
    Interestin' possibilities for conculturing there!

    On a somewhat different conlanging "angle," I have been always intrigued
with the conculture idea of Chinese Pidgin English (CPE) continuing to evolve
and mutate in Southern China and the South Pacific.  (BTW 2 other pidgin
Englishes from this area of the world - Bislama and Tok Pisin - are also big
favourites of mine.)
    It's an idea I have had for a long time on a back-burner till I get more
resources on CPE and it's "direct descendent" language, Nauruan Pidgin
English (NPE) - known  in Cantonese as _Ham Soi_. (Bislama may also be a
relative of CPE... afterall, Bislama is the pidginized French for sea slug
and sea slugs were/are a highly desired Chinese culinary trade item.
"Yu-fella speekie Bislama?" ;)

Hanuman Zhang, 3-Toed-Sloth-Style Gungfu Typist  ;)
"the sloth is a chinese poet upsidedown" --- Jack Kerouac {1922-69}

€º°`°º€ø,¸¸,ø€º°`°º€ø,¸¸,ø€º°`°º€ø,¸¸,ø€º°`°º€ø,¸¸,ø€º°`°º€€º°`°º€ø,¸~->

    "There is no reason for the poet to be limited to words, and in fact the
poet is most poetic when inventing languages. Hence the concept of the poet
as 'language designer'."  --- O. B. Hardison, Jr.

"La poésie date d' aujour d'hui."   (Poetry dates from today)
"La poésie est en jeu."             (Poetry is in play)
                --- Blaise Cendrars