Re: Bopomofo and pinyin

Ray:
> I also think it a weakness that PY imports the double use of {h} which,
> thanks to the Norman scribes, we have inherited in English, namely: as a
> consonant (in Mandarin [x]), and as a consonant modifier (in Mandarin to
> mark the voicless retroflex {ch}, {zh} and {sh} - the voiced {r} not
> 'needing' the modifier).   It could've been done differently (all my
> various schemes IIRC did so).
>
> >>I'm still waiting for John to develop the definitve
> >>system :)
>
> I've no doubt John could do this very well.  But I guess the final word has
> to be with the Chinese themselves.
I don't really care what the Chinese do, but I'd love to hear your schemes,
and John's, if he has any, and anyone else's. Note that I don't know what
the relevant issues are. (Like, I don't know what the phoneme inventory &
phonotactics are.)

> >What I really can't stomach is the PY use of {q}.
>
> I know.  And using {j} invariably makes most of our newscasters
> mispronounce Beijing as [bej'ZiN].   There seems to be an assumption in the
> liguistically naive, but educated, Brits that "foreign {j} = [Z]".  Might
> it have something to do with that fact that French is only foreign language
> taught in most UK schools?
Yes. BTW, the rule is more like "/dZ/ becomes /Z/ in foreign words", because
even Azerbaidzhan (I have to admit I'm not sure how to spell this, but
I'm sure there's a <d> in it at least sometimes) is affected.

> But we can't blame the Chinese for the sloppy habits of British newscasters!
Certainly not.

--And.