Re: Bopomofo and pinyin

From Leo Moser:

FFlores wrote:
>
> You wouldn't believe this. I was helping my mother in
> the small library where she works (while her cousin,
> the owner, is on vacation) and among a pile of old,
> obviously impopular books (at $2 each) I found a book
> of Chinese lessons in English. Mainly drills and patterns,
> but interesting nevertheless.
>
> The hanzi in the book are supplemented with Roman
> transliteration (which may be Pinyin, but again it may
> not)
If they are really old, it's likely to be Wade-Giles,
that's the one with the apostrophes.

Could also be Yale, or Harvard systems, or the one
the US military used during WWII (similar to Yale.)

If the last 2-3 decades, more likely to be Pinyin.
Notable for use of Q, X, Z, -- not in the others.

> and smaller, apparently syllabic characters (quite
> like Japanese furigana), which I took to be Bopomofo.
> These are all guesses, of course. Do you know anything
> about Bopomofo and hanzi transliteration? Any online
> resources?
>
> So far I've seen two styles: the one used in the book,
> where the name of China is written "Junggwo",
Sounds like Yale.

> and another
> one where it's "Chungkuo" and apparently aspirated stops
> are marked with an apostrophe (as in "T'ang").
Probably Wade-Giles.

> Which one
> is Pinyin, and what is the other?
>
> Thanks,    --Pablo Flores
Neither is Pinyin, which is "Zhongguo."

Look and see if the non-Wade-Giles book was published
at Yale (often Grey covers, spiral bound), or by Holt.

Sounds like Yale.

Best regards,


Leo Moser Acadon@inreach.com