Romanized Shaowu (邵武腔羅馬字 Shiau⁶-u² kʻiong¹ lo⁵-ma² tsʻe⁶) is a romanization system for the Shaowu dialect of the Shao–Jiang Min language.
History
"Romanized Shaowu" was created in the 1880s by Joseph Elkanah Walker and Ada Walker (née Claghorn), who were American missionaries living in Shaowu since 1872 through the 1930s. In 1891, they have translated the Epistle of James into Shaowu using this romanization (as 《使徒雅各書》 Se³-tʻu⁵ Nga²-ko⁴ shṳ¹).
System Initials +p /p/ 比k /k/ 加t /t/ 知ts /ts/ 資ch /tɕ/ 之pʻ /pʰ/ 拍kʻ /kʰ/ 氣tʻ /tʰ/ 他tsʻ /tsʰ/ 菜chʻ /tɕʰ/ 車m /m/ 米ng /ŋ/ 牙n /n/ 儀s /s/ 西sh /ɕ/ 時v /ʋ/ 慰h /x/ 希l /l/ 利f /f/ 夫
Rimes +a /a/ 鴉ai /ai/ 發au /au/ 教an /an/ 爛ang /aŋ/ 行ia /ia/ 也iau /iau/ 腰iang /iaŋ/ 鏡ua /ua/ 瓜uai /uai/ 怪uan /uan/ 灣e /ə/ 而ei /əi/ 雞eu /əu/ 後en /ən/ 恩ue /uə/ 國uei /uei/ 鬼uen /uən/ 問ṳen /yen/ 勸ṳ /y/ 書ṳn /yn/ 裙éi /ɛi/ 水éu /ɛu/* 口én /ɛn/ 能ie /ie/ 月ien /ien/ 延o /o/ 惡oi /oi/ 哀(ou /ou/ 幼)on /on/ 安ong /oŋ/ 方io /io/ 夜(iou /iou/ 手)iong /ioŋ/ 羊uo /uo/ 果uoi /uoi/* 殺uon /uon/ 官uong /uoŋ/ 光i /i/ 衣in /in/ 因u /u/ 烏ung /uŋ/ 翁iu /iu/* 手iung /iuŋ/ 用r /ɯ~ɿ/ 刺ng /ŋ/ 五
There is some variation in the representation of the finals in works by J.E.Walker. E.g., the letter ṳ may be written with the dots above it (as ü).
In modern Shaowu, the palatal sibilants ch /tɕ/, chʻ /tɕʰ/, sh /ɕ/ are only used before /-i-/ and /-y-/. Romanized Shaowu marks the /-i-/ medial somewhat inconsistency, e.g. 上 /ɕioŋ³⁵/ is written as shong⁶ in the Walker's syllabary, but as shiong⁶ in his translation of the Epistle of James. The word 邵 is written shiau⁶ in the syllabary itself, but as shau on its title.
Tones Tones in Romanized Shaowu are marked with superscript numbers after the syllable. +Tone name陰平en¹-pʻin⁵上聲shiong²-chʻin¹陰去en¹-kʻṳ³入聲nin⁶-chʻin¹陽平iong⁵-pʻin⁵陽去iong⁵-kʻṳ³Tone contour2155213532235Romanized Shaowu¹²³⁴⁵⁶
Correspondence to modern Shaowu The original Walker's romanization lacks modern Shaowu finals /ou/ and /iou/, but contains finals iu, uoi, éu, which are absent in modern Shaowu (but may still be preserved in other dialects of Shao-Jiang Min).
The finals eu /əu/, éu /ɛu/, éi /ɛi/ are rearranged in modern Shaowu, with eu /əu/ becoming ou /ou/ (or iou /iou/ after palatal sibilants), éu /ɛu/ becoming eu /əu/, and éi /ɛi/ becoming ei /əi/. +WalkerGuangzeShaowuJiangle口kʻéu²kʻéu² /khɛu⁴⁴/kʻeu² /kʰəu⁵⁵/kʻéu² /kʰeu⁵¹/樓léu⁵léu⁵ /lɛu²²/leu⁵ /ləu²²/léu⁵ /leu²²/搜séu¹séu¹ /sɛu²¹/seu¹ /səu²¹/shéu¹ /ʃeu⁵⁵/浮féu⁵féu⁵ /fɛu²²/feu⁵ /fəu²²/féu⁵ /feu²²/末méi⁶méi⁶ /mɛi⁵⁵/mei⁶ /məi³⁵/mo⁴⒝ /mo⁵/活féi⁶féi⁶ /fɛi⁵⁵/fei⁶ /fəi³⁵/fo⁴⒝ /fo⁵/灰féi¹féi¹ /fɛi²¹/fei¹ /fəi²¹/fuai¹ /fuæ⁵⁵/雞kéi¹kéi¹ /kɛi²¹/kei¹ /kəi²¹/ké¹ /ke⁵⁵/休heu¹heu¹ /xəu²¹/hou¹ /xou²¹/shiu¹ /ʃiu⁵⁵/求kʻeu⁵kʻeu⁵ /kʰəu²²/kʻou⁵ /kʰou²²/kʻiu⁵ /kʰiu²²/留leu⁵leu⁵ /ləu²²/lou⁵ /lou²²/liu⁵ /liu²²/修seu¹seu¹ /səu²¹/sou¹ /sou²¹/siu¹ /siu⁵⁵/醜chʻeu²chʻiu² /tɕʰiu⁴⁴/chʻiou² /tɕʰiou⁵⁵/chʻiu² /tʃʰiu⁵¹/壽sheu⁶shiu⁶ /ɕiu⁵⁵/shiou⁶ /ɕiou³⁵/shiu⁶ /ʃiu²³¹/
The final iu /iu/ merges with /iou/ in modern Shaowu. +WalkerGuangzeShaowuJiangle手shiu²shiu² /ɕiu⁴⁴/shiou² /ɕiou⁵⁵/shiu² /ʃiu⁵¹/周chiu¹chiu¹ /tɕiu²¹/chiou¹ /tɕiou²¹/chiu¹ /tʃiu⁵⁵/臭chʻiu³chʻiu³ /tɕʰiu³⁵/chʻiou³ /tɕʰiou²¹³/chʻiu³ /tʃʰiu³²⁴/有iu²iu²⒝ /iu⁵³/iou² /iou⁵⁵/iu² /iu⁵¹/由iu⁵iu⁵ /iu²²/iou⁵ /iou²²/iu⁵ /iu²²/
Finals uoi /uoi/, uei /uei/, uon /uon/ lose their medial /-u-/ after labial and dental initials to become /-oi, -ɛi, -on/. +WalkerGuangzeShaowuJiangle回fuei⁵féi⁵ /fɛi²²/féi⁵ /fɛi²²/fi⁵ /fi²²/雷luei⁵léi⁵ /lɛi²²/léi⁵ /lɛi²²/lṳ⁵ /ly²²/水suei²shṳ² /ɕy⁴⁴/séi² /sɛi⁵⁵/shṳ² /ʃy⁵¹/殺suoi⁴soi⁴ /sɔi⁵³/soi⁴ /soi⁵³/sho⁴ /ʃo⁵¹/衰suoi¹soi¹ /sɔi²¹/soi¹ /soi²¹/shuai¹ /ʃuæ⁵⁵/賽suoi³soi³ /sɔi³⁵/soi³ /soi²¹³/sai³ /sæ³²⁴/亂luon⁶lon⁶ /lɔn⁵⁵/lon⁶ /lon³⁵/luén⁶ /luɛ̃²³¹/滿muon²mon²⒝ /mɔn⁵³/mon² /mon⁵⁵/muén² /muɛ̃⁵¹/歡fuon¹fon¹ /fɔn²¹/fon¹ /fon²¹/fuén¹ /fuɛ̃⁵⁵/
The final r in the Walker's romanization is analyzed as /ɯ/ (or /ɿ/ after sibilants) in modern Shaowu, but it may merge with other finals in some specific contexts. WalkerGuangzeShaowuJiangle刺tsʻr³tsʻr³ /tsʰɿ³⁵/tsʻr³ /tsʰɿ²¹³/tsʻr³ /tsʰɿ³²⁴/撕sr¹sr¹ /sɿ²¹/sr¹ /sɿ²¹/sr¹ /sɿ⁵⁵/起kʻr²kʻi² /kʰi⁴⁴/kʻr² /kʰɯ⁵⁵/kʻi² /kʰi⁵¹/滴tr⁴ti⁴ /ti⁵³/tr⁴ /tɯ⁵³/ti⁴ /ti²¹/耳r²é²⒝ /ɛ⁵³/e² /ə⁵⁵/e² /ø⁵¹/兒r⁵é⁵ /ɛ²²/e⁵ /ə²²/e⁵ /ø²²/ Most of the tsʻ /tsʰ/ initials have merged with tʻ /tʰ/ in modern Shaowu, only occasionally being preserved in literary readings. +WalkerGuangzeShaowuJiangle罪tsʻuei⁶tʻéi⁶ /tʰɛi⁵⁵/tʻéi⁶ /tʰɛi³⁵/tsʻui⁶ /tsʰui²³¹/取tsʻṳ²tʻṳ² /tʰy⁴⁴/tʻṳ² /tʰy⁵⁵/tsʻṳ² /tsʰy⁵¹/湊tsʻéu³ tʻéu³ /tʰɛu⁴⁴/tʻeu³ /tʰəu²¹³/tsʻéu³ /tsʰeu³²⁴/字tsʻe⁶tʻé⁶ /tʰɛ⁵⁵/tʻe⁶ /tʰə³⁵/sr⁶ /sɿ²³¹/
References