An Introduction to the Burmese Writing System by D. Haigh RoopReview by: James A. MatisoffJournal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 95, No. 3 (Jul. - Sep., 1975), pp. 536-537Published by: American Oriental SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/599393 .

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 95.3 (1975) Journal of the American Oriental Society 95.3 (1975)

the first edition is now a bibliographical rarity. It is to be hoped, therefore, that Professor Ligeti and his

colleagues will issue before long a new, and thoroughly revised, edition of this important work.

More usable for most purposes is de Rachewiltz' own edition of the SH, in the volume somewhat misleadingly titled Index to the Secret History of the Mongols (Indiana University Publications, Uralic and Altaic Series, Volume

121; Bloomington 1972). This extremely valuable work

contains, in addition to the index verborum, the complete SII text in a new and careful edition. (It might be noted that in neither the de 1Rachewiltz nor the Ligeti volumes are details of particular text-readings discusseld cr defended. The latter states, AMLMC I, p. 11, that publica- tion of a critical apparatus is intended elsewhere).

MLMC III consists of two parts. Pp. 9-127 deal with the Mongolian documents in the 'phags-pa script (1269- 1352): never before has the entiie corpus been assembled in one place, including items discovered since 1941. Each document is presented first in a very narrow translitera-

tion, then in an interpretive transcription; both of these new systems are briefly but adequately explained in the introduction (pp. 13-9). The second part of the volume

(pp. 129-66) presents, in transcription, the work usually known as the Hua-i i-yii. These twelve letters between the Court or the Emperor and various Mongols were transcribed into Chinese characters between 1368 and

1389, using virtually the same system employed for the SIt. (Note that the title Hua-i i-yii is used also for a

Mongolian-Chinese glossary of the same period: this is not included in the present volume, but will certainly have to be referred to in the eventual (lictionary of Middle Mongolian).

IVLIMMT I presents nine separate indices verborum to the nine inscriptions and documents dating from between 1224 and 1316 which will be presented in MLMIC II.3 These are the following (listed in the order in which they are indexed): the Stone of Chinggis Khan, 1224-5; a

Mongolian 'clause' in the Chinese edict of the Empress Tiregene, 1210; the legend on the Mongolian seal of

Giiyig on a letter to Pope Innocent IV, 1245;4 the in-

3 On the unnumbered page following p. 170 of MLMC III, the MLMC II volume is listed as consisting of 291

pages, with a publication date of 1971. On the page fol- lowing, IVLMMT II is listed as follows: 'Monuments

prlclassiques. 1. xnIe et xive siecles. Deuxieme partie. Par Louis Ligeti. 382 pages. Budapest 1971. Akad6miai Kiad6.' IVLMMT III will be the indices to MLMC III, and is here listed as 'Sous presse.' I have not seen any of these volumes.

4 According to de Rachewiltz op. cit. p. 232, 1245 is an error for 1246.

the first edition is now a bibliographical rarity. It is to be hoped, therefore, that Professor Ligeti and his

colleagues will issue before long a new, and thoroughly revised, edition of this important work.

More usable for most purposes is de Rachewiltz' own edition of the SH, in the volume somewhat misleadingly titled Index to the Secret History of the Mongols (Indiana University Publications, Uralic and Altaic Series, Volume

121; Bloomington 1972). This extremely valuable work

contains, in addition to the index verborum, the complete SII text in a new and careful edition. (It might be noted that in neither the de 1Rachewiltz nor the Ligeti volumes are details of particular text-readings discusseld cr defended. The latter states, AMLMC I, p. 11, that publica- tion of a critical apparatus is intended elsewhere).

MLMC III consists of two parts. Pp. 9-127 deal with the Mongolian documents in the 'phags-pa script (1269- 1352): never before has the entiie corpus been assembled in one place, including items discovered since 1941. Each document is presented first in a very narrow translitera-

tion, then in an interpretive transcription; both of these new systems are briefly but adequately explained in the introduction (pp. 13-9). The second part of the volume

(pp. 129-66) presents, in transcription, the work usually known as the Hua-i i-yii. These twelve letters between the Court or the Emperor and various Mongols were transcribed into Chinese characters between 1368 and

1389, using virtually the same system employed for the SIt. (Note that the title Hua-i i-yii is used also for a

Mongolian-Chinese glossary of the same period: this is not included in the present volume, but will certainly have to be referred to in the eventual (lictionary of Middle Mongolian).

IVLIMMT I presents nine separate indices verborum to the nine inscriptions and documents dating from between 1224 and 1316 which will be presented in MLMIC II.3 These are the following (listed in the order in which they are indexed): the Stone of Chinggis Khan, 1224-5; a

Mongolian 'clause' in the Chinese edict of the Empress Tiregene, 1210; the legend on the Mongolian seal of

Giiyig on a letter to Pope Innocent IV, 1245;4 the in-

3 On the unnumbered page following p. 170 of MLMC III, the MLMC II volume is listed as consisting of 291

pages, with a publication date of 1971. On the page fol- lowing, IVLMMT II is listed as follows: 'Monuments

prlclassiques. 1. xnIe et xive siecles. Deuxieme partie. Par Louis Ligeti. 382 pages. Budapest 1971. Akad6miai Kiad6.' IVLMMT III will be the indices to MLMC III, and is here listed as 'Sous presse.' I have not seen any of these volumes.

4 According to de Rachewiltz op. cit. p. 232, 1245 is an error for 1246.

scription in honor of Mingke, 1257; the Qara-qoruml inscription, 1346; the Bodistv-a cary-a avatar and com-

mentary, a Turfan fragment, 1312; the inscriptions for

Chang Ying-jui, 1335, for Jigiintei, 1338, and of Prince

Aruy, 1340. Each word of each text is listed, with

precise reference and with citation of all inflected forms. The immediate context is given for nearly every form.

The pre-classical Mongol script of these documents

presents many severe problems. Ligeti has developed a new system of transliteration which comes as close as is

practi-ably feasible to reflecting faithfully the orthogra- phic peculiarities of this script. Unfortunately it is

impossible at this time to discuss or evaluate this new

system here, since it is not explained in the volumes thus far available to me: presumably it is to be described in detail in MLMC II. Mongolists everywhere will eagerly await publication of this and the remaining volumes of this valuable series.

JOHN C. STREET

T1IE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN - IADISON

An Introduction to the Bltrmese Writing System. By I). HIAIGI ROOP. Pp. xiii + 122. Yale Linguistics Series. New H-aven and London: YALE UNIVERSITY

PRESS. 1972. Paperback. $5.00.

This is a beautifully clear and carefully organized book that presents the intricacies of the Burmese writing

system a little at a time in "programmed" installments,

punctuated by frequent summaries, exercises, and review tests to consolidate the student's mastery of the material. The previous authoritative work on this subject (R. B. Jones and U Khin, The Burmese Writing System, ACLS,

Washington 1953; henceforth "J-K") is now twenty years old; it suffers from a cumbersome romanization, is too concise for easy comprehension, and does not suf-

ficiently distinguish between regular/common spellings and irregular/rare ones. Although Roop is indebted to J-K for much of the material in his Chapters 6 and 7, where various fine points and irregularities in the writing

system are presented, the first five chapters are entirely his own, and are far superior to J-KI in clarity and peda-

gogical effectiveness.

Chapter 1 ("Initial consonants; vowels") introduces the consonants in small groups according to their point of articulation, starting with the labials. Right after the labials four vowel-symbols are presented (first-tone /i, u, ei, a/), cleverly chosen both to avoid tonal complica- tions and to illustrate the principle that vowel-signs may appear on all four sides (above, below, right, left) of the

syllable-initial consonant. Next we get t he dental consonants. At this point the honeymoon is over-we

scription in honor of Mingke, 1257; the Qara-qoruml inscription, 1346; the Bodistv-a cary-a avatar and com-

mentary, a Turfan fragment, 1312; the inscriptions for

Chang Ying-jui, 1335, for Jigiintei, 1338, and of Prince

Aruy, 1340. Each word of each text is listed, with

precise reference and with citation of all inflected forms. The immediate context is given for nearly every form.

The pre-classical Mongol script of these documents

presents many severe problems. Ligeti has developed a new system of transliteration which comes as close as is

practi-ably feasible to reflecting faithfully the orthogra- phic peculiarities of this script. Unfortunately it is

impossible at this time to discuss or evaluate this new

system here, since it is not explained in the volumes thus far available to me: presumably it is to be described in detail in MLMC II. Mongolists everywhere will eagerly await publication of this and the remaining volumes of this valuable series.

JOHN C. STREET

T1IE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN - IADISON

An Introduction to the Bltrmese Writing System. By I). HIAIGI ROOP. Pp. xiii + 122. Yale Linguistics Series. New H-aven and London: YALE UNIVERSITY

PRESS. 1972. Paperback. $5.00.

This is a beautifully clear and carefully organized book that presents the intricacies of the Burmese writing

system a little at a time in "programmed" installments,

punctuated by frequent summaries, exercises, and review tests to consolidate the student's mastery of the material. The previous authoritative work on this subject (R. B. Jones and U Khin, The Burmese Writing System, ACLS,

Washington 1953; henceforth "J-K") is now twenty years old; it suffers from a cumbersome romanization, is too concise for easy comprehension, and does not suf-

ficiently distinguish between regular/common spellings and irregular/rare ones. Although Roop is indebted to J-K for much of the material in his Chapters 6 and 7, where various fine points and irregularities in the writing

system are presented, the first five chapters are entirely his own, and are far superior to J-KI in clarity and peda-

gogical effectiveness.

Chapter 1 ("Initial consonants; vowels") introduces the consonants in small groups according to their point of articulation, starting with the labials. Right after the labials four vowel-symbols are presented (first-tone /i, u, ei, a/), cleverly chosen both to avoid tonal complica- tions and to illustrate the principle that vowel-signs may appear on all four sides (above, below, right, left) of the

syllable-initial consonant. Next we get t he dental consonants. At this point the honeymoon is over-we

536G 536G

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Reviews of Books Reviews of Books

must now face the fact that many vowel symbols carry intrinsic tonal values other than first-tone (second-tone e via nau' pyi'; third tone i, u, a via loun: ji: tin, tahcaun:

ngin, and zero, respectively). But by now the student is so far into the material that he can take these new dif- ficulties in stride. In logical sequence Roop introduces the "palatal" consonants (now pronounced as sibilants

except for ny), the composite vowel symbols for second- tone /o/ and first-tone /ou/, the velar consonants, the "Pali dentals" (used to transcribe retroflex consonants in Indic loanwords), and the miscellaneous sonorants, spirants, and glottal stop which complete the array of Burmese consonants.

The step-by-step presentation makes it necessary for Roop to use nonsense syllables to illustrate many conso- nant-vowel combinations. Far from being a defect (as Jones implies in his Review, JAS 32.1, 205-6), this trains the student from the outset to view Burmese writing as a

logical system that he can use productively. It encourages him to guess at the spelling of woIds he has heard but not yet seen written down. Naturally he will make mistakes in the process-Burmese spelling has plenty of arbitrary features in it, like English-but these are

healthy mistakes, since they are like those of a child

learning his own native language. There is ample time to learn exceptions once the regular features of the system have been firmly acquired.

Chapter 2 treats initial consonant clusters; Chapter 3 (tle best in the book) handles the written representation of the tones; Chapter 4 (somewhat less clearly) deals with closed syllables; and Chapter 5 discusses syllables in

sequence. Among the many good points in the book we may

mention the following: emphasis on correct stroke-order in writing the symbols, to facilitate development of a

good cursive style and to help in spelling aloud (passim); discussion of graphic interference among several subscript symbols in the same syllable (42-3); the use of ma. tha' vs. thei: dhei: tin in nasal-finalled syllables (77); un- common "killed consonants" (96-7); vertical consonant combinations (99-101). Also very useful are Appendices B ("Spelling") and C ("The symbols of Burmese"). In the latter all the symbols used in the writing system are listed in one place, with their Burmese names (often quite picturesque) transcribed, translated, and written out in full Burmese orthography.

The most serious criticism to be made of the book is the almost total lack of historical explanations for various features of the writing system that otherwise cannot fail to strike the learner as mysterious and bizarre: why are there two ways of writing /b, d, z, g/? why are there two ways of writing /y/, both initially (24) and medi-

ally (36)? why are "fourth-tone" words wiitten with

must now face the fact that many vowel symbols carry intrinsic tonal values other than first-tone (second-tone e via nau' pyi'; third tone i, u, a via loun: ji: tin, tahcaun:

ngin, and zero, respectively). But by now the student is so far into the material that he can take these new dif- ficulties in stride. In logical sequence Roop introduces the "palatal" consonants (now pronounced as sibilants

except for ny), the composite vowel symbols for second- tone /o/ and first-tone /ou/, the velar consonants, the "Pali dentals" (used to transcribe retroflex consonants in Indic loanwords), and the miscellaneous sonorants, spirants, and glottal stop which complete the array of Burmese consonants.

The step-by-step presentation makes it necessary for Roop to use nonsense syllables to illustrate many conso- nant-vowel combinations. Far from being a defect (as Jones implies in his Review, JAS 32.1, 205-6), this trains the student from the outset to view Burmese writing as a

logical system that he can use productively. It encourages him to guess at the spelling of woIds he has heard but not yet seen written down. Naturally he will make mistakes in the process-Burmese spelling has plenty of arbitrary features in it, like English-but these are

healthy mistakes, since they are like those of a child

learning his own native language. There is ample time to learn exceptions once the regular features of the system have been firmly acquired.

Chapter 2 treats initial consonant clusters; Chapter 3 (tle best in the book) handles the written representation of the tones; Chapter 4 (somewhat less clearly) deals with closed syllables; and Chapter 5 discusses syllables in

sequence. Among the many good points in the book we may

mention the following: emphasis on correct stroke-order in writing the symbols, to facilitate development of a

good cursive style and to help in spelling aloud (passim); discussion of graphic interference among several subscript symbols in the same syllable (42-3); the use of ma. tha' vs. thei: dhei: tin in nasal-finalled syllables (77); un- common "killed consonants" (96-7); vertical consonant combinations (99-101). Also very useful are Appendices B ("Spelling") and C ("The symbols of Burmese"). In the latter all the symbols used in the writing system are listed in one place, with their Burmese names (often quite picturesque) transcribed, translated, and written out in full Burmese orthography.

The most serious criticism to be made of the book is the almost total lack of historical explanations for various features of the writing system that otherwise cannot fail to strike the learner as mysterious and bizarre: why are there two ways of writing /b, d, z, g/? why are there two ways of writing /y/, both initially (24) and medi-

ally (36)? why are "fourth-tone" words wiitten with

final /-p, -t, -s, -k/? why is orthographic -ak pro- nounced /e9/, while -ap and -at are pronounced /a?/9 why are some atonic syllables written as if they had a full vowel, tone and/or final consonant (93)? what business does that final ga.ii: have in the word for "sky, rain" (99)? A few words (perhaps tucked away in foot- notes) could have satisfied the student's curiosity without unduly complicating the presentation

But that is a quibble. The value of this book is obvious, and it will remain the standard work of its type for many years to come.

JAMES A. MATISOFF UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY

Date and Dynasties in Earliest India (Translation and Justification of a Critical Text of the Purana Dy- nasties). By R. MORTON SMITH. Edited by J. L. Shastri. Pp. x + 517. Delhi - Patna - Varanasi: MOTILAL BANARSIDASS. 1973. Rs. 50.00.

The author supplied in the book the dates and dynasties of kings and illustrious personages in ancient India. For the chronological evidence he has utilized, similarly as F. E. Pargiter has done in the nineteen-twenties, the relevant portions of the Puraiic texts which he has collated and authenticated from the MSS. and printed editions. The account covers a long period of history, from the Patriarch Manu to the Mauryas, Sufigas, KIil- vas and Andhras. His study is thle development of the work done by F. E. Pargiter and therefore, with modesty of a true scholar, Morton Smith claims only "a limited originality in working from a critical text of the relevant passages of the Puraiias" and asserts that in this "the value of his labour lies" (p.v.) He wrote his book to be useful rather for historians than for Sanskritists, since the latter are able to read and understand the Sanskrit texts. tie expressed the conviction that since the Pu- ranas preserve good historical tradition for the years subsequent to the great battle cf the Mahabharata (which he has shown in the articles which appeared in the JAOS in 1957-8) they will also contain good tradition for the genealogies before the battle. He admits that no proof exists for his findings but rejects the view that the Pura- na king-lists are all fabrication without producing proof or evidence, or the explanation that then becomes neces- sary. He also rejects the scepticism of Pargiter's theories expressed by A. A. Macdonnel and A. B. Keith and the view that Purana kinglists are based on falsification of tradition. He considers that if Indian tradition claims something concrete, their claim might be true and that if the state- ments are consistent with one another, and even if the reasons for believing the tradition are weak, they should

final /-p, -t, -s, -k/? why is orthographic -ak pro- nounced /e9/, while -ap and -at are pronounced /a?/9 why are some atonic syllables written as if they had a full vowel, tone and/or final consonant (93)? what business does that final ga.ii: have in the word for "sky, rain" (99)? A few words (perhaps tucked away in foot- notes) could have satisfied the student's curiosity without unduly complicating the presentation

But that is a quibble. The value of this book is obvious, and it will remain the standard work of its type for many years to come.

JAMES A. MATISOFF UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY

Date and Dynasties in Earliest India (Translation and Justification of a Critical Text of the Purana Dy- nasties). By R. MORTON SMITH. Edited by J. L. Shastri. Pp. x + 517. Delhi - Patna - Varanasi: MOTILAL BANARSIDASS. 1973. Rs. 50.00.

The author supplied in the book the dates and dynasties of kings and illustrious personages in ancient India. For the chronological evidence he has utilized, similarly as F. E. Pargiter has done in the nineteen-twenties, the relevant portions of the Puraiic texts which he has collated and authenticated from the MSS. and printed editions. The account covers a long period of history, from the Patriarch Manu to the Mauryas, Sufigas, KIil- vas and Andhras. His study is thle development of the work done by F. E. Pargiter and therefore, with modesty of a true scholar, Morton Smith claims only "a limited originality in working from a critical text of the relevant passages of the Puraiias" and asserts that in this "the value of his labour lies" (p.v.) He wrote his book to be useful rather for historians than for Sanskritists, since the latter are able to read and understand the Sanskrit texts. tie expressed the conviction that since the Pu- ranas preserve good historical tradition for the years subsequent to the great battle cf the Mahabharata (which he has shown in the articles which appeared in the JAOS in 1957-8) they will also contain good tradition for the genealogies before the battle. He admits that no proof exists for his findings but rejects the view that the Pura- na king-lists are all fabrication without producing proof or evidence, or the explanation that then becomes neces- sary. He also rejects the scepticism of Pargiter's theories expressed by A. A. Macdonnel and A. B. Keith and the view that Purana kinglists are based on falsification of tradition. He considers that if Indian tradition claims something concrete, their claim might be true and that if the state- ments are consistent with one another, and even if the reasons for believing the tradition are weak, they should

537 537

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