Pollard script
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| Pollard [Miao] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Type: | Abugida with elements of an Alphabet | |
| Languages: | Hmong | |
| Created by | Sam Pollard | |
| Time period: | Circa 1936 to the present | |
| Parent writing systems: | artificial script Pollard [Miao] |
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| ISO 15924 code: | Plrd | |
| Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. See IPA chart for English for an English-based pronunciation key. | ||
The Pollard script, also known as Pollard Miao, is an abugida or writing system invented by Methodist missionary Sam Pollard. Pollard invented the script for use with A-Hmao, one of several dialects of the Hmong language. The script underwent a series of revisions until 1936, when a translation of the New Testament was published using it.
Changing politics in China led to the use of several competing scripts, most of which were romanizations. The Pollard script remains popular among Hmong in China, although Hmong outside China tend to use one of the alternative scripts. A revision of the script was completed in 1988, which remains in use. The Pollard script was proposed, in 1997, for inclusion in Unicode [1] by John Jenkins at Apple Computer.
As with most other abugidas, the Pollard letters represent consonants, whereas vowels are indicated by diacritics. Uniquely, however, the position of this diacritic is varied to represent tone. For example, in Western Hmong, placing the vowel diacritic above the consonant letter indicates that the syllable has a high tone, whereas placing it at the bottom right indicates a low tone.
[edit] External Links
- Description of the Pollard script
- Edwin Dingle. Across China on Foot. Project Gutenberg. Retrieved on July 29, 2005. — Dingle describes how Sam Pollard used positioning of vowel marks relative to consonants to indicate tones.
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