[KS] Romanisation and Pinyin

rupert rupert at aks.ac.kr
Mon Jun 6 22:49:18 EDT 2005


Gari Ledyard wrote how he is impressed by how easily the Pinyin system for Chinese has gained broad acceptance. Well, I heard that one of the motivations for making the new Korean system was the success of Pinyin. I have been studying Chinese for a while and Pinyin does seem to be exceedingly good. Also, unlike Koreans, Chinese students learn it - indeed it has become their 'alphabet'. All the foreign Chinese students in our school know it. Truly amazing. Of course, Koreans do not really need such as they have their own alphabet, hence the confusion to purpose. Accordingly, several systems coexist side by side.

1 Yale - A clever system for linguists. Only used by specialists - no one else has a clue, yet it is good.
2  MR - A clever system for foreigners based on compromise between sound and transliteration. Easy to learn but hopeless on computers.
3  KOR 2000 - A simple system for Koreans based on transliteration (not sound). Useful for computer users. Easy for lifers but confusing to tourists.

It seems to be a case of - take your pick ... but who you are will determine which one you will like. Or, maybe the best version is still waiting to be discovered.

Rupert Atkinson




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