3.8.3.3. Mongolian Writing: Phagsba
Description
This article is from the Mongolia FAQ, by Oliver Corff with numerous contributions by others.
3.8.3.3. Mongolian Writing: Phagsba
The Phagsba or Square Writing was developed in the 13th century by a
famous Tibetan monk and scholar, Phagsba. Designed as the Unified
Writing of the Yuan (emphasis through capitalisation added by OC), it
combined the features of Tibetan (e.g., rich consonant inventory) with
the features of Chinese (vertical writing direction) and Mongolian
(additional vowels were provided). Despite its functionality, it could
not establish itself properly and came largely out of use after the
fall of the Yuan dynasty.
The Phagsba or Square Writing is a valuable research tool because 14th
century dictionaries give us a deep insight in the phonetics and
phonology of Mongolian (and, by the way, Chinese) of those days.
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