Vocal database to help preserve Wu dialect
Source: Xinhua |
November 6, 2011, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
ZHEJIANG Province plans to build a vocal database to preserve the Wu dialect, which is about 1,000 years old and was once used to chant ancient poems.
Researchers will invite competent Wu speakers to record words and phrases commonly used in the dialect, said Shen Weiguang, head official of the project at Zhejiang Archives Bureau, which initiated the program.
The recordings will be used to study the proper pronunciation of Wu words, thus preserving the ancient tones, Shen said.
The dialect's grammar will also be studied, Shen added.
Known for its tender, music-like rhythm, the Wu dialect is spoken by some 80 million people in China's south and east.
But Shen said the dialect's vocabulary is severely outdated as its speakers now speak more often in Mandarin these days.
"If the trend continues, the Wu dialect might well be the first major Chinese dialect to disappear," Shen said.
Expected to be completed in three years, the database is the latest move by China to record its diverse regional dialects.
China boasts great linguistic diversity, with more than 80 languages spoken by 56 ethnic groups and an unknown number of local dialects.
Starting in 2008, the country has been working on a nationwide vocal database for languages and dialects. Collections and recordings have been conducted in Jiangsu and Yunnan provinces.
Researchers will invite competent Wu speakers to record words and phrases commonly used in the dialect, said Shen Weiguang, head official of the project at Zhejiang Archives Bureau, which initiated the program.
The recordings will be used to study the proper pronunciation of Wu words, thus preserving the ancient tones, Shen said.
The dialect's grammar will also be studied, Shen added.
Known for its tender, music-like rhythm, the Wu dialect is spoken by some 80 million people in China's south and east.
But Shen said the dialect's vocabulary is severely outdated as its speakers now speak more often in Mandarin these days.
"If the trend continues, the Wu dialect might well be the first major Chinese dialect to disappear," Shen said.
Expected to be completed in three years, the database is the latest move by China to record its diverse regional dialects.
China boasts great linguistic diversity, with more than 80 languages spoken by 56 ethnic groups and an unknown number of local dialects.
Starting in 2008, the country has been working on a nationwide vocal database for languages and dialects. Collections and recordings have been conducted in Jiangsu and Yunnan provinces.
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