抄録
The Naxi language, spoken by the Naxi ethnic group in southwest China, has several traditional scripts, including the Dongba pictographic script and the Geba syllabic script. The Dongba script is well known as the only “living hieroglyph” still in use today. In addition to these traditional scripts, several modern writing systems were developed for the Naxi language, two of which were devised by a Protestant missionary group. In the early 20th century, this group carried out missionary work in Naxi residential areas in northwest Yunnan and published several books using their original writing systems for the Naxi language. One of these writing systems was inspired by the Miao language writing system developed by another Christian missionary, while the other was based on a Lisu Frazer script. However, Christianity did not spread widely among the Naxi people and the use of these writing systems remained limited. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, Christian missionary activities were suppressed and these writing systems were subsequently forgotten by the Naxi people. From the perspective of Naxi language studies, the books published by the Christian missionaries are valuable materials for linguistic research. The works of Joseph F. Rock, who is well known for his significant contributions to Naxi studies, can also be used as contemporary sources. However, the Naxi texts in his works are primarily derived from religious manuscripts rather than from colloquial Naxi. By contrast, the texts found in the Christian missionary books represent some of the earliest recorded examples of the Naxi colloquial language. This study aimed to analyze the Naxi language texts in these missionary books to examine the characteristics and distinctions of the two modern Naxi writing systems developed by Christian missionaries.
