粤语国语字——一种从通信技术角度上实现粤人的独立自主的文字发明
- Wang Yunhao (Ngo Phi Trung)
- 4天前
- 讀畢需時 21 分鐘
王赟昊（吴非中）
粤语国语字介绍
粤语国语字是一种使用拉丁字母书写的拉丁化的粤语文字。
粤语国语字字母表如下：
粤语国语字的声母如下：
粤语国语字的韵母如下：
粤语国语字的声调如下：
粤语国语字直接把粤语从一种具有上万种不同汉字的文字的语言，变成了一种仅仅用三十几个字母和5种音调符号就可以表示的文字。粤语国语字的文章由音节组成，每一个音节相当于一个汉字，一个音节包括了辅音、元音、末尾辅音和声调4个要素，这和越南文的结构是一样的。粤语国语字是总和了各地粤语方言特征、并复原了早期粤语发音系统的文字，可以让所以口音的粤语读者都能看懂。单词的拼写方法会提示单词的起源。
越南语国文的发展历史和粤语的比较
越南语经历了蝌蚪文、汉字、喃字、国语字的发展历史。在越南被赵佗带领的秦军征服并成立了南越国以前，越南也被认为拥有自己的文字，例如，在出土的铜鼓上有很多形状的花纹，这被认为是一种文字，学术界统称蝌蚪文。蝌蚪文已经失传。在越南的北属时期，越南受到汉文化影响深刻，越南采用汉字作为官方的文字，但是越南语的口语和文言文差异非常巨大，这种汉文只适合记录意思明确和固定的内容，缺少创新。越南在五代十国以后独立成为大越，越南人开始尝试使用自己的口语来创作，发明了喃字，其实就是南字，越南人使用已有的汉字重新创造出了越南语本土词汇的单词。喃字在黎朝时期得到了发展，并且成为了一种民族精神的象征。喃字有“传翘”这样的文学经典。汉喃相当于粤语的口语字和口语字文章，或者相当于汉语的白话文。但是因为汉喃是一种基于汉字系统的书写系统，笔顺多，标准性还不如文言文，而且要了解喃字首先要看懂汉文，所以在越南的历朝历代，除了西山朝，全部使用文言文作为官方文字。
葡萄牙的天主教传教士在越南的南方为了传教，发明了越南语的国语字，其中Alexander de Rhode编撰了越南语-葡萄牙语-拉丁文字典，他被认为是越南文字的主要发明者之一。这一种文字一开始是越南的天主教社区里面流行，不被儒家士夫广泛认可。后来喃字被阮朝的大臣张永记重视，他主张推广国语字，让国语字成为了阮朝的官员都必须掌握的文字。尔后，在越南脱离法国殖民的过程中，越来越多的志士使用越南文国语字来传播民族独立的思想和先进的社会学科学思想，例如潘佩珠和潘周桢，国语字也在这个过程中得到名字“国语字”。越南语的国语字和台语和客家话的白话字的地位类似。历史上吴语、温州话、福州话、粤语和官话等等语言，在西方基督教向远东传教的过程中，都产生了类似的拉丁化文字，用来作为传教士研究当地语言和传教士用来用地道的语言翻译圣经推广基督教的工具。在1945年以后，越南的北方和南方都使用越南的国语字作为唯一的官方通用文字，在南北越的政府、经济活动、教育、工业、军事中广泛运用一直到现在，证明了国语字是越南语最佳的文字。尤其是越南共和国时期和海外的流亡反共越人中诞生了很多使用国语字的文学、音乐、艺术著作。
这也是香港的粤语口语字面对的难题，从港英时期到现在乃至很多海外港人组织，香港的全部法律文书、学校教育、传媒和宗教活动仍然基于汉语和中文，而不是基于粤语口语字。
粤语产生过用来翻译圣经的广东话罗马字、耶鲁粤语拼音、粤语拼音，但是这些所有的粤语的拉丁化都只是为了记录粤语汉字的发音和做语言学的教学研究的目的，并不是一种文字。粤语没有像越南语一样走上拉丁国语字的下一个阶段。岭南和江南地区在二十世纪的新文化运动以后逐渐推广汉语和以汉语为中心的中文，从此走上了中国化的道路，没有走上使用拉丁化国语字发展自己民族文化国家认同的另外一条道路。
粤语国语字会如何改变粤语的生态系统
粤语国语字会让粤语成为一个脱离中文系统的文字。比如说，目前，如果香港的媒体要翻译一个外国人的名字，首先要去看在汉语中这个词汇的翻译方法，然后用粤语的汉字读音把这个汉语词语读出来，这样的发音会和语言本身的发音产生巨大的差异而且非常不准确。这样就直接让粤语成为了中文系统下面的一种文字。在粤语国语字中，这些地方和人的名字倾向于直接用字母来表音，而不依赖汉字。
粤语国语字会让粤语这种语言和同样采用拉丁文字的越南语、台语之间的关系被拉近，在翻译和接受新概念的时候不需要首先翻译成汉字，“没有中间商赚差价”，避免造成意思模糊偏离。
粤语国语字可以在不需要依赖需要对应汉字的前提下表达一些粤语的地道单词，而且粤语国语字更容易表达粤语复杂的音调和变调产生的意义改变，在汉字相同的情况下，粤语国语字能够区分多音字，还能够通过拼写来区分词源。粤语国语字能更加全面和精确地传递意思。
粤语国语字是一种结合了广府粤语、四邑粤语、勾漏粤语、吴化粤语等粤语方言的文字，这样所有的以粤语作为母语的人都能够使用一种文字来沟通，而不是依赖中文或者英文。在未来独立於中国的统一的岭南国家可以使用粤语国语字作为行政文书和法律的语言。
粤语因为一直以来没有办法准确地方便地记录和传递意思，长期地阻碍了民族工业的发展。在发展出粤语国语字以后，用粤语记录和传输复杂和准确的工业图纸、参数和指令成为可能。说粤语的人口就可以发展出自己的工业体系和工业部门，也可以拥有自己的军事和政府部分。用自己的语言来书写自己的法律和思想，举行仪式。这对于粤语国家的建立是至关重要的。使用粤语的人口将形成独立于中国和英帝国殖民体系自己的中心。
粤语国语字会改变粤语基于汉字和中文的教育模式。粤语国语字是一种表音文字，使用粤语国语字会减少孩童学习写字的时间，而且彻底结束中文教育的枯燥而打压式的教育风格。对于外国人来说，粤语国语字是一种更加直观的文字，可以直接提示读音。粤语国语字可以避免读错发音。拉丁文字是全世界最多人口使用的书写系统，使用粤语国语字是一种更加国际化的选择。
汉字被认为是一种能深刻给人传达一种印象的文字，汉字具有独特的文化，而每个汉字也给每个人独特的心理印象和感情。粤语国语字具有高度的严谨性，在未来粤语国语字足够普及以后，也能形成自己独特的印象，因为粤语国语字和越南国语字的汉越词的拼写相似度很高，也能给借由和越南国语字的相似度，给已经能阅读越南文的人带来这种印象。
事实上，因为粤语的发展，为了表达外来词和一些没有汉字的本土词汇，现代的香港人的粤语文章中可能高达三分之一的内容采用拉丁字母书写。如果直接改为使用粤语国语字，这也是一步到位。
在粤语国语字成为一种主流的语言文字以后，在现在这个数字化的时代，在互联网上会出现很多使用粤语国语字的艺术文化作品，年轻人会在互联网上用粤语国语字发表视频和评论，粤语国语字会产生自己的trend和流行文化，就像现在的越南语世界一样。
粤语国语字的电子化输入
粤语国语字的全部字母都来自现成的unicode里面包含的字母，字母的选择主要来自越南语、萨米语、罗马尼亚语和苏州话罗马字，没有新造新的字符，这样最大限度方便在电子设备上显示和输入。
粤语国语字可以用cantonese telex输入法进行输入，首先在电脑或者手机上下载keyman键盘，然后去搜索cantonese telex键盘来下载。这个键盘采用按键组合的方法来输入复杂的字母和声调。网址如下：
法属印度支那时期的越南报社为了解决用26个字母按键的打字机来在电报中传输越南文，发明了名为国语电信或者叫做telex的越南文表示方法。九十年代的越南在捷克的留学生范金龙发明了unikey输入法用来解决越南语的打字问题，我的粤语国语字输入法的输入原理和unikey一样，并且加入了一些组合来表示粤语国语字中特有的字母。会使用越南文打字的人很快就能掌握粤语国语字的打字。公式如下：aa > â, oo > ô, ee > ê, aw > ă, ow > ơ, ii > ŭ, dd > đ, tt > ț, ss> ŧ, as > á, af > à, ar > ả, ax> ã, aj > ạ.
这直接把曾经的难以记忆学习的仓颉粤语打字方法改变成了一种可以很快学会然后快速而规律地打字的一种文字。而且这种打字方法可以把每一个粤语的单词和音节根据telex的公式拆解成由26个英文字母组成的代码，便于编码和加密通信。
为了方便大家学习粤语国语字，我编撰了粤语国语字和汉字对照的字典，叫做大粤国音字汇。可在此下载：
为了贴近现代的广府粤语的发音，我也编撰了广州话版本的字典:
粤语国语字反审查设想
粤语国语字在很大的程度上是可以反对中共的审查的，因为粤语国语字显然不采用常规的汉字，中共基于汉字发展的审查系统对粤语国语字不起作用。在不认识粤语国语字的人眼中，粤语国语字的阅读感受和越南语无异。粤语国语字在大多数情况下会被系统识别成越南文，这样也可以避免像藏文或者维吾尔文一样采用特别的文字而特别容易被识别然后被针对的情况。粤语国语字和越南文也有差异，所以也不能直接用越南文的审查机制来审查粤语国语字。而中国政府也很难像禁止藏文和维吾尔文一样简单地禁止拉丁字母和越南文，因为越南是中国的邻国，中国自己也用英文字母和汉语拼音，禁止粤语国语字对于中共来说代价过高。
在早期，中共会不屑于审查粤语国语字，或者即使有极少部分的语料，也会被认为是越南文而被忽略。在现在AI的时代，如果粤语国语字有足够多的语料的话，中共要专门训练区分粤语国语字和越南文，是很容易的。并且在有足够语料的前提下，训练专门针对粤语国语字的审查机制，也是可以做到的。可想而知，如果粤语国语字未来成为上百万人口使用的文字以后，粤语国语字并不是一种保密的文字。粤语国语字的优势在于字形由多个字母组成，可以很容易地变换拼写来规避审查，这时，粤语国语字的多样性会成为优势。并且字母文字也更容易采用其他方式加密。
在现在中共针对汉语的大审查的背景下，因为大量的关键词过滤，使用汉语在中国互联网平台如果不有意识地规避审查，几乎无法正常沟通，甚至微信这种私人通信软件也受到审查。所以粤语国语字在未来可能剑走偏锋地吸引大量受众，甚至因为粤语的语法词汇和汉语和吴语的相似性，粤语国语字在发展到后期可能像中文一样成为一种不限于粤语母语使用者的通用文字，直接逆转粤语使用人数减少乃至消亡的担忧。粤语国语字固然不能100%规避审查。但仅凭这种文字足以阻隔大部分中国人直接看懂，产生对粤语使用者有利的信息隔离，便有利于发挥民族精神。
对于国语字的展望
我设想在未来，越南、岭南、闽越、吴越、骆越、上海、赣越等扬子江以南各国都应该使用拉丁化的国语字作为本土语言的文字。这些语言有很多共享的本土词汇，也有很多共享的汉越词。我设想在给这些语言设计国语字的时候可以基于这些语言的音位学和语音，让这些国家的文字在表达同源词和相似的意思的时候，相似度可以达到70%以上，这样方便各国使用国语字代替汉字成为新的各国连接的文化纽带。我同时也在给吴语等语言设计国语字文字。甚至在未来，西南官话和汉语也可以使用国语字来书写。
试想，如果在未来，从广州乘坐飞机到上海、西贡和高雄，虽然不同国家使用着不同的语言和文字，通过国语字的相似度，扬子江以南各国的游客仍然可以大致理解标识和文字的意思。
粤语国语字和扬子江以南各语言的一系列的国语字对于诸夏和百越各国人民的思想的解放会是巨大的，因为粤语国语字直接打破了中共和中国主义者和他们控制的教育机构、宣传机构和媒体，对于汉语言、汉字、词语的源头的控制。在未来各国人民要学习和接受新的思想的时候，也会直接学习西方，不需要经过中共控制的汉语这一道防火墙。
我坚持推广粤语和其他语言的国语字，是因为我坚信我所做的这一条推动自由和独立的道路是正确的。我希望更多大众能理解粤语国语字所传达的这种思想和观点，然后去学这种文字。语言文字是一种活的东西，国语字是一种去中心的通信文字。要让越来越多的大众开始使用这一种文字，流通传播开来，有一定的人口基数，产生这一种文字相关的创作。特赋诗一首，以表心怀。
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Cantonese National Language Script: A Writing-System Invention for Realising Cantonese Independence and Autonomy from the Perspective of Communication Technology
By Wang Yunhao (Ngo Phi Trung)
Introduction to Cantonese National Language Script
Cantonese National Language Script (Quóc Ngữ Țụ̆) is a Romanised Cantonese script written with the Latin alphabet.
The alphabet of Cantonese National Language Script is as follows:
The initials of Cantonese National Language Script are as follows:
The finals of Cantonese National Language Script are as follows:
The tones of Cantonese National Language Script are as follows:
Cantonese National Language Script directly transforms Cantonese from a language written through a script including tens of thousands of different Chinese characters into a script that can be described with only a little over thirty letters and five tone marks. Articles in Cantonese National Language Script are composed of syllables. Each syllable is equivalent to one Chinese character, and each syllable includes four elements: consonant, vowel, final consonant, and tone. This is the same structural principle as Vietnamese. Cantonese National Language Script is a writing system that synthesises the features of Cantonese dialects from different regions and reconstructs an earlier Cantonese phonological system, allowing Cantonese readers of all accents to understand it. The spelling of a word also indicates its origin.
The Historical Development of Vietnamese Chữ Quốc Ngữ and Its Comparison with Cantonese
Vietnamese has passed through the historical development of tadpole script, Chinese characters, chữ Nôm and chữ quốc ngữ. Before Vietnam was conquered by the Qin forces led by Triệu Đà and before the establishment of Nam Việt kingdom, Vietnam is also thought to have possessed its own script. For example, many patterns of various shapes have been found on excavated bronze drums (trồng đồng), and these are regarded as a kind of writing. In academic circles they are collectively called tadpole script. Tadpole script has been lost.
During the period when Vietnam was under northern rule, Vietnam was deeply influenced by Han culture and adopted Chinese characters as its official script. Yet the spoken Vietnamese language differed enormously from classical Chinese. This form of written Chinese was suitable only for recording content with clear and fixed meanings and lacked creativity. After the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, Vietnam became independent as Đại Việt. Vietnamese people began to try to write in their own spoken language and invented chữ Nôm, which in fact means southern characters. Vietnamese people used existing Chinese characters to recreate words for indigenous Vietnamese vocabulary. Chữ Nôm developed during the Lê dynasty and became a symbol of national spirit. Chữ Nôm produced literary classics such as The Tale of Kiều. Hán-Nôm was equivalent to colloquial characters and articles written in colloquial characters in Cantonese, or to vernacular Chinese in the case of Chinese. However, because Hán-Nôm was a writing system based on Chinese characters, it involved many strokes, was less standardised than classical Chinese, and required a reader first to understand written Chinese in order to understand Nôm characters. Thus, throughout Vietnam’s dynasties, with the exception of the Tây Sơn dynasty, classical Chinese was used as the official written language.
Portuguese Catholic missionaries in southern Vietnam invented Vietnamese chữ quốc ngữ for the purpose of evangelisation. Among them, Alexandre de Rhodes compiled a Vietnamese-Portuguese-Latin dictionary and is regarded as one of the principal inventors of the Vietnamese script. At first, this script was popular within Vietnam’s Catholic communities and was not widely accepted by Confucian scholar-officials. Later, chữ quốc ngữ was valued by the Nguyễn-dynasty minister Trương Vĩnh Ký, who advocated its promotion and made it a script that Nguyễn officials were required to master. Thereafter, in the process by which Vietnam broke away from French colonial rule, increasing numbers of patriots used Vietnamese chữ quốc ngữ to spread ideas of national independence and advanced social-scientific thought. Figures such as Phan Bội Châu and Phan Châu Trinh used it, and it was in this process that the script acquired the name ‘quốc ngữ’. The status of Vietnamese chữ quốc ngữ is similar to that of Pe̍h-ōe-jī for Taiwanese and Hakka. Historically, languages such as Wu, Wenchow Wu, North-Hokkienese, Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese all produced similar romanised scripts during the process by which Western Christianity spread its mission into the Far East. These scripts were used as tools for missionaries to study local languages and to translate the Bible into authentic local language in order to promote Christianity.
After 1945, both northern and southern Vietnam used Vietnamese chữ quốc ngữ as their sole official common script. It has been used widely in the governments, economic activities, education, industry and military of both North and South Vietnam up to the present, proving that chữ quốc ngữ is the best script for Vietnamese. In particular, during the Republic of Vietnam period and among overseas anti-Communist Vietnamese exiles, many literary, musical and artistic works written in chữ quốc ngữ emerged.
This is also the difficulty faced by colloquial Cantonese characters in Hong Kong. From the British Hong Kong period to the present, and even among many overseas Hong Kong organisations, all Hong Kong legal documents, school education, media and religious activities have remained based on Mandarin Chinese and written mandarin Chinese, rather than on colloquial Cantonese characters.
Cantonese has produced Cantonese Romanisation for Bible translation, Yale Cantonese Romanisation and Jyutping, but all of these Latinisations of Cantonese were merely intended to record the pronunciation of Cantonese Chinese characters and to serve linguistic teaching and research. They were not writing systems. Cantonese did not, like Vietnamese, enter the next stage of a Romanised national script. After the New Culture Movement of the twentieth century, the South of Five Ridges and Yangtze Delta regions gradually promoted Chinese and a Chinese-centred written language, thereby embarking on the road of Sinicisation. They did not take the alternative path of developing their own national culture and national identity through a romanised chữ quốc ngữ.
How Cantonese National Language Script Would Change the Cantonese Ecosystem
Cantonese National Language Script would make Cantonese a script detached from the Chinese writing system. For example, at present, if Hong Kong media wish to translate the name of a foreign person, they first look at how the term is translated into Chinese and then read that Chinese term aloud using the Cantonese pronunciations of its characters. Such pronunciation creates a huge discrepancy from the pronunciation in the original language and is often very inaccurate. This directly makes Cantonese into a script subordinate to the Chinese system. In Cantonese National Language Script, the names of places and people tend to be described directly by letters according to sound, without relying on Chinese characters.
Cantonese National Language Script would bring Cantonese closer to Vietnamese and Taiwanese, which also use Latin scripts. When translating and receiving new concepts, there would be no need first to translate them into Chinese characters. There would be ‘no middleman taking a cut’ thereby avoiding ambiguity and semantic deviation.
Cantonese National Language Script can express authentic Cantonese words without the need to rely on corresponding Chinese characters. It is also better able to express the complex tones of Cantonese and the changes in meaning produced by tone sandhi. Where the same Chinese character is used, Cantonese National Language Script can distinguish polyphonic characters, and can also use spelling to distinguish etymology. Cantonese National Language Script can transmit meaning more comprehensively and accurately.
Cantonese National Language Script is a writing system that combines Cantonese dialects such as Canton City Cantonese, Hoisan Cantonese, Yamchow Cantonese and Phá-Châu Cantonese. In this way, all native Cantonese speakers can use one script to communicate, instead of relying on Chinese or English. In a future unified Cantonese state independent of China, Cantonese National Language Script could be used as the language of administrative documents and law.
Because Cantonese has long lacked a convenient and accurate way of recording and transmitting meaning, the development of the national industry has long been obstructed. After the development of Cantonese National Language Script, it becomes possible to record and transmit complex and accurate industrial drawings, parameters, and instructions in Cantonese. Cantonese-speaking populations would then be able to develop their own industrial system and industrial sectors and could also possess their own military and governmental departments. They could write their own laws and thought, and conduct ceremonies, in their own language. This is crucial to the establishment of a Cantonese state. The Cantonese-speaking population would form a centre of its own, independent of China and the colonial system of the British Empire.
Cantonese National Language Script would change the education model in which Cantonese is based on Chinese characters and written Chinese. Cantonese National Language Script is a phonetic script. Using it would reduce the time children spend learning to write and would thoroughly end the dull and suppressive educational style of Chinese-language education. For foreigners, Cantonese National Language Script is a more intuitive script, because it directly shows pronunciation. It can prevent mispronunciation. The Latin script is the writing system used by the largest population in the world. Using Cantonese National Language Script is a more international choice.
Chinese characters are regarded as a script capable of conveying deep impressions. Chinese characters possess a distinctive culture, and each Chinese character gives each person a particular psychological impression and feeling. Cantonese National Language Script possesses a high degree of rigour. In the future, once Cantonese National Language Script becomes sufficiently popular, it too will be able to form its own distinctive impressions. Because the spelling of Sino-Cantonese words in Cantonese National Language Script is highly similar to the spelling of Sino-Vietnamese words in Vietnamese chữ quốc ngữ, it can also produce such impressions for readers who already understand Vietnamese.
In fact, because of the development of Cantonese language, modern Hong Kong Cantonese writing may already include as much as one third of its content in Latin letters, in order to express loanwords and certain local words that lack Chinese characters. A direct transition to Cantonese National Language Script would therefore be a one-step solution.
Once Cantonese National Language Script becomes a mainstream written language, in the current digital age many artistic and cultural works written in Cantonese National Language Script would appear on the internet. Young people would publish videos and comments online in Cantonese National Language Script. It would generate its own trends and popular culture, just as the Vietnamese-language world does today.
Electronic Input for Cantonese National Language Script
All the letters of Cantonese National Language Script come from characters already included in Unicode. Those choices of letters are mainly referred to Vietnamese, Sami, Romanian and Soochow Romanisation, without newly creating any characters. This maximises convenience for display and input on electronic devices.
Cantonese National Language Script (quóc ngữ țụ̆) can be typed by using the Cantonese Telex input method. First, download the Keyman keyboard on a computer or mobile phone, then search for and download the Cantonese Telex keyboard. The website is as follows:
This keyboard uses key combinations to enter complex letters and tones.
During the period of French Indochina, Vietnamese newspapers invented a method for describing Vietnamese, known as quốc ngữ điện tin or Telex, in order to solve the problem of transmitting Vietnamese through telegraph machines with only 26 alphabet keys.
In the 1990s, the Vietnamese student Phạm Kim Long, who was studying in the Czech Republic, invented the Unikey input method to solve the problem of typing Vietnamese. The input principle of my Cantonese National Language Script input method is the same as that of Unikey, with additional combinations added to demonstrate letters unique to Cantonese National Language Script. Those who can type Vietnamese can quickly master Cantonese National Language Script typing. The formula is as follows: aa > â, oo > ô, ee > ê, aw > ă, ow > ơ, ii > ŭ, dd > đ, tt > ț, ss > ŧ, as > á, af > à, ar > ả, ax > ã, aj > ạ.
This directly transforms the once difficult-to-memorise and difficult-to-learn Cangjie-style Cantonese typing method into a script that can be learned quickly and typed rapidly and systematically. Moreover, this typing method can decompose every Cantonese word and syllable into a code composed of the 26 English letters according to the Telex formula, facilitating encoding and encrypted communication.
In order to make it easier for people to learn Cantonese National Language Script, I have compiled a dictionary comparing Cantonese National Language Script and Chinese characters, called Đại Việt Quóc Yâm Țụ̆ Vội The Dictionary of Cantonese National Language. It can be downloaded here:
In order to stay closer to modern Cantonese pronunciation, I have also compiled a Canton city-accent version of the dictionary:
Cantonese National Language Script and Anti-censorship Possibilities
To a considerable extent, Cantonese National Language Script can resist CCP censorship, because Cantonese National Language Script plainly does not use ordinary Chinese characters, and the CCP censorship system developed on the basis of Chinese characters does not work against it. To those unfamiliar with Cantonese National Language Script, the reading experience is indistinguishable from Vietnamese. In most cases, Cantonese National Language Script will be recognised by systems as Vietnamese, which also avoids the situation faced by Tibetan or Uyghur: the use of a special script makes them particularly easy to identify and target. Cantonese National Language Script also differs from Vietnamese, so it cannot be censored directly through a Vietnamese censorship mechanism. The Chinese Government would also find it difficult simply to ban Latin letters and Vietnamese in the same way that it may ban Tibetan or Uyghur, because Vietnam is China’s neighbour, and China itself also uses English letters and Chinese Pinyin. The cost to the CCP of banning Cantonese National Language Script would be excessively high.
In the early stage, the CCP would either disdain censoring Cantonese National Language Script or, even if a very small amount of corpus material existed, it would be mistaken for Vietnamese and ignored. In the current age of AI, however, if Cantonese National Language Script had a sufficiently large corpus, it would be easy for the CCP to train systems specifically to distinguish Cantonese National Language Script from Vietnamese. Given enough corpus material, it would also be possible to train a censorship mechanism specifically targeting Cantonese National Language Script. It is conceivable that, if Cantonese National Language Script becomes a script used by millions of people in the future, it will not be a secret script. The advantage of Cantonese National Language Script lies in the fact that its forms are composed of multiple letters, making it easy to vary spelling in order to avoid censorship. At that point, the diversity of Cantonese National Language Script would become an advantage. Alphabetic scripts are also easier to encrypt by other means.
Against the present background of the CCP’s heavy censorship of Chinese, and because of extensive keyword filtering, it is almost impossible to communicate normally on Chinese internet platforms in Chinese without consciously evading censorship. Even private messaging software such as WeChat is censored. Cantonese National Language Script may therefore, in the future, attract a large audience by taking an unconventional path. Indeed, because Cantonese grammar and vocabulary have similarities with Chinese and Wu, Cantonese National Language Script, at a later stage of development, may become a general-purpose script not limited to native Cantonese speakers, just as written Chinese is today. It may thereby directly reverse concerns that the number of Cantonese users is declining, or even that Cantonese will disappear.
Cantonese National Language Script certainly cannot evade censorship 100 per cent. Yet merely by being able to prevent most Chinese people from understanding it directly, and by creating an information barrier favourable to Cantonese users, it is already conducive to the expression of national spirit.
Prospects for National Language Script
I envision that, in the future, Vietnam, Cantonia, Hokkien, Goetland, Gestneseland, Shanghai, Komland and the various countries south of the Yangtze River should all use Romanised national scripts as the scripts of their native languages. These languages share many indigenous words, and also many shared Sino-Xenic words. When designing national scripts for these languages, I envisage basing them on the phonology and pronunciation of those languages, so that when the scripts of these countries' express cognates and similar meanings, their degree of similarity may reach more than 70 per cent. This would make it easier for each country to use national scripts in place of Chinese characters as a new cultural bond connecting them. I am also designing national scripts for languages such as Wu. In the future, even Southwestern Mandarin and Mandarin Chinese could be written in national scripts.
Imagine that, in the future, when flying from Canton to Shanghai, Saigon and Takao, although different countries use different languages and scripts, the similarity of national scripts would still allow tourists from the countries south of the Yangtze River to understand roughly the meanings of signs and written texts.
Cantonese National Language Script and the series of national scripts for the languages south of the Yangtze River would have a tremendous effect on the liberation of thought among the peoples of the various Zhuxia and Bách Việt countries. This is because Cantonese National Language Script directly breaks the control exercised by the CCP, Chinese nationalists, and the educational, propaganda and media institutions under their control over the sources of the Chinese language, Chinese characters and Chinese words. In the future, when the peoples of each country wish to learn and accept new concepts, they will also learn directly from the West, without needing to pass through the barrier of the Chinese language controlled by the CCP.
I persist in promoting Cantonese and the national scripts of other languages because I firmly believe that this path of advancing freedom and independence is correct. I hope that more members of the public can understand the ideas and views conveyed by Cantonese National Language Script and then learn this script. Language and writing are living things. National Language Script is a decentralised script of communication. More and more members of the public must begin to use this script, circulate it, spread it, form a certain population base, and produce creations associated with it. I appended a poem to express my feelings.
南國山河Nàm Quóc San Hò
南國山河南帝居Nàm Quóc San Hò Nàm Đế Cư
截然定分在天書Țiệt Nhiền Định Phân Țọi Thiên Sư
如何逆虜來侵犯Nhừ Hò Ngịch Lỗ Lòi Txâm Phạm
汝等行看取敗虛Nhữ Đẳng Hành Hón Txử Bại Hư
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