Re: [OT] ANN: Site about scripts

From: Kenneth Whistler (kenw@sybase.com)
Date: Mon Oct 15 2001 - 15:10:08 EDT


Peter asked:

> >Ethiopic and Canadian Syllabics and Tengwar are featural.
>
> I have never heard anyone suggest any script other than Hangul to be
> featural. Please explain.

If you examine the UCAS, you'll see that the orientation of the
base consonant symbols (rotationally), and the placement of the
dots (or dashes), correlate with the vowellings of the syllables.
Other diacritic modifications of the base consonants are semi-regular,
as well, too. This is very different from the Yi syllabary, for
example, where each syllable is a unique graphic form, with no
systematic connection between that form and either the consonantal
or vocalic part of the syllable.

Ethiopic, examined as a syllabary, has some of the same kinds
of characteristics as UCAS. The placement of the flags and
loops correlates with the vowel ranks, and the placement of the
top "butterflies" corresponds with manner or other distinctions among
the consonant ranks.

--Ken
 



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