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The Shui script is the written language of the
Shui ethnic group, one of the 17 groups who have their own script out of the 56
different ethnicities in China. An ancient symbol system resembling inscriptions
on bones or tortoise shells of the Shang
Dynasty , Shui scripts record astronomy, folk customs, philosophy,
aesthetics, legal systems, and other social and cultural information of Shui
ethnic group.
Shui scripts have a long history dating back as far as the Xia
Dynasty (2100-1600 BC). There are three main categories of Shui scripts:
pictographs, which take the shape of flowers, birds, insects, fish, and other
objects in nature; religious codes and symbols; and some others imitating Han
characters. Other than in hand-written transcriptions, Shui scripts can also be
found on embroidery, stone tablets, wood-carvings and pottery.
Who created Shui scripts? According to legend, a man named Lu Duo created
Shui scripts. Nowadays, a ballad telling the story of Lu Duo is still sung in
Shuiyan County, Guizhou
Province , where Shui people gather. The lyrics say "An old man named Lu Duo
lived in the cave all year round. He created scripts on stones to divine the
future, telling people about the auspicious moments."
How many words are there in Shui scripts? According to "Studies of Shui
Culture", a book by Pan Zhaolin, there are around 500 single characters. Experts
also discovered that the words most in use usually have variant forms; some even
have more than 30 variants. Therefore, it is estimated to have 1600 words in
all. These words, though not a large amount, helped the continuity of Shui
culture for thousands of years.
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