Scope. Tujia has Northern varieties (including Longshan, Yongshun, Baojing and Guzhang) and a Southern variety in Luxi. This scheme takes Miaoshi in Longshan as its reference point and Northern Tujia as its base.
Principles
- The scheme uses Latin letters and follows Hanyu Pinyin conventions where practical.
- Words, rather than individual syllables, are the basic units of writing.
- Modern Chinese loans follow the local Southwestern Mandarin pronunciation while remaining close to Hanyu Pinyin spelling.
Initials
The scheme lists 21 initials. The letter y represents IPA [j]; the letter j represents [tɕ].
| Letter | IPA | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| b | [p] | bav | look · 看 |
| p | [pʰ] | pox | put · 放 |
| m | [m] | mor | cat · 猫 |
| d | [t] | daf | wear · 穿 |
| t | [tʰ] | taf | roast · 烤 |
| l | [l] | lav | road · 路 |
| g | [k] | gar | crow · 乌鸦 |
| k | [kʰ] | kax | pass · 过 |
| ng | [ŋ] | ngaf | I, me · 我 |
| h | [x] | har | hit · 打 |
| hx | [ɣ] | hxaf | write · 写 |
| j | [tɕ] | jier | shout · 喊 |
| q | [tɕʰ] | qief | kick · 踢 |
| n | [ȵ] | nix | look for · 找 |
| x | [ɕ] | xief | have · 有 |
| z | [ts] | zav | take · 拿 |
| c | [tsʰ] | cav | spinning wheel · 纺车 |
| s | [s] | sav | cold · 冷 |
| r | [z] | rax | fly · 飞 |
| y | [j] | yir | see · 见 |
| w | [w] | wuf | cow · 牛 |
Finals
The scheme lists 23 finals. After z, c, s or r, final i is pronounced [ɿ].
| Final | IPA | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| i | [i] | jir | foot · 脚 |
| u | [u] | wuf | cow · 牛 |
| a | [a] | daf | wear · 穿 |
| ia | [ia] | qiaxpaix | sparrow · 麻雀 |
| ua | [ua] | uaf | stop (to cattle) · 停（训牛） |
| o | [o] | gof | he · 他 |
| e | [e] | mef | sky · 天 |
| ie | [ie] | jiev | chase · 追 |
| ai | [ai] | baiv | child · 小孩 |
| uai | [uai] | kuair | chair · 椅子 |
| ei | [ei] | anxbeix | uncle · 叔叔 |
| ui | [ui] | gofguix | older female cousin · 表姐 |
| ao | [au] | baofqir | pheasant · 野鸡 |
| iao | [iau] | bixtiaox | flatland · 平坝 |
| ou | [əu] | axkoux | corner · 角落 |
| iu | [iəu] | biuf | daughter · 女儿 |
| an | [ã] | banf | eagle · 鹰 |
| ian | [iã] | jianf | easy · 容易 |
| uan | [uã] | suanv | small · 小 |
| en | [ẽ] | enxqiv | nose · 鼻子 |
| in | [ĩ] | xinfgax | green · 绿 |
| un | [ẽu] | kunr | confined · 困 |
| ong | [uŋ] | rongv | younger sister · 妹 |
Tones
A tone letter is written at the end of each syllable. Citation forms mark the basic tone rather than the changed tone.
high level · rax
low falling · rar
high falling · rav
mid rising · raf
When two high-level syllables occur together, the second may surface with a mid-level value of 33. This is tone sandhi, not a fifth basic tone.
Using the scheme in this project
The dictionary combines data from several publications and transcription systems. Northern records can be shown in the draft spelling. Southern Tujia records retain their source IPA and any converted spelling is labelled as a reference. Records that STEDT does not classify as Northern or Southern are marked “Dialect unspecified”.