I remember back when we all had to start learning Beijing rather than Peking, which for a right-brained person is torture, because it takes three times as long to un-learn something. But it was their language -- we should have gotten it right from the start.
I have heard of pinyin, and have made the Ch/Q substitution in my head before, but if I knew there was a system involved, it is lost in the shuffle feature.
** Are you familiar with the systems of transliteration? Ch'ing (in Wade-Giles) is the same as Qing (in pinyin). I tend to use pinyin when writing, but you can't study guwen in an English context without learning both.
These books look great, especially Jennifer's, just to get the feel of how the China trade was going on. Some family somewhere had to be getting materials out of China (including the Silk Road) and to the west. There was too much money to be made -- and China is a country with something like 15% of the land good for crops. That's a lot of income to be made up in other ways.
I suspect the people this man is running from were doing something to keep the nobility controlling the magic users. That would fit with their culture -- just as there would be people quietly trying to buck the system, and fleeing when nothing else would serve.
I just have to keep writing -- it's easy to think "one more research book" but I need to finish this story, before Allie gives up and won't tell me any more. That 1812 book has to turn up tonight....
no subject
I have heard of pinyin, and have made the Ch/Q substitution in my head before, but if I knew there was a system involved, it is lost in the shuffle feature.
** Are you familiar with the systems of transliteration? Ch'ing (in Wade-Giles) is the same as Qing (in pinyin). I tend to use pinyin when writing, but you can't study guwen in an English context without learning both.
These books look great, especially Jennifer's, just to get the feel of how the China trade was going on. Some family somewhere had to be getting materials out of China (including the Silk Road) and to the west. There was too much money to be made -- and China is a country with something like 15% of the land good for crops. That's a lot of income to be made up in other ways.
I suspect the people this man is running from were doing something to keep the nobility controlling the magic users. That would fit with their culture -- just as there would be people quietly trying to buck the system, and fleeing when nothing else would serve.
I just have to keep writing -- it's easy to think "one more research book" but I need to finish this story, before Allie gives up and won't tell me any more. That 1812 book has to turn up tonight....