Xinjiang 4

Listen to Xinjiang 4, an 18-year-old woman from Ha Mi (or Hami), Xinjiang Autonomous Region, China. Click or tap the triangle-shaped play button to hear the subject.

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BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION

AGE: 18

DATE OF BIRTH (DD/MM/YYYY): 21/06/1992

PLACE OF BIRTH: Ha Mi, Xinjiang Autonomous Region

GENDER: female

ETHNICITY: Han Chinese

OCCUPATION: student

EDUCATION: university

AREAS OF RESIDENCE OUTSIDE REPRESENTATIVE REGION FOR LONGER THAN SIX MONTHS:

Subject has also lived in Suzhou and Shenzehn, in Jiangsu Province.

OTHER INFLUENCES ON SPEECH:

The subject had native English-speaking teachers in her high school.

The text used in our recordings of scripted speech can be found by clicking here.

RECORDED BY: Bill McCann

DATE OF RECORDING (DD/MM/YYYY): 06/04/2011

PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTION OF SCRIPTED SPEECH: N/A

TRANSCRIBED BY: N/A

DATE OF TRANSCRIPTION (DD/MM/YYYY):

ORTHOGRAPHIC TRANSCRIPTION OF UNSCRIPTED SPEECH:

And I will introduce my hometown. My hometown’s name is Ha Mi, where is the first st – station in Xinjiang, and it is famous for Hami melons. There are many people from different nations, and it is a small city which, ah, and it is a small city with its own ed – education organization, park, cul – cultural square, shopping centre and so on. And if people go to there, ah, I think people will love it.  [The subject now goes on to read abstracts from the Analects of Confucius in her own Zhongyuan Mandarin dialect. (See the detailed commentary below.) She has not provided a pinyin transliteration. A reading in pure Putonghua (Mandarin) can be heard on the Hebei 1 sample.]

TRANSCRIBED BY: Bill McCann

DATE OF TRANSCRIPTION (DD/MM/YYYY): 18/07/2013

PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTION OF UNSCRIPTED SPEECH: N/A

TRANSCRIBED BY: N/A

DATE OF TRANSCRIPTION (DD/MM/YYYY): N/A

SCHOLARLY COMMENTARY:

SHORT READINGS FROM THE ANALECTS OF CONFUCIUS

KEY: A = Mandarin (Simplified); B = Mandarin (Pingyin); C = Dialect (Pingyin); D = English.

孔子: 论语 – Kǒng zǐ : lún yǔ – Kon zi: len yu – Confucius: Lun Yu

 

學而第一 – xué ér dì yī – Xué ér dì yī – Chapter One

A: 1-1:-       子曰: 學而時習之、不亦說乎。

B: yī-yī :-    zǐ yuē: xué ér shí xí zhī, bù yì yuè hū.

C: yī-yī :-

D: 1-1:-       The Master said: Is it not pleasure to learn, and practice what is learned time and again?

A: 1-2:-       有朋自遠方來、不亦樂乎。

B: yī-èr:-     yǒu péng zì yuǎn fāng lái, bù yì lè hū.

C: yī-èr:-

D: 1-2:-       Is it not happiness to have friends coming from distant places?

A: 1-3:-       人不知而不慍、不亦君子乎。

B: yī-sān:    rén bù zhī ér bù yùn, bù yì jūn zi hū.

C: yī-sān:

D: 1-3:-       Is it not virtue for a man to feel no discomposure when others take no note of him?

為政第二 – wéi zhèng dì èr – wéi zhèng dì ér – Chapter two

A: 2-2:-       子曰：「詩三百，一言以蔽之，曰：『思無邪』。

B: èr-èr:-     zǐ yuē: shī sān bǎi, yī yán yǐ bì zhī , yuē: sī wú xié.

C: èr-èr:-

D: 2-2:-       The Master said: In the Book of Odes there are three hundred poems, but they may be summarised in a single sentence: Think no evil.

A: 2-7:-       子游問孝。子曰：今之孝者，是謂能養。至於犬馬，皆能有養；不敬,    何 以別乎。

B: èr-qī:-     zǐ yóu wèn xiào. zǐ yuē: jīn zhī xiào zhě, shì wèi néng yǎng. zhì wū quǎn mǎ, jiē néng yǒu yǎng; bù jìng, hé yǐ bié hū.

C: : èr-qī:-

D: 2-7:-       Zi You asked what filial piety was. The Master said: Nowadays, providing support for one’s parents is considered filial piety. But dogs and horses can also do this. If there is no respect, what is the difference?

A: 2-10:-     子曰：「視其所以，觀其所由，察其所安。人焉叟哉？人焉叟哉？

B: èr-shí :- zǐ yuē: shì qí suǒ yǐ , guān qí suǒ yóu, chá qí suǒ ān. rén yān sǒu zāi? rén yān sǒu zāi?

C: èr-shí :-

D: 2-10:-     The Master said: Watch what a man does. Find out his motives. See how he takes his ease. How then can the man hide his true self? How can the man hide his true self?

COMMENTARY

Noticeable characteristics, which can be heard on the recording, include some examples of the common /θ/- /s,/ /ʒ/- /s/, /v/-/w/, and /eI/-/aI/ minimal pair transpositions, the latter quite pronounced. The problem with sounding the second s-like sound in words like “goose’s,” “places,” and “diagnosis” is also quite pronounced.

The subject’s native dialect is the Lan-Yin dialect, one of the Zhongyuan Mandarin or Central Plains Dialects. The dialect is also spoken in Gansu, and the name is a compound of the capitals of the two provinces, Yinchuan and Lanzhou, which are also two of its principal sub-dialects. There are pronunciation differences between this sample and the samples from Urumqi. These can be clearly heard by comparing the dialect reading in this sample with that of the Xinjiang 1 sample.

The subject’s hometown is Ha Mi, or Qumul in Uyghur, an oasis city close to Xinjiang’s eastern border with Gansu. It is well known in China as the home of the famously sweet Hami melons. During the Later Han dynasty (25-220 CE), the area repeatedly changed hands between the Chinese and the Xiongnu peoples of Mongolia and western Manchuria. Not only did it occupy a militarily strategic position, but it was also a very fertile oasis. The Han established many military colonies whose main purpose was to develop an agricultural base with which to feet its troops and supply the trade caravans. At that time, it was famous for its melons, raisins and wine.

During the Yuan Dynaasty (1271-1368 CE), the region was conquered by the Mongols and was later the seat of a small state established by Gunashiri, a descendant of Chagatai Khan. This state was called Qara Del in Kumul or Hami, and it accepted Ming supremacy in the early 15th century. Since the 18th century, Kumul was the capital of the Kumul Khanate, a semi-autonomous vassal state in the Qing Empire and the Republic of China as part of Xinjiang. The last ruler of the khanate was Maqsud Shah.

For a detailed commentary on the Xinjiang Autonomous Region, see the Xinjiang 1 sample.

COMMENTARY BY: Bill McCann

DATE OF COMMENTARY (DD/MM/YYYY): 18/07/2013

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