By Orie Endo (遠藤織枝), Bunkyo University (文教大学), Japan

Presented at Association of Asian Studies Annual Conference (March, 1999).

1.)　Area of Distribution and Environment of Nushu

2.)　Nushu: an Introduction to the Script

3.)　The Lives of Women of the Area Before Communism

4.)　The Creation and Development of Nushu

5.)　Nushu Today and its Contemporary Transmitters, and

6.)　The significance of Nushu

Historical distribution of Nushu is shown on the figure. The map　marked No. 1 is of China; No. 2 is of the province of Hunan湖南省; and No.　3 is of the prefecture of Jiang Yong江永県, found in south- eastern Hunan.　The area of this prefecture 1627 km2 and the population is　approximately 230,000. The distribution of Nushu is indicated by the dotted area.

The region is both fertile and surrounded by mountains. The　lowlands are mainly inhabited by the Han 漢族people and the　mountains by the Yao瑶族. Historically, social and cultural interchange　and intermarriage between the two ethnic groups have been the　norm. They have enjoyed a peaceful coexistence over the years　and there are many examples of cultural fusion.

Generally, the Han are phlegmatic, plain in dress, and　hard-working; whereas the Yao are sanguine, tend to bright colors,　and greatly enjoy impromptu composition of poetry, and song and　dance.

2.　Nushu: an Introduction to the Script

The example of the Nushu script is shown in figure. The script is written from top to bottom and right to left.　Many of the characters resemble those of Hanzi漢字 or Chinese　characters. Small, thin strokes are considered the mark of a skilled　hand. According to the work of Chinese researchers thus far, the　script is thought to be comprised of 1000-1500 characters.

The next one is an example of some of the joint research done by Professors　Zhao Li Ming趙麗明 and Gong Zhe Bing宮哲兵. If you compare the characters in　box number one with each other, you will see that they are very　similar. The characters enclosed by boxes marked three, four and　five could be taken as the same characters respectively, however in　this case, Professors Zhao and Gong, too, have chosen to count them all as different characters.

When researchers count as different Nushu characters what actually　are variants, the total number can easily be inflated to 1000 or　more. It is important to realize that these variants are products of　different writing styles and methods of transmission. In the　examples you have just seen, what have been taken to be different　characters all have the same pronunciation and function. It is my　view that characters that are similar to each other except for a few　minor strokes or seraphs, that represent the same sounds, and that　have perform the same function in a writing system, are, in reality,　variants of the same character.

The third one is the alphabet examples of the Chinese hanzi, Japanese　kanji漢字 and hiragana平仮名. Each character has been written twice but in a　different style. Although they vary from each other slightly, we do　not consider each variant a different character.　Upon reflection, I have come to the conclusion that the collection,　compilation and analysis of the aggregation of materials from a　number of different writers of Nushu has resulted in an inflation of　the number of characters women used to express themselves in the　script. Based on this I have done preliminary research on the body　of writings from one transmitter alone, that being Ms. He Yan-xin何艶新,　and the results show that she uses approximately 550 characters.

3.　The Lives of Women of the Area Before Communism

In comparison to women in other villages in China, the women of　the area were blessed with an exceptional environment. The　region was and still is warm, the soil fertile, and water plentiful.　There was no need for women to do agricultural work: the labour of　men generally sufficed. Crop harvests were abundant.

There was a distinct division of labour. While the men farmed,　women busied themselves with Nuhong女紅--texile arts and crafts that　included spinning cotton thread, weaving, sewing, shoe-making　from cloth, and embroidery. With the men tending the fields,　women friends would often gather at one person's home and do　their work together. Loving poetry and song, the women often　recited or sang of their sorrows or joys alone or in chorus, and it is　likely that they did so as they worked.

Also, it was popular among the girls of this area to observe a custom　called Jiebai Zimei 結拝姉妹or sworn sisterhood which entails pledging　commitment to female friends who were not blood relations. These　"sworn sisters" would go to festivals at the village shrine together,　do Nuhong together, and generally were much closer to each other　than they were to their real sisters.

Although the lives of these girls in the villages of their birth were　quite idyllic, a move to a different village and the hell of married　life awaited. When girls came of age, they were forced to go to the　homes of men they had never seen before to become their brides;　they were teased and bullied by their mothers-in-law and worked　to the bone around the house. Even when a young woman gave the　family children, they would often be sickly. Many died at a very　young age. The life a married woman was difficult, indeed.

However, what seemed to be the most unbearable of all for the　young women of this area, was having to part from their Jiebai　Zimei or "sworn sisters". They would compose songs expressing　their sorrow, however, once separated, they could not, of course,　sing together, nor could their voices travel the distances between　villages. It can be hypothesized that the origin of this script can be　found in the fervent desire to somehow express their feelings to　each other, to find a way in which to communicate.

4.　The Creation and Development of Nushu

Nushu was mainly used in the creation of San Chao Shu三朝書 or "Third　Day Missives".

San Chao Shu were cloth bound booklets created by Jiebai Zhimei　and mothers to give to their counterpart Jiebai Zhimei or their　daughters, respectively, upon their marriage. Jiebai Zhimei and　mothers expressed their hopes for the happiness of the young　woman who had left the village to be married and their sorrow at　being parted from her, by writing down songs in Nushu in San Chao　Shu which were then delivered on the third day after the young　woman's marriage.

San Chao Shu were often highly decorated in ink or with paper　cutouts as you see here.Both side of the first three pageswould be filled with songs written for the young women who left the village,while the rest was left blank. San chao shu ere considered perspnal treasures and those who received them would store their embroiderry patterns and threads between the unused pages.

Looking at what we see here, we can surmise that many of the　characters are based on Hanzi.　Now, the men who formed the leadership in the villages of the area　knew how to read and write Hanzi. It is thought that the daughters　and sisters of these men created the balance of Nushu trying to　memorize and imitate the Hanzi they saw, simplifying and　deforming the characters in the process. Other characters were　likely based on embroidery stitches and designs.

The Nushu characters marked A to C seem to have been borrowed　from the Hanzi: ri日 or sun, yan眼　or eye and xiang相 or aspect;　phsiognomy, whereas the characters marked one to five look as if　they were taken from embroidery designs.

Unlike hanzi which have semantic value, the characters of Nushu　are almost exclusively phonetic. This is the greatest difference　between the two scripts.

Now, young women would compose songs and write them down in　Nushu in order to give them to other young women who had moved　to other villages. Their poems and songs were written in the　region's Tuhua土話, a local dialect used over a smaller area than the　main dialect Nushu was used to represent the sounds of the local　dialect which is called Cheng Guan Tuhua城関土話 According the joint　research of Huang Xue Zhen黄雪貞 and myself, there are a total of 1480　sounds in this local dialect if tonal differences are included. Being　that some characters can be used with others in context to　represent a variety of sounds, if Nushu was comprised of　approximately 600 characters, the totality of Chen Guan Tuhua　could be written.

5.　Nushu Today and its Contemporary Transmitters

Let me start by telling you that I began my research in 1993 when　most Chinese and American researchers had almost completed their　work. The existence of Nushu was reported to central authorities　in China in 1983 and by the end of the eighties, many researchers　had traveled to the region, met with transmitters, recorded the　script and collected large amounts of material. A great number of　research reports on Nushu were released thereafter.

In 1993, it was thought that there was only one transmitter　remaining, Ms. Yang Huan Yi陽煥宜. However, in the summer of 1994　when I was traveling from village to village in the region hoping to　find others who had learned Nushu as a child, I came across Ms. He　Yan Xin何艶新.Ms. He was born in 1940. Although knowing how to　write some Nushu, not having had a "sworn sister", she had never　sent or received writings in Nushu.

From the age of eight to ten, Ms. He's grandmother taught her　Nushu. Her grandmother taught her by first singing a verse and　then writing the characters on palm of Ms. He's hand. She then,　urged her to write them herself. Ms. He learned to write the

characters by practicing them with paper and pencil or in the dirt　with a stick. At age ten, however, He started to attend school and　learned how to write Hanzi. After the revolution, the lives of　women in China changed immensely and the women in the villages　of this area stopped using Nushu. So He Yan-xin learned Nushu but

never had the chance to use it once in the forty years that had　passed before she met up with my research team.

When I first met her, she stated that she had completely forgotten　Nushu and flatly denied being able to write it. However, after　telling her that it didn't matter to me if she could still write or not,　that I wanted to hear about her grandmother who taught her, all of　a sudden she said she would try to write and sat down to a piece of　paper. She started by singing the first verse of a simple children's　counting song she had learned when she was young. Then, she　started to write down the words in Nushu. She had great difficulty　remembering, and crossed out characters she wrote, many times.　When she finished the first verse, she sang the next one, and tried　to write it out as she had before. Eventually, she completed up to　the number ten, but had great difficulty in doing so. In all, she　wrote a total of 70 characters of which 57 were different. All were　recognizable.

Now, in Nushu, the mark of a beautiful hand is uniform, small,　wispy characters. As you see here, Ms. He's initial handwriting was　extremely childish--the characters being large and uneven.

After my return to Japan, I corresponded in Chinese by mail with　He Yan Xin, hoping to learn more about her childhood. Eight　months after my visit in the spring of 1995, she sent me a　handkerchief covered in beautifully written Nushu.

Part of the handkerchief can now be seen.　Needless to say, I was very surprized. The handwriting was　beautiful--very different from a few short months before.

Each time I visited China after that, there was visible improvement　in her hand. In 1997, He Yan-xin actually wrote out her　autobiography in Nushu and gave it to me.

Note that as Ms. He also can write Hanzi, she wrote the title here:　Zichuanshu自伝書 or "autobiography".

In her autobiography, she told of losing her father at a young age　and the struggles her mother had had trying to make ends meet.　She went on to tell of not being unable to go against her mother's　wishes and being forced to marry against her will. She wrote of　her husband being sickly and of the difficulties she had had raising　her five children.

Her autobiography filled ten pages of one of her son's school　notebooks and was comprised of a total of 2828 characters. He　Yan-xin was now not only able to write Nushu, but also able to　express her own thoughts and feelings in it as well.

After this, I had the occasion to come across another transmitter of　Nushu. In August of last year, a woman called He Jing-hua何静華 gave　me two thin bound booklets, one of eight pages and the other 12.

These booklets were given to me with the explanation that in them　Ms. He Jing Hua had written about her sorrow at losing her son.

Note that Nushu has been written on the right and Hanzi on the left.　The Nushu characters are beautifully formed.

Before receiving the booklets, I had had no idea that He Jing Hua　was able to write. The year before, in September 1997, during　some field research, I had been looking for someone who knew a　large number of old poems and songs. Hearing that He Jing Hua　had been known for her love of song since childhood, and that, as an　adult, she had even performed on local TV, I asked her to recite and　sing for me. I remember asking He Jing-hua if she could write　Nushu but she instantly replied in the negative. This left me with　the impression that she had never attempted to learn how.　However, one year later, she brought me some beautiful writing in　her own hand. The following is the story of how she learned how　to write Nushu.

When He Jing-hua was a girl, she had the occasion to see and try to　copy Nushu. As I mentioned before, she had loved song and its　performance since childhood. When she was a girl, an aunt had　given her a booklet with poems and songs written in. She had　taken it and placing sheets of paper over the pages, she had tried to　learn the characters by tracing them. She said she had filled　countless sheets of paper with Nushu. However, she wasn't able to　write without looking at the characters to copy them, not to speak　of being able to write her own thoughts down, as the women of the　region used to do.

It can be said that my field research was the impetus for He Jing　Hua's return to learning Nushu. She tells the story this way: "It　was the first time I had seen Nushu in I don't know how many　years--decades even. There were a number of characters I　remembered. And when, I heard Professor Endo say that Nushu　was a good thing, that it was good way for women to write their　own thoughts and feelings down, I thought about trying to learn　again. Then after Prof. Endo went back to Japan, I looked at a the　copy of Nushu she had left behind and started to practice. I asked Mr. Zhou Shuo-yi周碩沂 to teach me the characters I didn't know. Mr. Zhou Shou Yi, a local researcher, was the first person to realize　the value of Nushu and has been studying it since the 1950s.

He Jing-hua had lost a son in an accident a few years before I met　her. Feeling the need to express her sorrow, she composed a long　poem and wrote it down in Nushu. She told me that she had　decided to do so because she wanted her daughter to be able to　read and understand, after her own death, how she had felt at　losing him. Because her daughter cannot read Nushu, in order for　her to be able to understand what she had written, He Jing-hua　recited her poems out loud to her husband and had him write down　Hanzi beside what she had written.

Now, He Jing-hua started attending elementary school at the age of　thirteen and learned to write Hanzi at that time. Knowing this, I　asked her why she did not write her poem down in hanzi instead of　Nushu. She told me that she was not able to, that it was to　daunting to even think about writing down her feelings in Hanzi.　However, using Nushu, she felt she could. She said it took her two　months to write the eight　page, 94 verse, 658 character poem Jing-　hua Si Er 静華思児(Jing Hua Thinks of Her Child).

6.　The significance of Nushu

Now, I would like to speak about the significance of Nushu.　He Jing-hua, in contrast to other transmitters before her, did not　learn Nushu in an environment where women were actually using it　in their daily lives. She learned it through self-study, so to speak.

However, He Jing-hua's accomplishment does suggest some　possibilities in regard to Nushu:

1.) If having practiced writing Nushu as a child, it is possible for　a　woman at even the age of 58 to master Nushu in one year.

2.) For the women of the region, Nushu presents a simpler and　more approachable mode of self-expression than Hanzi.

3.) Learning Nushu can lead to self-expression.

Looking at He Jing Hua's story, we see that this writing system,　created by women long ago who did not have the opportunity to　learn Hanzi and so did not know how to write it, still has　significance and value today as a mode of expression in spite of　opportunities for women since the revolution to go to school and　learn how to read and write. He Yan Xin's expereince and her long　autobiography also support this conclusion. In contrast to He Jing　Hua, He Yan Xin went as far as middle school and so learned many　Hanzi. After graduation, for a time, she even worked in an office as　a clerk. In spite of this, it seems that her renewed ability to write　Nushu was what allowed her to start expressing her own thoughts　in writing.

At present, only three transmitters of Nushu remain: Yang Huan-yi,　aged 90, He Yan Xin, aged 58, and the newest writer, He Jing-hua,　also aged 58. Around 1989 and 1990, the local government set up　Nushu classes in an attempt to have girls learn it in order to　preserve and transmit the script. However, they were unable to create sustained interest among the young, and with the death of　the woman who was leading the classes, they came to an end.

Since then, no one, not the local or provincial government nor even　the Institute of Linguistics of the Chinese Academy of Social Studies　社会科学院語言研究所or The China Women's Federation中華全国婦女連合会 has made any attempt at　preservation.　It is my fervent desire to see China place greater value on this　important cultural property which was created by women,　transmitted by women, and has comforted and strengthened　women throughout its long history.

There is still much that is unknown about this unique script and the　culture it represents. And, the reality is, there is not much time　left before all living transmitters of Nushu will be gone. I sincerely　hope that once those of us in the international community unaware　of Nushu's existence realize its value, an interest in its research and　preservation will again be sparked. It is truly an important part of　our world heritage and should not be allowed to disappear.

Copyright© 1999, 2000, 2001 Orie Endo.