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Reference.org
Fraser script
open-in-new
<p>The Fraser or Old Lisu script is an <a href="/facts/Constructed_script/T1had3H3">artificial</a> <a href="/facts/Abugida/FWhLePru">abugida</a> for the <a href="/facts/Lisu_language/4v9Dbn2J">Lisu language</a> invented around 1915 by Sara Ba Thaw, a <a href="/facts/Karen_people/1BCdjXg1">Karen</a> preacher from <a href="/facts/Myanmar/zcqQH2oE">Myanmar</a>, and improved by the <a href="/facts/Missionary/AtfQeYq3">missionary</a> <a href="/facts/James_O._Fraser/eqczjkM9">James O. Fraser</a>. It is a single-<a href="/facts/Letter_case/KQcwaUUD">case</a> (<a href="/facts/Unicase/EgKIQzzf">unicameral</a>) <a href="/facts/Alphabet/vqfRpS3E">alphabet</a>. It was also used for the <a href="/facts/Naxi_language/79Qasce1">Naxi language</a>, e.g. in the 1932 Naxi Gospel of Mark, and used in the Zaiwa or <a href="/facts/Zaiwa_language/lC6AdD5b">Atsi language</a>, e.g. in the 1938 Atsi Gospel of Mark. </p><p>The script uses uppercase letters from the <a href="/facts/Latin_script/7EWeJjUV">Latin script</a> (except for the letter <a href="/facts/Q/oMDgYv3h">Q</a>) and rotated versions thereof (except for the letters <a href="/facts/M/82YCoGWK">M</a>, <a href="/facts/Q/oMDgYv3h">Q</a> and <a href="/facts/W/SVH5prpT">W</a>) to write <a href="/facts/Consonant/81X2SGS6">consonants</a> and <a href="/facts/Vowel/BNhCeFtH">vowels</a>. <a href="/facts/Tonal_language/eprhXrWJ">Tones</a> and <a href="/facts/Nasalization/XpzfohCT">nasalization</a> are written with Roman <a href="/facts/Punctuation/YsE7u4W6">punctuation</a> marks, identical to those found on a typewriter. Like the Indic <a href="/facts/Abugida/FWhLePru">abugidas</a>, the vowel [a] is not written. However, unlike those scripts, the other vowels are written with full letters. </p><p>The local Chinese government in <a href="/facts/Nujiang_Lisu_Autonomous_Prefecture/urR2KHmP">Nujiang</a> <i>de facto</i> recognized the script in 1992 as the <a href="/facts/Official_script/b898IMfN">official script</a> for writing in Lisu, although other Lisu autonomous territories continue to use the New Lisu (Latin script) for official matters. </p>