TIL

Romabama

Burmese Written Language in Latin Script

indx-rbm

U Kyaw Tun, M.S. (I.P.S.T., U.S.A.), Deep River, Ontario, Canada. Not for sale. No copyright. Free for everyone. Prepared for students of TIL Computing and Language Center, Yangon, MYANMAR .

Last major update: 061123 - hard disk failure on 061211. I am continuing from backup 061201
Last major update: 031123

Font used for these pages is Arial Unicode MS.
For Burmese-Myanmar characters, I use my own designed .gif pix. See font22design

Index-L4M | Top
Romabama

Contents of this page

See more recent updates in RB4M.htm

Introduction
Burmese-Myanmar language and script
Monophthongs and diphthongs
Is Burmese-Myanmar monosyllabic or poly-syllabic? - the use of white-space
Myanmar script, ASCII, and Unicode
Origin of words - commonality between Burmese and Pali
   Pali-derived words -- {pa.} and killed r2c5; long vowel {à}
Letters of Roman alphabet used
01. Romabama Rule 1 - ASCII characters
02. Romabama Rule 2 - English-Latin alphabet (use of capital letters)
03. Romabama Rule 3 - Extended Latin alphabet
04. Romabama Rule 4 - Silent e
05. Romabama Rule 5 - Killed consonants
06. Romabama Rule 6 - {king:si:} vowsign
07. Romabama Rule 7 - Fossilized killed consonants
08. Romabama Rule 8 - Non-alphabetic characters
09. Romabama Rule 9 - Extension of Myanmar akshara row 2 to accommodate medials

Consonants - con01
Myanmar consonants
Devanagari consonants
Nasalisation
Devanagari Virama
Devanagari Conjuncts -- The problem of Burmese-Myanmar horizontal ligatures.
Syllable formation in Devanagari
Devanagari hand-written script

English consonants - con02
  Manner of articulation
  Place of articulation -- POA
  Table of English consonants
Names of the Myanmar consonants
"Killed" Consonants
Ligates or consonant clusters
Coda

Romabama consonants - con03
Triads
Pairs
Same sounding pairs
Problem pairs
Singles 

Medials or pronounceable conjuncts - con04
{ya.ping.} -- conjunct with {ya.}
{ra.ris} -- conjunct with {ra.}
{wa.hswè:} -- conjunct with {wa.}
{ha.hto:} -- conjunct with {ha.}
{ya.ping. wa.hswè:} -- double-conjunct with {ya.} and {ha.}
{ra.ris wa.hswè:} -- double-conjunct with {ra.} and {ha.}
{ya.ping. ha.hto:} -- double-conjunct with {ya.} and {ha.}
{ra.ris ha.hto:} -- double-conjunct with {ra.} and {ha.}
{wa.hswè: ha.hto:} -- double conjunct with {wa.} and {ha.}
{ya.pin. wa.hswè: ha.hto:} -- triple conjunct with {ya.}, {wa.} and {ha.}
{ra.ris wa.hswè: ha.hto:} -- triple conjunct with {ra.}, {wa.} and {ha.}

"Killed" akshara-consonants -- consonants under virama - con05
Romabama syllable
killed {nga.}
killed {Ña.} and {ña.}
{pa.} and r2 consonants
killed {ya.} and {ra.}

Romabama vowels - vow01
Pali-Myanmar vowels
Burmese-Myanmar vowels
Table of Myanmar vowels
Extended Burmese-Myanmar vowels - vowels ending in {a·thut}
Vowel groups
Non-vowel signs
Vowel length
Dot above
Vowel Suppression Sign

English vowels - vow02
English [a] and Burmese {a}
English-Latin <A>
English-Latin <AE>
English-Latin <AEO>
English-Latin <AI> and <AY>
English-Latin <AU> and <AW>
English-Latin <O>
English-Latin <OU>
UKT note on killed {ya.}, killed {ra.}, and killed {wa.}

Romabama vowels - continued

Group {a. a a:}
  with base aksharas - vow03 (Pali-derived words)
  with medials - vow03med 
  Action-result pair - friction and aspiration
  Who is {thu-rath~tha.ti}?
Group {i. i i:} . {I. I} and {IÉ}  
  with base aksharas - vow04
  with medials - vow04med
Group {u. u u:} and {U. U U:}
  with base aksharas - vow05
  with medials - vow05med
Group {é. é é:} and {É:}
  with base akshara - vow06 
  with medials - vow06med
Group {è. èý è:}
  with base akshara vow07
  with medials vow07med
Group {au. au au:} and {-- Au Au:} --
  with base akshara vow08
  with medials vow08med
Group {än. än --}   
  with base akshara vow09
  with medials vow09med
Group {o. o o:}
  with base akshara vow10
  with medials vow10med
Group {oän. oän oän:}
  with base akshara vow11
  with medials vow11med

General considerations
Romabama rime - rim00
Vowels ending in killed aksharas
Vowels (formed from vowel-letters) ending in killed aksharas
Extending the vowels ending in killed nasals
Extending the vowels ending in killed wag-aksharas
Extending the vowels ending in killed awag-aksharas

Romabama rime ending in killed nasals

Group {nga.thut}
  with base akshara in onset - von01
  with medials in onset - von01med
Group {ña.thut}
  with base akshara in onset  - von02a
  with medials in onset  - von02amed 
Group {Ña.thut}  
  with base akshara - von02b
  with medials - von02bmed 
Group {Na.thut}
  with base akshara in onset  - von03
  with medials in onset  - von03med
Group {na.thut}
  with base akshara in onset - von04
  with medials in onset  - von04med
Group {ma.thut}
  with base akshara in onset  - von05
  with medials in onset  - von05med

Romabama rime ending in killed consonants except killed nasals

Killed wag aksharas

Group {ka.thut}
   with base akshara in onset  - rim01
   with medials in onset  - rim01med
Group {sa.thut}
  with base akshara in onset  - rim02
  with medials in onset  - rim02med
Group {Ta.thut}  
  with base akshara in onset  - rim03
Group {ta.thut}
  with base akshara in onset  - rim04
  with medials in onset  - rim04med
Group {pa.thut}  
  with base akshara in onset  - rim05
  with medials in onset  - rim05med

Killed a-wag aksharas

Group {ya.thut} : {èý} {àý} {iý} {uý} {auý} {oý}
  with base akshara in onset  - rim06
  with medials in onset  - rim06med

Group {ra.thut} :
  with base akshara in onset  - rim07

Group {la.thut} :
  with base akshara in onset  - rim08

Group {wa.thut} :
  with base akshara in onset - rim09

Group {tha.thut} :
  with base akshara in onset - rim10

Group {ha.thut} :
  with base akshara in onset - rim11

UKT notes

Contents of this page

Reference

(in Burmese-Myanmar)
01. Myanmar Orthography (MOrtho),
  U Tun Tint editor, Myanmar Language Commission (MLC), 1986, pp292
  (Note: MLC has been renamed several times.)
02. Myanmar English Dictionary (MEDict)
    by MLC, 1993, pp 635
03. Travelling Pocket Myanmar Dictionary (MMDict )
  Burmese-Myanmar to Burmese-Myanmar)  by MLC, 1999, pp 401.
04. {pa-Li. a.Bi.Daan-hkyoap} (PMDict - Compendium Pali Dictionary),
  by {lèý-ti-paN~Ði.ta.} U Maung Gyi, Rangoon, 1966, pp.524 - in Burmese-Myanmar
05. U Tun Tint - editor (retd.), MLC - personal communication.
06. Myanmar Thudda, volumes 1 to 5 (in Burmese), Text-book Committee,
   Basic Education, Ministry of Education, Myanmar, ca. 1986
07. "Pali Lessons" Module {a.ra.}-111{ka.}, (in Burmese) Univ. of Distance Education, 1999.
08. "Pali Lessons" Module {a.ra.}-1001 Pali grammar, (in Burmese)
   Yangon Univ. of Distance Education, 2003
09. The Glass Palace Chronicles, written in 1819 to 1837), republished by Ministry of Information, Myanmar Government, 4th reprint in Burmese-Myanmar, in 3 volumes.

(in English-Latin)
01. Ven. Narada Thera, An Elementary Pali Course,
   Buddha Dhamma Association, Inc. (Sri Lanka)  www.buddhanet.net
02. Pali Text Soc. Pali-English Dictionary, ed. Rhys Davids and W. Stede,
   reprint 1999 (1st publ. 1921-1925)
03. Dictionary of Pali Language, R. C. Childers, 1909
04. Unicode Standard, Version 4.0, Unicode Consortium,
   Chapter 9, http://www.unicode.org/versions/Unicode4.0.0/ch9.pdf
   Chapter 10, http://www.unicode.org/versions/Unicode4.0.0/ch10.pdf
05. http://www.umanitoba.ca/linguistics/index.shtml
06. Maung Htin Aung, Folk Elements in Burmese Buddhism,
   Religious Affairs Department Press, Yegu, Kaba Aye P.O., Rangoon, Burma, 1981.
07. DJPD16. Daniel Jones, English Pronouncing Dictionary, 16 ed,
   Cambridge University Press 2003.
08. AHTD. American Heritage Talking Dictionary

Contents of this page

U Kyaw Tun

U Kyaw Tun joined the Department of Chemistry, University of Rangoon, as an assistant lecturer in 1955. He was assigned as lecturer to the first year science students at the Yankin College. His duties were extended further the following year as lecturer in Inorganic Chemistry to the third year science students (those taking Chemistry) at the main campus in addition to his duties at the Yankin College. He served for 33 years in various universities and colleges throughout Myanmar: Rangoon University, Rangoon Institute of Technology, Mandalay University, Bassein College, Workers’ College and Taunggyi College. His last posting from which he retired was Associate Professor and Head of Department of Chemistry, Taunggyi Degree College.
     Though trained as a scientist and engineer, U Kyaw Tun has a keen interest in the culture, history, religion and mythology of various peoples of the world. His knowledge of several languages: Myanmar, English, French, Pali, Swedish and German has helped him in his cultural studies. He has an extensive knowledge of Hindu astrology, specializing the Ashtakavarga system.
     U Kyaw Tun was a part-time columnist writing for the Working Peoples’ Daily in Myanmar and was a member on the editorial board of the North Renfrew Times in Canada. He has given several public lectures in Canada on Buddhism particularly to scientists and engineers, and to non-Buddhists.

Contents of this page

UKT notes

01. Abugida: http://www.everything2.org/index.pl?node=abugida
     Nasal: http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node=nasal
02. D. Vujastyk, 25 June 1996 http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucgadkw/members/transliteration/translit.pdf.

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End of TIL file