From the Shang Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty, the Chinese
script continued to evolve to eventually produce 楷書
(Kai Shu)—the standard script. The same factors that governed the creation and
standardization of earlier scripts is mirrored in the creation of the
vernacular Cantonese script. This paper offers to address the differing
developmental stages of the script within the historical context, to further
shed light on the evolutionary process. This is completed first by explaining
the narrative history surrounding the script and second by analyzing sources
written in the script. Then, by setting this framework, current Hong Kong
vernacular Cantonese script sources are used to show that the script’s
characters are created using the same processes. The Cantonese script, like
previous Chinese scripts, continues to evolve. This paper will conclude by
elucidating the unstandardized nature of the Cantonese vernacular script, and
explore, using the ancient Chinese sources, possible outcomes of the script.
This will be done by comparing the evolution of early Chinese scripts to the
evolution of the Cantonese script and projecting the outcomes of the Chinese
script on the vernacular Cantonese script.
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