Journal of Chinese Writing Systems

The Khitan large script is generally believed to have been created in 920 ce, in the fifth year of the Shence reign, under Emperor Taizu of Liao. Research on the Khitan large script has lagged behind that of the Khitan small script, leading to ongoing debates about its nature and structural characteristics. This article examines the nature of the Khitan large script from multiple perspectives, including its intrinsic features, the typology of the Khitan language, and its relationship to the Khitan small script. It argues that the creation of the Khitan large script may predate 920 ce and that it likely evolved gradually from a Chinese-character-based Khitan writing system into an early stage system combining logographic and phonographic elements, as well as monosyllabic and polysyllabic units.

The findings further indicated that the Khitan large script showed a lower degree of phonographic development than the Khitan small script, and can be understood as a transitional stage toward a fully phonographic writing system.

The present study focuses on the Epitaph of Xiao Hanning Prince of the Xi in Khitan large script, and examines the phonological and semantic issues of a selection of Khitan large script graphemes attested in the epitaph. In previous scholarship, various interpretations have been proposed concerning the identification of individual grapheme forms, textual decipherment, and the correspondence between the Khitan and Chinese texts. Based on previously published transcriptions and related studies, this article presents a preliminary collation of the Khitan large script text and further analyses and discusses the phonology and semantics of relevant words and graphemes by combining Chinese epigraphic documents with other contemporary Khitan large script epitaphs. Through the comparison of problematic grapheme forms and divergent decipherment views, this article puts forward some tentative understandings on the phonology and semantics of several Khitan large script graphemes, which may serve as a basis for further new decipherment of the Khitan large script.

The Stele of Yelü Tulibu Langjun in Khitan Large Script commemorates a seventh-generation descendant of Yelü Yuzhi. The decipherment of this stele is of great importance for advancing research on the Yelü Yuzhi lineage. To date, numerous graphemes in the stele remain undeciphered. Among them, several occur with relatively high frequency. The reconstruction of their pronunciations is crucial for further elucidating the meanings and grammatical functions of Khitan Large Script compounds containing these graphemes. Through a comparative study of the Khitan Large and Small Scripts, this study offers new insights into the phonetic and semantic interpretation of previously uninterpreted graphemes found in the stele. The key findings are as follows: In terms of form, a set of variant forms of the same grapheme has been identified. In terms of pronunciation, the pronunciations of four graphemes have been reconstructed, and a revision to the previously reconstructed pronunciation of one grapheme and its corresponding glyph is proposed. In terms of semantics, two Khitan Large Script compounds have been interpreted, one expressing the plural meaning of ‘bore’ (sheng) and the other denoting the plural meaning of ‘of the lineage’ (fang zhi). Furthermore, several correspondences between Khitan Large and Small Script forms have been established, providing new clues and evidence for the further decipherment of the Khitan scripts.

This article provides a comparative study of the newly discovered Epitaph of Ritual Commissioner Yelü Jiulin in Khitan small script (耶律乣邻礼宾使墓志铭) with the Epitaph of Prince Xu of Liao (辽国许王墓志) and the relevant data from the History of Liao (辽史). It examines the family lineage, life, career, and other biographical details concerning Yelü Jiulin during the reign of Emperor Daozong (道宗) of the Liao dynasty.

Lexical research is a fundamental part of studying the Khitan scripts and their underlying language. This article examines selected lexical items from the Epitaph of Yelü Yugulin Taishi through comparative philology and textual analysis. Building on established decipherments, it clarifies the meanings of targeted terms and explores their etymological origins. The study aims to interpret obscure expressions in the epitaph, provide lexical references for its in-depth comprehension, and contribute to research on the genetic affiliation between Khitan and related languages.

This study combines historical comparative linguistics with the analysis of Khitan Small Script textual materials to examine the semantic functions of the word m-er and its plural form m-ci, which correspond to the Chinese concept of Dao (dao 道). Through a systematic collation and contextual analysis of examples from Khitan Small Script epitaphs and related literary sources, this article argues that m-er and m-ci exhibit layered semantic features in the Khitan Small Script corpus, characterized by the coexistence of abstract and concrete meanings. Furthermore, through a comparison of interchangeable usages of sh-al-s and m-er in Khitan Small Script texts, this study examines their semantic layers, investigating both their shared core meanings and semantic distinctions.