Cantonese Braille

Cantonese Braille (Chinese: 粵語點字) is a braille script used to write Cantonese in Hong Kong and Macau. It is locally referred to as tim chi (點字, dim2zi6) 'dot characters' or more commonly but ambiguously tuk chi (凸字, dat6zi6) 'raised characters'. Although Cantonese is written in Chinese characters, Cantonese Braille is purely phonetic, with punctuation, digits and Latin letters from the original Braille. It can be mixed with English text.

Cantonese Braille ⠞⠖⠁⠉⠊⠂
Script type	Semi-syllabary
Languages	Cantonese
Related scripts
Parent systems	Braille Cantonese Braille

Braille map at Central Pier 3, Hong Kong, with English and Cantonese Braille text.

Charts

Each syllable is divided into three parts: the initial consonant, the rime (vowel and any final consonant), and the tone. For example, 盤, pun4 is written ⟨⠯⠮⠄⟩, with initial p, final un and tone 4. (See Cantonese phonology.) Among initials, aspirated consonants (p t ts k kw = p' t' ts' k' kw') are derived by adding dots to the unaspirated consonants (b d dz g gw = p t ts k kw):

Initials

Braille
Pinyin	f	h	g	k	l	m	n	b	p	s	d	t	w	j	dz	ts	gw	kw	ng

• M and ng may also be used as rimes (syllabic nasals), in which case they are followed directly by the tone.
• When i or u (but not y) begins a syllable, a dummy consonant j or w is prefixed.

Rimes

Braille
Pinyin	a (aa)	aai	aau	aam	aan	aang	aap	aat	aak
Braille
Pinyin	–	ai	au	am	an	ang	ap	at	ak
Braille			(NA)	(NA)			(NA)
Pinyin	e	ei	eu	em	–	eng	ep	–	ek
Braille
Pinyin	sz†	i	iu	im	in	ing	ip	it	ik
Braille
Pinyin	o	oi	ou	om†	on	ong	op†	ot	ok
Braille
Pinyin	u	ui	–	–	un	ung	–	ut	uk
Braille
Pinyin	oe	oey	–	–	oen	oeng	–	oet	oek
Braille
Pinyin	y	–	–	–	yn	–	–	yt	–

† represents the symbol was abolished in the revised version in 1990.

The rimes eu, em, ep do not exist in braille.

High tone (tones 1 and 7) is not transcribed. Otherwise tone is written after the rime, as follows:

Tones

Braille
Pinyin	2	3	4	5	6	8	9

In numerical order, the cells are as follows:

0		main sequence											suppl.
⠀		⠁ t2	⠃ a	⠉ dz-aang	⠙ (NA)	⠑ e	⠋ f-ot	⠛ ng-ang	⠓ h-ei	⠊ i	⠚ j-oey		⠈ t3	⠘ aan
⠄ t4/9		⠅ g-aak	⠇ l-	⠍ m-m	⠝ n-on	⠕ o	⠏ b-aap	⠟ gw-uk	⠗ k-ik	⠎ s-oen	⠞ d-aat		⠌ aau	⠜ aam
⠤ (NA)		⠥ u	⠧ ou	⠭ ts-oet	⠽ iu	⠵ ut	⠯ p-ip	⠿ (NA)	⠷ yt	⠮ un	⠾ t-it		⠬ aai	⠼ (NA)
⠠ t5		⠡ au	⠣ oi	⠩ ai	⠹ y	⠱ oe	⠫ an	⠻ kw-ok	⠳ ui	⠪ oek	⠺ w-ek		⠨ ak	⠸ am
		⠂ t6	⠆ yn	⠒ oeng	⠲ in	⠢ ap	⠖ im	⠶ eng	⠦ ung	⠔ at	⠴ ing		⠐ t8	⠰ ong

Punctuation

Some of the punctuation marks are distinguished from the onset or rime of a syllable by the strategic use of the ⠀ space. The spaces are therefore included in the table below, though they are not technically part of the punctuation mark.

Braille
Print	。		?	!	:	;	-	—	…
Braille
Print	·		(	)	[	]	《	》	〈	〉
Braille
Print	,	、	“	”	‘	’	start emph.	end emph.	start name	end name

The emphasis marks, ⠷⠻ are equivalent to running dots alongside the characters in print, while proper names are marked in print by an underline or overline.

See also

• Cantonese
• Chinese Braille

References

• UNESCO (2013) World Braille Usage Archived 2014-09-08 at the Wayback Machine, 3rd edition.