Zev Handel
@zevhandel.bsky.social
Author of 𝙎𝙞𝙣𝙤𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙥𝙝𝙮 (2019) & 𝘾𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙚 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝘼𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙨 𝘼𝙨𝙞𝙖 (@uwapress, 2025). Chinese characters, writing systems, historical phonology, etc.
https://uwapress.uw.edu/book/9780295753027/chinese-characters-across-asia/
https://uwapress.uw.edu/book/9780295753027/chinese-characters-across-asia/
Pinned
Zev Handel
@zevhandel.bsky.social
· Dec 6
Pokémon names provide fertile ground for linguistic analysis. Many are extremely clever and subtle, and yield delightful “ah-ha” moments when you figure out how they are formed. I find it especially interesting to compare the original Japanese names with names in English and other languages.
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We've just enjoyed the bright harvest moon of Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋, 추석 秋夕, 月見, Trung Thu, etc.), so how about a moon-related linguistics thread?
We'll look at an unusual Chữ Nôm graph and recover some lost 17th-century Vietnamese sounds, among other things.
🌕 🇵🇹 🇻🇳
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We'll look at an unusual Chữ Nôm graph and recover some lost 17th-century Vietnamese sounds, among other things.
🌕 🇵🇹 🇻🇳
1/🧵
October 8, 2025 at 1:02 AM
We've just enjoyed the bright harvest moon of Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋, 추석 秋夕, 月見, Trung Thu, etc.), so how about a moon-related linguistics thread?
We'll look at an unusual Chữ Nôm graph and recover some lost 17th-century Vietnamese sounds, among other things.
🌕 🇵🇹 🇻🇳
1/🧵
We'll look at an unusual Chữ Nôm graph and recover some lost 17th-century Vietnamese sounds, among other things.
🌕 🇵🇹 🇻🇳
1/🧵
Thanks to everyone who came out last night to hear me talk about the cool stuff in my book.
My book talk at Third Place Books in the Ravenna neighborhood of Seattle is next Tuesday!
Below in thread is an excerpt from *Chinese Characters Across Asia: How the Chinese Script Came to Write Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese*. I'll be reading more at the book event.
Below in thread is an excerpt from *Chinese Characters Across Asia: How the Chinese Script Came to Write Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese*. I'll be reading more at the book event.
Are you in the Seattle area? Come see me at Third Place Books in Ravenna on Sept 16, 7pm. I'll be talking about and reading from my new book, followed by Q&A and a book-signing session. Would love to see you there.
Check out the link for more info, to RSVP, and to pre-order a book for signing.
Check out the link for more info, to RSVP, and to pre-order a book for signing.
September 17, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Thanks to everyone who came out last night to hear me talk about the cool stuff in my book.
September 16, 2025 at 2:15 PM
My book talk at Third Place Books in the Ravenna neighborhood of Seattle is next Tuesday!
Below in thread is an excerpt from *Chinese Characters Across Asia: How the Chinese Script Came to Write Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese*. I'll be reading more at the book event.
Below in thread is an excerpt from *Chinese Characters Across Asia: How the Chinese Script Came to Write Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese*. I'll be reading more at the book event.
Are you in the Seattle area? Come see me at Third Place Books in Ravenna on Sept 16, 7pm. I'll be talking about and reading from my new book, followed by Q&A and a book-signing session. Would love to see you there.
Check out the link for more info, to RSVP, and to pre-order a book for signing.
Check out the link for more info, to RSVP, and to pre-order a book for signing.
www.thirdplacebooks.com
September 10, 2025 at 5:01 PM
My book talk at Third Place Books in the Ravenna neighborhood of Seattle is next Tuesday!
Below in thread is an excerpt from *Chinese Characters Across Asia: How the Chinese Script Came to Write Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese*. I'll be reading more at the book event.
Below in thread is an excerpt from *Chinese Characters Across Asia: How the Chinese Script Came to Write Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese*. I'll be reading more at the book event.
Are you in the Seattle area? Come see me at Third Place Books in Ravenna on Sept 16, 7pm. I'll be talking about and reading from my new book, followed by Q&A and a book-signing session. Would love to see you there.
Check out the link for more info, to RSVP, and to pre-order a book for signing.
Check out the link for more info, to RSVP, and to pre-order a book for signing.
www.thirdplacebooks.com
September 2, 2025 at 11:07 PM
Are you in the Seattle area? Come see me at Third Place Books in Ravenna on Sept 16, 7pm. I'll be talking about and reading from my new book, followed by Q&A and a book-signing session. Would love to see you there.
Check out the link for more info, to RSVP, and to pre-order a book for signing.
Check out the link for more info, to RSVP, and to pre-order a book for signing.
1/ Geodude is a tough-looking little rock-type guy with balled-up fists 🤛😠🤜. Despite the crusty form and threatening pose, it looks more cute than dangerous. At least to me.
Time for a #Pokenomastics thread! We'll look at Geodude's names in a whole bunch of languages.
🇺🇸🇯🇵🇰🇷🇭🇰🇨🇳🇩🇪🇫🇷 #langsky
Time for a #Pokenomastics thread! We'll look at Geodude's names in a whole bunch of languages.
🇺🇸🇯🇵🇰🇷🇭🇰🇨🇳🇩🇪🇫🇷 #langsky
August 30, 2025 at 5:13 AM
1/ Geodude is a tough-looking little rock-type guy with balled-up fists 🤛😠🤜. Despite the crusty form and threatening pose, it looks more cute than dangerous. At least to me.
Time for a #Pokenomastics thread! We'll look at Geodude's names in a whole bunch of languages.
🇺🇸🇯🇵🇰🇷🇭🇰🇨🇳🇩🇪🇫🇷 #langsky
Time for a #Pokenomastics thread! We'll look at Geodude's names in a whole bunch of languages.
🇺🇸🇯🇵🇰🇷🇭🇰🇨🇳🇩🇪🇫🇷 #langsky
The Korean-language translation of my 2019 book Sinography has just been published! This is not an easy book to translate; I'm grateful to the team of scholars, led by Prof. Lee Yong (이용 교수님) who worked on it.
The Korean title is: 동아시아의 한자 −중국 문자의 차용과 변용−
www.aladin.co.kr/shop/wproduc...
The Korean title is: 동아시아의 한자 −중국 문자의 차용과 변용−
www.aladin.co.kr/shop/wproduc...
동아시아의 한자 | 동아시아 한국학 번역총서 11 | 제프 핸델
중국 주변국에서 한자를 차용하고 변용하여 중국어 외의 언어를 표기하는 방식이 각 언어의 유형론적 특징에 깊은 영향을 받는다는 것을 주된 내용으로 담고 있다. 거시적 관점을 요구하는 이 작업은 한자권 전역의 ...
www.aladin.co.kr
August 25, 2025 at 11:34 PM
The Korean-language translation of my 2019 book Sinography has just been published! This is not an easy book to translate; I'm grateful to the team of scholars, led by Prof. Lee Yong (이용 교수님) who worked on it.
The Korean title is: 동아시아의 한자 −중국 문자의 차용과 변용−
www.aladin.co.kr/shop/wproduc...
The Korean title is: 동아시아의 한자 −중국 문자의 차용과 변용−
www.aladin.co.kr/shop/wproduc...
I posted this quoted thread, on the 20th-century history of Chinese gendered written pronouns, in November. I've just come across a very nice 2024 article on this topic by Janet Davey in the journal Image [&] Narrative.
I'll describe it briefly and put a link to the free pdf in thread below.
I'll describe it briefly and put a link to the free pdf in thread below.
Here's the unlikely century-long story of how a non-gendered pronoun became gendered, and then got itself re-de-gendered.
This one's got everything! Poetry! Grammar! Love songs! Queer communities! Unicode! and ... Y.R. Chao!
What more could you want?
#langsky 🀄️📚
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This one's got everything! Poetry! Grammar! Love songs! Queer communities! Unicode! and ... Y.R. Chao!
What more could you want?
#langsky 🀄️📚
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August 20, 2025 at 1:59 AM
I posted this quoted thread, on the 20th-century history of Chinese gendered written pronouns, in November. I've just come across a very nice 2024 article on this topic by Janet Davey in the journal Image [&] Narrative.
I'll describe it briefly and put a link to the free pdf in thread below.
I'll describe it briefly and put a link to the free pdf in thread below.
Reposted by Zev Handel
A massive attack on several humanities units (Arabic Studies, Judaic Studies, Holocaust Studies, Classics, Religion, German & Scandinavian, Russian/East European/Eurasian Studies) *and* tenure now unfolding at the University of Oregon (a blue state!). Closure of units and faculty layoffs threatened.
August 18, 2025 at 6:42 PM
A massive attack on several humanities units (Arabic Studies, Judaic Studies, Holocaust Studies, Classics, Religion, German & Scandinavian, Russian/East European/Eurasian Studies) *and* tenure now unfolding at the University of Oregon (a blue state!). Closure of units and faculty layoffs threatened.
Thanks for this reference! Looks like the various terms are:
- typographic mimicry
- faux font
- pseudoscript
- ethnic typeface
- simulation typeface
- "foreign look" font
I really dislike “ethnic font”.
- typographic mimicry
- faux font
- pseudoscript
- ethnic typeface
- simulation typeface
- "foreign look" font
I really dislike “ethnic font”.
looks like people have come up with various names for it, but idk if any one in particular is widely recognized: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typefac...
Typeface - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
August 11, 2025 at 3:34 AM
Thanks for this reference! Looks like the various terms are:
- typographic mimicry
- faux font
- pseudoscript
- ethnic typeface
- simulation typeface
- "foreign look" font
I really dislike “ethnic font”.
- typographic mimicry
- faux font
- pseudoscript
- ethnic typeface
- simulation typeface
- "foreign look" font
I really dislike “ethnic font”.
I took this photo at Lumen Field in Seattle, when I went to see the Seattle Sounders FC play in a FIFA Club World Cup game ⚽️.
The sign is of typographic and linguistic interest. Let’s take a closer look.
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The sign is of typographic and linguistic interest. Let’s take a closer look.
1/🧵
August 11, 2025 at 3:13 AM
I took this photo at Lumen Field in Seattle, when I went to see the Seattle Sounders FC play in a FIFA Club World Cup game ⚽️.
The sign is of typographic and linguistic interest. Let’s take a closer look.
1/🧵
The sign is of typographic and linguistic interest. Let’s take a closer look.
1/🧵
If you are in the UK or Europe and want a massive 40% off and free shipping on my book Chinese Characters Across Asia, see the link below.
Yes, they partner with Combined Academic Press in the UK for distribution to Europe. And it looks like they are matching the sale for UW Press orders (same code: WARM25), there's a banner ad on their home page:
www.combinedacademic.co.uk
www.combinedacademic.co.uk
Combined Academic Publishers (CAP)
Combined Academic Publishers services a group of internationally respected American University Presses with distribution, sales and marketing.
www.combinedacademic.co.uk
August 4, 2025 at 5:26 AM
If you are in the UK or Europe and want a massive 40% off and free shipping on my book Chinese Characters Across Asia, see the link below.
Matteo Ricci (1552–1610) was an Italian Jesuit who lived in China for decades, pursuing his order’s goal of spreading the Catholic faith. He mastered both spoken Chinese and the classical written language. Ricci was well positioned to explain Chinese writing to his fellow Europeans.
1/🧵字
1/🧵字
July 30, 2025 at 4:54 AM
Matteo Ricci (1552–1610) was an Italian Jesuit who lived in China for decades, pursuing his order’s goal of spreading the Catholic faith. He mastered both spoken Chinese and the classical written language. Ricci was well positioned to explain Chinese writing to his fellow Europeans.
1/🧵字
1/🧵字
July 26 is Esperanto Day!
Did you know that Esperanto was a major player in the Chinese language reform movement of the early 20th century? It was tied to internationalist sentiment, and particularly anarchism, in the 1910s through 1930s.
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Did you know that Esperanto was a major player in the Chinese language reform movement of the early 20th century? It was tied to internationalist sentiment, and particularly anarchism, in the 1910s through 1930s.
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July 26, 2025 at 1:00 AM
July 26 is Esperanto Day!
Did you know that Esperanto was a major player in the Chinese language reform movement of the early 20th century? It was tied to internationalist sentiment, and particularly anarchism, in the 1910s through 1930s.
1/4
Did you know that Esperanto was a major player in the Chinese language reform movement of the early 20th century? It was tied to internationalist sentiment, and particularly anarchism, in the 1910s through 1930s.
1/4
Herewith, a short thread on what I learned from this book, Yóuzhèngzhì Luómǎ Pīnyīn 郵政制羅馬拼音 (Postal Romanization), published in 1961 by the Directorate General of Posts in Taiwan.
(Check out the prices in NT$, US$, and HK$. Books were cheap then.)
(Check out the prices in NT$, US$, and HK$. Books were cheap then.)
July 24, 2025 at 5:21 AM
Herewith, a short thread on what I learned from this book, Yóuzhèngzhì Luómǎ Pīnyīn 郵政制羅馬拼音 (Postal Romanization), published in 1961 by the Directorate General of Posts in Taiwan.
(Check out the prices in NT$, US$, and HK$. Books were cheap then.)
(Check out the prices in NT$, US$, and HK$. Books were cheap then.)
The European Association for Chinese Studies is holding an Autumn School titled "字 and the Search for Universalism", for students and junior scholars working on the history of the Chinese script and the “sinographic sphere”.
Dates: 14–16 November
Location: Nürnberg
sites.google.com/view/eacsaut...
Dates: 14–16 November
Location: Nürnberg
sites.google.com/view/eacsaut...
EACS Autumn School
Welcome to the EACS Autumn School 2025
sites.google.com
July 14, 2025 at 9:40 PM
The European Association for Chinese Studies is holding an Autumn School titled "字 and the Search for Universalism", for students and junior scholars working on the history of the Chinese script and the “sinographic sphere”.
Dates: 14–16 November
Location: Nürnberg
sites.google.com/view/eacsaut...
Dates: 14–16 November
Location: Nürnberg
sites.google.com/view/eacsaut...
I took these photos in the Barcelona metro. The raised dot seen in the station name Paral·lel appears to be a feature of Catalan orthography. It has an interesting function.
July 9, 2025 at 8:14 PM
I took these photos in the Barcelona metro. The raised dot seen in the station name Paral·lel appears to be a feature of Catalan orthography. It has an interesting function.
Reposted by Zev Handel
Drops today: on this week's ARB @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social podcast, Nicholas Gordon talks to @zevhandel.bsky.social about his book “Chinese Characters across Asia: How the Chinese Script Came to Write Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese” @uwapress.bsky.social asianreviewofbooks.com/podcast-with...
July 3, 2025 at 9:01 AM
Drops today: on this week's ARB @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social podcast, Nicholas Gordon talks to @zevhandel.bsky.social about his book “Chinese Characters across Asia: How the Chinese Script Came to Write Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese” @uwapress.bsky.social asianreviewofbooks.com/podcast-with...
A review of my book Chinese Characters Across Asia has come out in the LA Review of Books, alongside Uluğ Kuzuoğlu’s Codes of Modernity: Chinese Scripts in the Global Information Age.
lareviewofbooks.org/article/the-...
lareviewofbooks.org/article/the-...
The Undying Chinese Writing System | Los Angeles Review of Books
Colin Marshall reviews two books about the past and present of the Chinese writing system.
lareviewofbooks.org
June 29, 2025 at 4:11 PM
A review of my book Chinese Characters Across Asia has come out in the LA Review of Books, alongside Uluğ Kuzuoğlu’s Codes of Modernity: Chinese Scripts in the Global Information Age.
lareviewofbooks.org/article/the-...
lareviewofbooks.org/article/the-...
A store name that includes a metalinguistic reference to its own spelling.
June 28, 2025 at 7:55 PM
A store name that includes a metalinguistic reference to its own spelling.
🎙️ I'm on a podcast! 🎙️
I was interviewed about my book Chinese Characters Across Asia for the @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social , you can find the episode here: newbooksnetwork.com/chinese-char... .
My first time ever on a podcast. I was nervous at first, but Miranda Melcher was a great host.
I was interviewed about my book Chinese Characters Across Asia for the @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social , you can find the episode here: newbooksnetwork.com/chinese-char... .
My first time ever on a podcast. I was nervous at first, but Miranda Melcher was a great host.
Zev J. Handel, "Chinese Characters Across Asia: How the Chinese Script Came to Write Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese" (U Washington Press, 2025) - New Books Network
newbooksnetwork.com
May 4, 2025 at 3:52 AM
🎙️ I'm on a podcast! 🎙️
I was interviewed about my book Chinese Characters Across Asia for the @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social , you can find the episode here: newbooksnetwork.com/chinese-char... .
My first time ever on a podcast. I was nervous at first, but Miranda Melcher was a great host.
I was interviewed about my book Chinese Characters Across Asia for the @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social , you can find the episode here: newbooksnetwork.com/chinese-char... .
My first time ever on a podcast. I was nervous at first, but Miranda Melcher was a great host.
Reposted by Zev Handel
After Amazon initially declined to send the book to Estonia it finally arrived today 😊
@zevhandel.bsky.social
@zevhandel.bsky.social
April 28, 2025 at 3:29 PM
After Amazon initially declined to send the book to Estonia it finally arrived today 😊
@zevhandel.bsky.social
@zevhandel.bsky.social
To be clear, this had a pedagogical purpose. I was illustrating the challenges of determining Old Chinese rime groups through analysis of Shījīng 詩經 rhyming patterns when you don't know for sure (1) which words were intended to rhyme; (2) whether the rhymes are perfect or approximate.
A day when I sing a Belle & Sebastian song to my graduate seminar in Old Chinese phonology, is a good day.
April 23, 2025 at 11:10 PM
To be clear, this had a pedagogical purpose. I was illustrating the challenges of determining Old Chinese rime groups through analysis of Shījīng 詩經 rhyming patterns when you don't know for sure (1) which words were intended to rhyme; (2) whether the rhymes are perfect or approximate.
Reposted by Zev Handel
The Chinese gender-neutral pronoun, ⿰㐅也 (tā), will be (U+323BF) in Unicode 17.0, due this September! 🥳
www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U...
www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U...
We gotta get this thing into Unicode!
Thankfully, it's already happening. It just takes a few years. Here's the link to the IRG Working Set 2021 page for the character.
22/
hc.jsecs.org/irg/ws2021/a...
Thankfully, it's already happening. It just takes a few years. Here's the link to the IRG Working Set 2021 page for the character.
22/
hc.jsecs.org/irg/ws2021/a...
a little boy is sitting at a desk with his hand on his chin and a sad look on his face .
Alt: Black-and-white GIF of a small boy (Spanky Mcfarland of The Little Rascals) looking bored and tapping his fingers impatiently on a desk.
media.tenor.com
April 23, 2025 at 3:40 PM
The Chinese gender-neutral pronoun, ⿰㐅也 (tā), will be (U+323BF) in Unicode 17.0, due this September! 🥳
www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U...
www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U...