Andrew West 魏安
@babelstone.co.uk
Independent researcher of Tangut, Khitan, and Jurchen. Developer of BabelPad and BabelMap. Maintainer of BabelStone Han font. Responsible for adding over 10,000 characters to the Unicode Standard.
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2063-7389
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2063-7389
Yes. Although it is possible to create your own input method or modify an existing input method, for example my BabelPad text editor easily allows for custom input methods:
June 2, 2025 at 4:14 PM
Yes. Although it is possible to create your own input method or modify an existing input method, for example my BabelPad text editor easily allows for custom input methods:
My reconstruction and identification of a partially-preserved Tangut character in a unique fragment of the Homophones text held at the British Library www.unicode.org/wg2/docs/n53...
May 27, 2025 at 9:04 PM
My reconstruction and identification of a partially-preserved Tangut character in a unique fragment of the Homophones text held at the British Library www.unicode.org/wg2/docs/n53...
First step towards the encoding of Jurchen *small script* characters, by @cosmicore.bsky.social and myself www.unicode.org/wg2/docs/n53...
May 25, 2025 at 5:05 PM
First step towards the encoding of Jurchen *small script* characters, by @cosmicore.bsky.social and myself www.unicode.org/wg2/docs/n53...
We went to Harbin next. Apparently the Ice Festival only started as an annual event in January 1985, but I can't remember whether there were still any ice sculptures standing when we visited. But anyway, here I am with tóngxué Nicky S. having fun on an elephant slide. 📷 Adrian P. Bradshaw.
May 2, 2025 at 9:27 PM
We went to Harbin next. Apparently the Ice Festival only started as an annual event in January 1985, but I can't remember whether there were still any ice sculptures standing when we visited. But anyway, here I am with tóngxué Nicky S. having fun on an elephant slide. 📷 Adrian P. Bradshaw.
Suave, sophisticated, international man of style and mystery. Me wearing my Lhasa straw hat adorned with a plastic lobster in celebration of the May Day holiday, Chéngdé 承德 China, 1st May 1985. 📷 Adrian P. Bradshaw.
May 1, 2025 at 9:48 AM
Suave, sophisticated, international man of style and mystery. Me wearing my Lhasa straw hat adorned with a plastic lobster in celebration of the May Day holiday, Chéngdé 承德 China, 1st May 1985. 📷 Adrian P. Bradshaw.
⿱莫用 (U+31C20 𱰠) was added in CJK Ext. H in September 2022 (Unicode 15.0), and ⿰勿愛 (U+324D6 ) will be in CJK Ext. J coming to Unicode 17.0 in September 2025. Both characters were submitted for encoding by UK.
April 29, 2025 at 8:11 PM
⿱莫用 (U+31C20 𱰠) was added in CJK Ext. H in September 2022 (Unicode 15.0), and ⿰勿愛 (U+324D6 ) will be in CJK Ext. J coming to Unicode 17.0 in September 2025. Both characters were submitted for encoding by UK.
Chao's translation of Through the Looking Glass which was published in 1969 as Vol. II of his "Readings in Sayable Chinese", with parallel Gwoyeu Romatzyh and hànzì versions, is a pale imitation of what the 1932 edition would have been. The Chinese typography is horrible, bopomofo replacements ugly.
April 29, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Chao's translation of Through the Looking Glass which was published in 1969 as Vol. II of his "Readings in Sayable Chinese", with parallel Gwoyeu Romatzyh and hànzì versions, is a pale imitation of what the 1932 edition would have been. The Chinese typography is horrible, bopomofo replacements ugly.
I did a long twitter thread on Chao's Jabberwocky translation and his invented Chinese characters, including an image of his annotated proof of the lost 1932 edition of 《走到鏡子裏》("Through the Looking-Glass") prepared by the Commercial Press in Shanghai but blown up by the Japanese.
April 29, 2025 at 11:06 AM
I did a long twitter thread on Chao's Jabberwocky translation and his invented Chinese characters, including an image of his annotated proof of the lost 1932 edition of 《走到鏡子裏》("Through the Looking-Glass") prepared by the Commercial Press in Shanghai but blown up by the Japanese.
Reminds me of this from Binary (1972)
April 1, 2025 at 8:33 PM
Reminds me of this from Binary (1972)
I was invited onto the project in January 2023 as a very late replacement for a more qualified scholar who had to withdraw, but I managed to submit my two chapters on Khitan and Tangut epigraphy by the end of July 2023. Original publication was planned for late 2023, but now expected February 2026.
![Notice of forthcoming publication of Handbook of Epigraphic Cultures [ISBN 978-3-11-124094-7] in three volumes, publication date February 2026](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:7v2mqh7dhocngomglc7mhl6g/bafkreidpwp5rpif352h7weym2izlppyy3dmzffc5jhjeqdanba7maw3lzq@jpeg)
March 12, 2025 at 2:11 PM
I was invited onto the project in January 2023 as a very late replacement for a more qualified scholar who had to withdraw, but I managed to submit my two chapters on Khitan and Tangut epigraphy by the end of July 2023. Original publication was planned for late 2023, but now expected February 2026.
Monumental three-volume Handbook of Epigraphic Cultures to be published by De Gruyter, early next year hopefully. Open Access eBook! Includes chapters on Khitan and Tangut epigraphy.
![Flyer publicizing two forthcoming Handbooks on Material Text Culture from De Gruyter: Handbook of Medieval Book Ornament [ISBN 978-3-11-141107-1] and Handbook of Epigraphic Cultures (3 volumes) [ISBN 978-3-11-124094-7]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:7v2mqh7dhocngomglc7mhl6g/bafkreieitzyb7auatvu2bfnkhs4cku2qwjdimhiu37ypjaixtoc44wvpty@jpeg)
March 12, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Monumental three-volume Handbook of Epigraphic Cultures to be published by De Gruyter, early next year hopefully. Open Access eBook! Includes chapters on Khitan and Tangut epigraphy.
The human remains have now been entirely devoured by the vultures and crows, and the rogyapa wants to take a photograph with me on the rock. This is the final photograph and I am all out of film. Actually my last ever photograph with this camera.
March 11, 2025 at 7:59 PM
The human remains have now been entirely devoured by the vultures and crows, and the rogyapa wants to take a photograph with me on the rock. This is the final photograph and I am all out of film. Actually my last ever photograph with this camera.
A child wearing a gau pendant having a snack
March 11, 2025 at 7:46 PM
A child wearing a gau pendant having a snack
The friendly rogyapa posing for the camera
March 11, 2025 at 7:41 PM
The friendly rogyapa posing for the camera
Some of the relatives or friends of the deceased
March 11, 2025 at 7:39 PM
Some of the relatives or friends of the deceased
Having discarded his white overclothes the rogyapa washes his hand.
March 11, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Having discarded his white overclothes the rogyapa washes his hand.
The other rogyapa, dressed in white overclothes and a white bandana.
March 11, 2025 at 7:28 PM
The other rogyapa, dressed in white overclothes and a white bandana.
The man in the fur hat was in charge of the whole affair. The possessions of the two deceased had been burned on an open fire, and here he is heating up some food on the ashes.
March 11, 2025 at 7:23 PM
The man in the fur hat was in charge of the whole affair. The possessions of the two deceased had been burned on an open fire, and here he is heating up some food on the ashes.
Some foreigners (Germans or Swedes I think) arrived after me, and initially observed from a distance before I was asked to invite them over. The man dressed all in white is one of the two rogyapas who were responsible for cutting up the bodies and preparing the flesh and bones for the vultures.
March 11, 2025 at 7:18 PM
Some foreigners (Germans or Swedes I think) arrived after me, and initially observed from a distance before I was asked to invite them over. The man dressed all in white is one of the two rogyapas who were responsible for cutting up the bodies and preparing the flesh and bones for the vultures.
A closer view of the sky burial rock
March 11, 2025 at 7:10 PM
A closer view of the sky burial rock
Vultures gathered on a large rock to consume the remains of human bodies laid out for them. The rock is covered in hollows formed over many years when pounding bones with tsampa flour; the tsampa flour has whitened the entire rock.
March 11, 2025 at 7:08 PM
Vultures gathered on a large rock to consume the remains of human bodies laid out for them. The rock is covered in hollows formed over many years when pounding bones with tsampa flour; the tsampa flour has whitened the entire rock.
The two men dressed all in white were the rogyapas, who were responsible for cutting up the bodies and preparing the flesh and bones for consumption by the vultures.
March 11, 2025 at 5:05 PM
The two men dressed all in white were the rogyapas, who were responsible for cutting up the bodies and preparing the flesh and bones for consumption by the vultures.
It took several hours to cut up the bodies, and prepare the flesh and bones for the vultures and crows by pounding and mixing with tsampa flour (hence the deep pockmarks on the rock surface). Only then are the circling vultures called down, and I can take my camera out.
March 11, 2025 at 4:20 PM
It took several hours to cut up the bodies, and prepare the flesh and bones for the vultures and crows by pounding and mixing with tsampa flour (hence the deep pockmarks on the rock surface). Only then are the circling vultures called down, and I can take my camera out.