Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c4.s2.76

v1.c4.s2.76

The term “Zimu” (letter) first appeared in *sutras* translated in the early 5^th^ century CE and was also recorded in *Xitan Ziji* by the monk Zhiguang in the Tang Dynasty. This proved that “Zimu” was directly related to the spread of Sanskrit. Two Tang dynasty documents discovered in Dunhuang, *Gui Sanshi Zimu Li* and *Shouwen Yunxue Caijuan*, both list 30 phonemes for Chinese. A monk named Shouzhen (mid-9^th^~mid-10^th^ centuries CE) further divided 30 phonemes into five categories, i.e. Chun, She, Ya, Chi and Hou while “She” sound was subdivided into “She Tou” and “She Shang”, “Chi” into “Chi Tou” and “Zheng Chi”, “Hou” into “voiced” and “voiceless”. It is on the basis of this that China developed its pinyin phonetic system many generations later.