A language with its written system and spoken tongue independent of each other is

very difficult to learn. For that reason, the Chinese have created an auxiliary phonetic sys-
tem called Hanyu Pinyin (Chinese Phonetic Alphabet) to help the Chinese as well as for-
eigners learn hanzi and to facilitate printing Chinese in foreign publications such as this
book.
Computers initially presented a great challenge to inputting and displaying Chinese
characters and thereby gave rise to sporadic calls for alphabetizing the Chinese language. In
1983, however, Wang Yongmin, a computer science professor from Beijing University, re-
solved the crisis by inventing wubi shuma (five-stroke hanzi input and display method),
making it possible for the oldest writing system in the world to marry with the latest
information technology.

Additional Reading
DeFrancis, John. The Chinese Language: Fact and Fantasy. Reprint ed. Honolulu: Univer-
sity of Hawaii Press, 1986. 330pp. $21pa. ISBN 0824810686.
DeFrancis, John, ed. ABC Chinese-English Comprehensive Dictionary. Honolulu: Univer-
sity of Hawaii Press, 2003. 1439pp. $59. ISBN 082482766X.

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