A Study of the Special Character Order in Naxi Dongba Scriptures
Deng Zhangying and Chang Lili investigate whether the frequently-claimed lack of correspondence between character order and word order in Naxi Dongba script is truly random, as earlier scholars (Fu Maoji, Wang Yuanlu) assumed. Using the scripture "Inviting the Gods to Suppress the Duan Ghost -- The Origin of the Duan Ghost" (likely written 1762 or 1780, from the Lijiang Basin region) as their case study, they show that the overwhelming majority of the text does follow a regular top-to-bottom, left-to-right order, and that the exceptions are not arbitrary but fall into identifiable patterns: character order yields to the real-world logic of what is depicted (sky characters on top, earth characters on the bottom), to a 'pseudo' logic of affairs where superficial graphic association overrides semantics, to the need to foreground which element is semantically primary (modifier attached to or enclosed within the modified word), and to the need for visual/layout balance. The article concludes such deviations are regionally and historically specific and calls for comparative study across other Dongba manuscripts.
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