Yi syllable Yux

It represents a syllable; the word meaning comes from context. In the standardized Liangshan Yi script, ꒂ is written as yux in romanization. Here, x marks the secondary-high tone—a pitch pattern in speech—not a consonant to say after the syllable.

Yi is written in several local traditions. Their glyphs, sounds, and reading directions differ; this value belongs to the Liangshan standard.

How did Yi writing develop?

Older local traditions fed a standardized Liangshan script. Some inscriptions are claimed to date to the Western Han dynasty, an ancient Chinese ruling period; the earliest surviving monumental example is a bronze bell from 1485. Written texts on paper or sheepskin survive from around 1500.

Traditional Yi writing had local forms. Bimo—Yi ritual priests—used them for religious, magical, medical, and genealogical writing that circulated between villages.

The standardized Liangshan script grew from these traditions; some historical accounts call older Yi writing Cuan or Wei. The Liangshan standard was created in 1974 and officially promulgated in 1980 to support literacy. Its traditional characters are described as apparently independent of Han Chinese characters; this standard represents Liangshan Yi, while other Yi communities have their own writing traditions.