Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Discussions on the Hokkien (Minnan) language.
Ah-bin
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Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by Ah-bin »

I've started to type out the Sam Chu Keng in POJ according to Penang Hokkien style (i.e. with "iang" where Amoy/Taiwan has "iong") I've done 72 lines so far.....This is also as far as I have memorised after listening every day. The structure of the text is quite simple. It is divided into four main sections:

1) Introduction to basic morals and general knowledge based on numbers 3-10
2) Introduction to the basic curriculum of study
3) Introduction to basic history
4) An exhortation to study hard

Broken down into sections like this, it is easier to memorise the whole thing.

人之初 性本善 Jîn chi chho•, sèng pún siān,
性相近 習相遠 sèng siang kūn, síp siang oán,
苟不教 性乃遷 Kó• put kàu, sèng nái chhian,
教之道 貴以專 kàu chi tō, kùi í choan,
昔孟母 擇鄰處 Sek bēng bú, ték lîn chhú.
子不學 斷機杼 Chú put hák, toān ki thú.
竇燕山 有義方  Tō• Ian-san, iú gī hong.
教五子 名俱揚 Kàu ngó• chú, bêng kū iâng.
養不教 父之過  Iáng put kàu, hū chi kò.
教不嚴 師之惰 Kàu put giâm, su chi tō.
子不學 非所宜  Chú put hák, hui só• gî.
幼不學 老何為 Iù put hák, ló hô ûi?
玉不琢 不成器 Giók put tok, put sêng khì.
人不學 不知義 Jîn put hák, put ti gī.
為人子 方少時 Ûi jîn chú, hong siàu sî,
親師友 習禮儀 chhin su iú, síp lé gî.
香九齡 能溫席 Hiang kiú lêng, lêng un sék。
孝於親 所當執 Hàu ū chhin, só• tong chip.
融四歲 能讓梨 Hiông sù sòe, lêng jiāng lê.
弟於長 宜先知 Tē u tiáng, gî sian ti.
首孝弟 次見聞 Siú hàu tē, chhù kiàn bûn,
知某數 識某文 ti bó• sò•, sek bó• bûn.
一而十 十而百 It jî síp, síp jî pek,
百而千 千而萬 pek jî chhian, chhian jî bān.
三才者 天地人 Sam châi chiá: thian, tē, jîn.
三光者 日月星 Sam kong chiá: jít goát seng.
三綱者 君臣義 Sam kong chiá: kun sîn gī,
父子親 夫婦順 hū chú chhin, hu hū sūn.
曰春夏 曰秋冬 Oát chhun hā, Oát chhiu tong,
此四時 運不窮 chhú sù sî, ūn put kiông.
曰南北 曰西東 Oát lâm pok, oát se tong,
此四方 應乎中 chhú sù hong, èng hô• tiong.
曰水火 木金土 Oát súi hó•ⁿ, bók kim thó•,
此五行 本乎數 chhú ngó• hêng, pún hô• sò•.
曰仁義 禮智信 Oát jîn gî, lé tì sìn,
此五常 不容紊 chhú ngó• siông, put iông būn.

More coming soon!
Last edited by Ah-bin on Sat Jan 01, 2011 12:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Mark Yong
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Joined: Fri Apr 29, 2005 3:52 pm

Re: Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by Mark Yong »

Ah-bin,

A very noble effort! This should form part of any serious Penang Hokkien 101 course. Okay, perhaps 101 is a bit early, but certainly some part of the syllabus, as it captures the pronunciations of many key words, some of which have regrettably fallen out of the mainstream vocabulary.

Looking forward to reading more!

Cheers,
Mark
Ah-bin
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Location: Somewhere in the Hokloverse

Re: Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by Ah-bin »

稻粱菽 麥黍稷 Tō liâng siok, bék sú chek,
此六穀 人所食 chhú liók kok, jîn só• sít.
馬牛羊 雞犬豕 Má giû iâng, ke khián sí,
此六畜 人所飼 chhú liók thiók, jîn só• sū.
曰喜怒 曰哀懼 Oát hí lō•, oát ài khū,
愛惡欲 七情具 ài òⁿ iók, chhit chêng kū.
匏土革 木石金 Pâu thó• kek, bók sék kim,
與絲竹 乃八音 ú si tiok, nái pat im.
高曾祖 父而身 Ko cheng chó•, hū jî sin,
身而子 子而孫 sin jî chú, chú jî sun,
自子孫 至玄曾 Chū chú sun, chì hiân cheng,
乃九族 人之倫 nái kiú chók, jîn chi lûn.
父子恩 夫婦從 Hū chú un, hu hū chiông,
兄則友 弟則恭 heng chek iú, tē chek kiong,
長幼序 友與朋 Tiáng iù sū, iú ú pêng,
君則敬 臣則忠 kun chek kèng, sîn chek tiong,
此十義 人所同 Chhú síp gī, jîn só• tông

This concludes the introductory section of the Sam Chu Keng, the next section is a list of the books that one would learn in a Chinese classical education.
Ah-bin
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Re: Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by Ah-bin »

凡訓蒙 須講究 Hoân hùn bông, su káng kiú.
詳訓詁 名句讀 Siâng hùn kó•, bêng kù tō•,
為學者 必有初 ûi hák chiá, pit iú cho•,
小學終 至四書 Siáu hák chiong, chì Sù su.
論語者 二十篇 Lūn gú chiá, jī síp phian,
群弟子 記善言 Kûn tē chú, kì siān giân.
孟子者 七篇止 Bêng chú chiá chhit phian chí,  
講道德 說仁義 Káng tō tek, soat jîn gī.
作中庸 乃孔伋 Chok Tiong iông, nái Khóng Khip,
中不偏 庸不易 Tiong put phian, iông put ék.
作大學 乃曾子 Chok Tāi hák, nái Cheng chú,
自修齊 至平治 Chū siu chê, chì pêng tī.
孝經通 四書熟 Hàu keng thong, Sù su siók,
如六經 始可讀 Jû liók keng, sí khó thók.
詩書易 禮春秋 Si, Su, Ék, Lé, Chhun Chhiu,
號六經 當講求 Hō liók keng, tong káng kiû,
有連山 有歸藏 iú Liân-san, iú Kui chông,
有周易 三易詳 Iú Chiu-ék, sam Ék siâng.
有典謨 有訓誥 Iú Tián Bô•, iú Hùn Khò,
有誓命 書之奧 Iú Sè Bēng, Su chi ò.
我周公 作周禮 Ngó• Chiu kong, chok Chiu lé,
著六官 存治體 Tù Liók koan, chûn tī thé.
大小戴 注禮記 Tāi siáu Tài, chù Lé kì,
述聖言 禮樂備 Sút sèng giân, lé gák pī.
曰國風 曰雅頌 Oát Kok hong, oát Ngá Siōng,
號四詩 當諷詠 Hō Sù si, tong hong ēng.
詩既亡 春秋作 Si kì bông, Chun Chhiu chok,
道淵源 習禮義 Tō ian goân, síp lé gī,
寓褒貶 別善惡 gū po pián, piat siān ok.
三傳者 有公羊 Sam toān chiá, iú Kong iông,
有左氏 有穀梁 iú Chó si, iú Kok liâng.
經既明 方讀子 Keng kì bêng, hong thók chú,
撮其要 記其事 choat kî iàu, kì kî sū.
五子者 有荀楊 Ngó• chú chiá, iú Sûn Iâng,
文中子 及老莊 Bûn tiong chú, kíp Ló Chong.

This concludes the second section dealing with the curriculum of a classical education. The next section is a potted history of the Chinese world, beginning with the mythological age of the Yellow Emperor and finishing with the Ch'ing, although the original work finished at the Sung.
Ah-bin
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Re: Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by Ah-bin »

This third portion has many different versions, especially in the last section that discusses post-Sung events. I've used the text at http://www.chinapage.com/big5/prose/3.htm as the base for this version.

經子通 讀諸史 Keng chú thong, thók chu Sú.
考世系 知終始 Khó sè hē, ti chiong sí
自羲農 至黃帝 Chū Hi Lông, chì Hông tè,
號三皇 居上世 hō Sam Hông, ku siāng sè.
唐有虞 號二帝 Tông Iú-gû, hō Jī tē,
相揖遜 稱盛世 siang ip sùn, chheng sēng sè.
夏有禹 商有湯 Hā iú Ú, Siang iú Thong,
周文武 稱三王 Chiu Bûn Bú, chheng Sam ông.
夏傳子 家天下 Hā toân chú, Ka thian hā,
四百載 遷夏社 sù pek cháiⁿ, chhian Hā siā.
湯伐夏 國號商 Thong hoát Hā, kok hō Siang,
六百載 至紂亡 liók pek cháiⁿ, chì Tiū bông.
周武王 始誅紂 Chiu Bûn ông, sí tu Tiū,
八百載 最長久 pat pek cháiⁿ, chòe tiâng kiú,
周轍東 王綱墮 Chiu tiát tong, ông kong tūi,
逞干戈 尚遊說 théng kan ko, siông iû sòe.
始春秋 終戰國 Sí Chhun-chhiu, chiong Chiàn kok,
五霸強 七雄出 Ngó• pà kiông, chhit hiông chhut.
嬴秦氏 始兼并 Êng Chîn sī, sí kiam pèng,
傳二世 楚漢爭 toân Jī-sè, Chhó• Hàn cheng.  
高祖興 漢業建 Ko chó• heng, Hàn giáp kiàn,
至孝平 王莽篡 chì Hàu pēng, Ông Bóng chhoàn.
光武興 為東漢 Kong bú heng, ûi tong Hàn,
四百年 終於獻 sù pek liân, chiong u Hiàn.
蜀魏吳 爭漢鼎 Gūi Siók Gô•, cheng Hàn téng,
號三國 迄兩晉 hō Sam kok, hit Liáng Chìn.
宋齊繼 梁陳承 Sòng, Chê, kè, Liâng, Tîn sêng,
為南朝 都金陵 ûi Lâm tiâu, to• Kim-lêng.
北元魏 分東西 Pok Goân Gūi, hun Tong Se,
宇文周 與高齊 Ú-bûn Chiu, ú Ko Chê.
迨至隋 一土宇 Tāi chì Sûi, it thó• ú,
不再傳 失統緒 put chài toân, sit thóng sū.
唐高祖 起義師 Tông Ko-chó•, khí gī su,
除隋亂 創國基 tú Sûi loān, chhòng kok ki.
二十傳 三百載 Jī síp toân, sam pek cháiⁿ,
梁滅之 國乃改 Liâng biát chi, kok nái kái.
梁唐晉 及漢周 Liâng, Tông, Chìn, kíp Hàn Chiu,
稱五代 皆有由 chheng Ngó-tāi, kai iú iû.
炎宋興 受周禪 Iâm Sòng heng, siū Chiu siān,
十八傳 南北混 síp pat toân, lâm pok hūn.
遼與金 皆稱帝 Liâu ú Kim, kai chheng tè,
元滅金 絕宋世 Goân biát Kim, choát Sòng sè.
蒞中國 兼戎狄 Nī Tiong-kok, kiam Jiông Ték,
九十年 國祚廢 kiú síp liân, kok chō• hòe,
太祖興 國大明 Thài-chó• heng, kok Tāi-Bêng,
號洪武 都金陵 hō Hông-bú to• Kim-lêng.
迨成祖 遷燕京 Tāi Sêng-chó•, Chhian Ian-keng,
十七世 至崇禎 síp chhit sè, chì Chông-cheng.
權閹肆 寇如林 Koân iam sù, khò• jû lîm,
至李闖 神器焚 chì Lí Chhoàng, sîn khì hûn.
清太祖 膺景命 Chheng Thài-chó•, eng kéng bēng,
靖四方 克大定 chèng sù hong, khek tāi tēng.
歷代史 全在茲 Lék tāi sú, choân chāi chu,
載治亂 知興衰 chài tī loān, ti heng soe.
讀史者 考實錄 Thók sú chiá, khó sít liók,
通古今 若親目 thong kó• kim, jiók chhim bók.
口而誦 心而維 Khó• jî siōng, sim jî î,
朝於斯 夕於斯 tiau u su, sék u su.

The last portion, an exhortation to study hard and concentrate, will follow soon.
Last edited by Ah-bin on Wed Jan 12, 2011 9:41 am, edited 3 times in total.
Mark Yong
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Re: Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by Mark Yong »

Hi, Ah-bin,

Just an observation: Since you have opted to maintain the -iang endings for words like and consistent with the Chiang Chiu sub-dialect (even though Penang Hokkien has exceptions for these, e.g. siong-sin 相信), then shouldn't the 2nd of half of the 6th line in your latest post read 居上世 ku siāng sè? Of course, Penangites read 馬上 as ma-siong. :P
Ah-bin
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Re: Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by Ah-bin »

Yes it should!!! I'll go back to edit it right away!

Also...very interesting. Also something I forgot to comment on was the fact that my Taiwanese text has Hó•ⁿ火 and cháiⁿ 載, and I always felt it strange that these were nasalised in the thák-chhe•h-im . The first one is in Chiu Tiang-ip's 周長揖 dictionary with a nasal, but not the second one.
Mark Yong
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Joined: Fri Apr 29, 2005 3:52 pm

Re: Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by Mark Yong »

Probably a trivial piece of information...

One of 18th century Penang's Kapitan 辜禮歡 Koh Lay Huan's (of 漳州 Ciang Ciu extraction) descendants was a certain 辜上達 Koh Seang Tat - note the Romanisation of , which adds some weight to the validation of the literal pronunciation of as used by the 漳州 Ciang Ciu community in Penang. :)

Source: Tan Kim Hong 陳劍虹. The Chinese in Penang: A Pictorial History 檳城嶼華人史圖錄. Areca Books, 2007.
niuc
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Re: Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by niuc »

Kudos, Ah-bin! :mrgreen:
詳訓詁 名句讀 Siâng hùn kó•, bêng kù tō•,
I expected 讀 to be thók, but apparently it indeed should be tō• for this context. So here I learnt that 句讀 is kù tō•, also Mandarin jù dòu. Thanks!
讀史書 考實錄 Thók sú chiá, khó sít liók,
書 = chiá, is it a typo?
Ah-bin
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Re: Sam Chu Keng 三字經

Post by Ah-bin »

Yes! I didn't notice that, thanks! I'll edit it straight away.

Thank you Mark and Niuc for pointing these things out. We don't want an inferior version circulating do we! BTW sorry Niuc that it isn't Bagansiapiapi style!

The internet version I took it from differs in a few respects from the text I have in Taiwanese. I've edited the character text in line with the POJ as my recording has 者.

The other unusual one was 說 sòe or shui4 in Mandarin

You can test Chinese on 句讀 and 說 as in 說服 (shuifu) and I bet lots of them don't know the readings. For me there is some satisfaction (a tiny bit) in knowing something in Chinese that Chinese don't, seeing as they know so much in Chinese that I don't!
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