Some Linguistic Features of the Baeu Rodo Scriptures

Zhuang, one of the fifty-six ethnic groups in China, enjoys the second largest population among all members in the Chinese family. The Baeu Rodo scriptures, a reflection of the Zhuang culture, are recited by indigenous ritual specialists called boumo for the important life-circle ceremonies of betrothal, marriage, birth, and death, or for cases of dealing with quarrels, summoning lost souls, and driving away devils. Based on the Baeu Rodo texts, it is concluded that the most impressive linguistic features of the Baeu Rodo scriptures are versification, waist-rhyme, and balanced repetition. The scriptures are written predominantly in five-syllable verse and they are in poetic form. Waist-rhyme is a rhyme in which the last syllable in the first line of a stanza rhymes with the middle syllable in the following line, which is extremely different from a rhyme in English. Balanced repetition refers to the structures that are in similar form and function and equal length but usually occur in two or more lines in verse, expressing the same idea or contrasting ones. The discussion of these striking features of the Baeu Rodo scriptures is of great significance, leading to a better understanding of the texts which serve as carriers of the traditional Zhuang culture and promoting the intercultural communication between the Zhuang people and the English people.