Phonetic transcripts and translations
To help Teochew learners who are curious about the language used in Teochew opera, we have transcribed selected operas and excerpts into Pêng’im (romanized phonetic spelling) and Chinese characters, and also translated them to English. Explanatory notes on vocabulary and spelling conventions (e.g. non-standard characters, unique Teochew vocabulary or grammar) will also be added. These translations are to be used for educational purposes only.
Opera shows and films often do not have subtitles, and when they do, these are usually translations or paraphrases into Mandarin, and do not fit the Teochew words exactly. The transcriptions here use Teochew phonetics and characters to avoid this problem.
Phonetic transcriptions are in the four most popular romanization systems: Guangdong Education Department Pêng’im (1960), Gaginang.org Peng’im, Peh-ue-ji and the Tie-tsiann-hue Tie-lo system. Online videos of these opera productions are linked in the files below.
If you are interested in converting between different Teochew romanization systems, try our Python package parsetc, available on PyPI, based on lark v0.11.