Romanization of Chinese

Stalin saved the Chinese written script by talking Mao Zedong out of completely replacing it with full-scale Romanization (Latin alphabets to transliterate Chinese). After the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949, Mao wanted a radical break with old ways and thought that China’s beautiful yet complicated and inefficient script was a hindrance to the country’s development. After Stalin talked him out of it, the regime instead simplified many Chinese characters, supposedly making them easier to learn.

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