Although it is not common to divide letters based on the gender of those who use them, nu shu (women's writing) deserves its name because it was exclusively used by women. Standard Chinese writing, one of the most interesting writing systems, was exclusively intended for men, meaning only boys could learn it. Girls and young women did not have access to any formal education. Everything they learned, they learned from their mothers, grandmothers, relatives, friends, and members of sisterhood groups that met in the "women's chambers" of their homes.
Nu shu writing
There is much about this writing that is unclear because it was a carefully guarded secret, hidden from male eyes. Over the course of several centuries, women in central-southern China, in the Hunan province, used this writing. Unlike classical writing, which was mostly ideographic (one character represents one concept), nu shu is a syllabic writing (only a few characters were borrowed from the "male" writing), which is why it has several tens of
Also, one thousand needs just a little over a thousand characters. However, Nu Shu is slanted, thinner, more elegant, and more looped than classical writing, which is square – each character fills the entire square.
The first research on women’s writing began in 1950 and in the 1990s, there was a real pursuit of the few knowledgeable women of this script. Namely, it was Only a small number of women who knew how to read and write the signs of this centuries-old hidden script remained. They were mostly in their high age, between eighty and ninety years old, so there was a danger that the secret of this script would go to the grave with them.
The task was even more difficult because many texts, witnesses to the life paths of their authors, were burned or buried together with their deceased owners. During the Cultural Revolution, members of the Red Guard burned all works written in this script and persecuted anyone who used it.
Today, when this script is recognized as part of the world cultural heritage, it is taught in specially organized courses. Exhibitions are held where a few original works can be seen, all with the desire to save this testimony of the indestructibility and creativity of the human spirit from oblivion.