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HandWiki. Character Amnesia. Encyclopedia. Available online: https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/27985 (accessed on 03 October 2026).
HandWiki. Character Amnesia. Encyclopedia. Available at: https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/27985. Accessed October 03, 2026.
HandWiki. "Character Amnesia" Encyclopedia, https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/27985 (accessed October 03, 2026).
HandWiki. (2022, September 29). Character Amnesia. In Encyclopedia. https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/27985
HandWiki. "Character Amnesia." Encyclopedia. Web. 29 September, 2022.
Character Amnesia
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Character amnesia is a phenomenon whereby experienced speakers of some East Asian languages forget how to write Chinese characters previously well known to them. The phenomenon is specifically tied to prolonged and extensive use of input methods, such as those that use romanizations of characters, and is documented to be a significant issue in China and Japan. Modern technology, such as mobile phones and computers, allows users to enter Chinese characters using their phonetic transcription without knowing how to write them by hand. Whether or not the phenomenon is as widespread or troubling as some have claimed is the subject of debate.

mobile phones amnesia technology

References

  1. Mair, Victor. "Character Amnesia". Language Log. https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=2473. 
  2. Wolf, Maryanne (2007). Proust and the squid: the story and science of the reading brain. HarperCollins. pp. 36–37. ISBN 9780060186395. https://archive.org/details/proustsquidstory00wolf. "...logographic systems appear to activate very distinctive parts of the frontal and temporal areas, particularly regions involved in motoric memory skills... because that is how Chinese symbols are learned by young readers- by writing, over and over." 
  3. Tan, Li Hai; Laird, Angela R.; Li, Karl; Fox, Peter T. (2005). "Neuroanatomical correlates of phonological processing of Chinese characters and alphabetic words: A meta-analysis". Human Brain Mapping 25 (1): 83–91. doi:10.1002/hbm.20134. PMID 15846817.  http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=6871734
  4. Wen-Jui Kuo; Tzu-Chen Yeh; Chia-Ying Lee; Y. u-T. e Wu; Chi-Cher Chou; Low-Tone Ho; Daisy L. Hung; Ovid J. L. Tzeng et al. (2003). "Frequency effects of Chinese character processing in the brain: an event-related fMRI study". NeuroImage 18 (3): 720–730. doi:10.1016/S1053-8119(03)00015-6. PMID 12667849.  https://dx.doi.org/10.1016%2FS1053-8119%2803%2900015-6
  5. Wen-Jui Kuo; Tzu-Chen Yeh; Jun-Ren Lee; Li-Fen Chen; Po-Lei Lee; Shyan-Shiou Chen; Low-Tone Ho; Daisy L. Hung et al. (2004). "Orthographic and phonological processing of Chinese characters: an fMRI study". NeuroImage 21 (4): 1721–1731. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2003.12.007. PMID 15050593.  https://dx.doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.neuroimage.2003.12.007
  6. Lee, Jennifer (1 February 2001). "Where the PC Is Mightier Than the Pen". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2001/02/01/technology/where-the-pc-is-mightier-than-the-pen.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm. 
  7. Moxley, Mitch (4 August 2010). "Take pen, forget character". Asia Times Online. Inter Press Service. http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/LH04Ad02.html. 
  8. Ping Chen; Nanette Gottlieb (2001). Language planning and language policy: East Asian perspectives. Psychology Press. pp. 38. ISBN 9780700714681. https://books.google.com/books?id=ZKQDXz3fF4EC&pg=PA48. 
  9. Insup Taylor; M. Martin Taylor; Maurice Martin Taylor (1995). Writing and literacy in Chinese, Korean, and Japanese. John Benjamins Publishing Company. pp. 336–338. ISBN 978-9027217943. https://books.google.com/books?id=WDw4gBaPjZgC&pg=PA336. 
  10. Judith Evans (25 August 2010). "Wired youth forget how to write in China and Japan". Agence France-Presse. https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jz3FEk2KJw3NEUyDhbMlTQO0IlOw. 
  11. According to Ovid Tzeng, minister of education in Taiwan, "Scientifically, we haven't established the phenomenon reliably."
  12. Chris Matyszczyk (26 August 2010). "'Character amnesia' hitting gear-obsessed kids". CNET News. https://www.cnet.com/news/character-amnesia-hitting-gear-obsessed-kids/. 
  13. Michael Brooks (27 August 2010). "Character Amnesia: Forgetting Culture in China And Japan". PSFK. https://www.psfk.com/2010/08/character-amnesia-forgetting-culture-in-china-and-japan.html. 
  14. Xu, Xinlei (5 August 2010). "Amnesia with Chinese characters". China Daily. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/life/2010-08/05/content_11740192.htm. 
  15. 2013-08-15, Chinese are losing their ability to write in Chinese, Shanghaiist http://shanghaiist.com/2013/08/15/chinese_are_losing_their_ability_to_write_chinese.php
  16. 2013-08-07, Audience of Chinese 'spelling bee' forget how to write , Want China Times http://www.wantchinatimes.com/news-subclass-cnt.aspx?cid=1304&MainCatID=13&id=20130807000001
  17. Gottlieb, Nanette (2005). Language and Society in Japan. Cambridge University Press. pp. 131. ISBN 9780521532846. https://books.google.com/books?id=NJ3uIXixGqQC&pg=PA131. 
  18. Dictionary entry: ワープロ馬鹿 http://ejje.weblio.jp/content/%E3%83%AF%E3%83%BC%E3%83%97%E3%83%AD%E9%A6%AC%E9%B9%BF
  19. "New calligraphy classes for China's internet generation". BBC NEWS ASIA-PACIFIC. 27 August 2011. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-14693677. 
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