A kind of mobile phone with the function of the Tibetan language handwriting has been developed by Southwest University of Nationalities and a Beijing-based digital technology company.

The phone falls into two categories, namely, the GSM phone and the CDMA phone, both of which have a Tibetan language interface and have the functions of sending and receiving Tibetan language short messages, and Tibetan language handwriting.

 
A staff member showcases a mobile phone with the function of Tibetan short message service in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, on November 20.  (Xinhua Photo)

The phone, integrating all the functions of ordinary cell phones, will enable the Tibetans to operate with their own characters and language.

As early as in 1998, Southwest University of Nationalities developed a Tibetan language system for computers. Based on this, the university later set up two research groups on handwriting Tibetan language cell phones and the database of Tibetan characters.

The researchers have collected 16,250 handwriting Tibetan characters and translated 5,000 mobile phone terms into the Tibetan language.