Manual of Standard Tibetan: Language and Civilization

I found this book very confusing and intimidating at first, and initially didn't think it was very good. At first i found it poorly organized and confusing. Now that i have continued working through it, i am finding that it is making more and more sense, and is becoming clear. I think i was just initially intimidated by the Tibetan language itself, rather than the book. I have looked at many other titles available for learning Tibetan, and i find this one to be one of the most in depth and comprehensive and easy to understand. But no book have i found to be completely clear, and so this book too has its flaws.. For me, i feel frustrated when terms are introduced for example in the introduction with only the wylie transliteration, and no tibetan script or even the book's own transcription system. Though i do feel that working through the book eventually i will feel confident enough to understand what those terms are in all three tibetan script/wylie/and transcription(pronunciation). I also wish that the part showing how to write the characters was improved with stroke direction, as i find it highly important to begin learning to write properly at the beginning in order to best learn the language. But i do not expect any book to be the /only/ book that i will need on the subject, so with that in mind, i find this book the best i have come across so far. On a final note, i would recommend still listening to a native speaker or highly practiced teacher however you can, either through a class or recordings (as actually the book provides with cds--i have not yet listened to them, as i am taking a class with the book online, so i suppose my review is somewhat incomplete at this time), so that you can match correct pronunciation. Also, another reviewer here complained that the authors have invented their own system of transliteration, and that it is pointless because one must eventually learn Wylie in other textbooks. I actually disagree. The system employed in this book is actually a system of transcription, meaning it is a clue to the pronunciation more directly than transliteration is. For example, the word for summer དབྱར་ཁ་ would be transliterated in Wylie as "dbyar kha" which for me, until i learned the system of pronunciation based on prefixes and so forth, gives no clue as to the word's real pronunciation, which the book gives as /yarka/. So while learning the Wylie system of transliteration can be useful, i find the book's system of transcription very helpful as a beginner, and it is very well designed.Over all, this book is highly recommended!

I have just started studying this book and have enjoyed it but I would suggest using the Modern Tibetan Language text vol. 1 before this. This book, as I can see, does not have an answer key to be able to see if you are doing the exercises correctly (for me this was problematic when I was translating from English to Tibetan). With the examples and the subsequent Tibetan to English exercises you can decipher what was supposed to happen in the previous English to Tibetan exercises but it is a bit clunky. I have tried to find the answer key but still have not found it.Modern Tibetan Language textbook vol. 1 is not as scholarly but it is targeted at a lower level of student and, frankly, uses less scholarly language to explain. I found this easier to digest and then to eventually move on to this book. I will order Modern Tibetan Language Vol. 2 soon to compare them.If this book had an answer key I would give it 5 stars with the caveat of, for beginners, to use the Lobsang Thonden's book as a pre-cursor.

I'm trying to learn Tibetan with a native speaker. This book is so blooming didactic (such as 'datative case') that I sometimes can make no sense of it. I have the feeling the author wants to show how bright, he is or teach only those who know what a datative case is. That is all well and good, but then put in a paragragh to explain what you are talking about for the less educated folks in the normal world.What I do like is the vocabulary as it does add in a good way. I would like some medical terms put in for 'emergencies.' is a CD with my book, which can help, too.Tiah Foster, M.D.

Would have given this 5 stars if they had the vocabulary recorded too. The other minor thing I thought that was a bit unnecessary is that they like to reference to other languages I don't even know when explaining the use of some Tibetan words. I really like the book however.

I have been trying to learn Tibetan from books and CDs for quite some time and after some unsuccessful attempts with other Language Packs I finally decided to try The Manual of Standard Tibetan and I am more than happy! Within two weeks I have learnt more than what I had learnt in one year! I highly recommend it to anyone who wishes to learn more than the usual everyday expressions found in all Tibetan phrasebooks!

The book arrived in a good state, but the 2 CDs that should come with the book are missing.

All-inclusive. Covers the detailed information and language variations. Well-ordered to learn the difficult language progressively and effectively. Can widen the vocaburary in the natural way by walking through lessons. Best recommended for the learners of Tibetan language.

they say you gotta have it. i don't know. kinda big... useful stuff in it

we are using it in SOAS, university of london.enjoyed it! Really helped a lot.Thanks for all your work, T&D.

Ich habe eine Reihe von Tibetischbüchern ausprobiert, das von Hahn ist auch sehr gut, aber dieses hier ist wirklich für Anfänger geeignet und konzipiert, nicht für Sprachschüler an der Universität, denen ein Professor die Details erklärt. Schön ist auch, dass die für alle Wörter nicht die Wylie-Transliteration angegeben ist, sondern die Aussprache, das hilft gerade am Anfang enorm.Wunderbar auch die beiden CDs, so dass man gleich eine mögliche Aussprache hat.

Spiegazioni complete e approfondite. E' un ottimo strumento per lo studio individuale della lingua tibetana, arricchito da audio, schemi ed esercizi; contiene un'utilissima appendice che analizza brevemente alcune fondamentali differenze tra il tibetano colloquiale e quello letterario.Approccio tecnico e tradizionale alla grammatica; non di agile consultazione.

Als Studierende dieser Sprache, muss ich wirklich sagen, dass sich dieses Lehrbuch zum erlernen und verbessern von Tibetisch gut eignet. Vor allem durch die beigelegte Sprach CD, auf welcher die Übungstexte von Muttersprachlern gelesen werden. Natürlich ist die Grundvoraussetzung, dass man Englisch kann.

Das Buch an sich ist toll. Leider kamen bei mir die CD's nicht mit.Die kann man aber noch Gott sei Dank auf dem Internet finden (auf der Seite von Shambhala Publications)