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Based on eleven different kinds of romanized dialect records, this paper conducts a phonological study of the Chaoshan dialects in the nineteenth century. It compares the differences between the romanized records and the various dialects spoken in the Chaoshan area, analyses the phonological features and their notational representations, and concludes that the phonological system of the records was a system based on the dialect of the city of Chaozhou. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents research on the "unequal treaties" signed by China with foreign powers in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Seeking to resolve scholarly disagreement on the issue, the article attempts to establish a definition of treaty inequality, using two criteria: equality of form and procedure, and equality in terms of state sovereignty, i.e., whether a treaty violates China's sovereignty. Based on the latter criterion, the number of unequal treaties China signed starting in 1842 is established.