Clear script
The "clear" or "tod" script was devised in 1648 by Zaya Bandida Ogtorgui Dalai, also known as Namxaizhamc (1599-1662), an Oirad Buddhist scholar who had spent approximately twenty years studying in Tibet. This alphabet was intended as a refinement of the Uigarzhin script, as the author explained in the conclusion to his book outlining the written grammar for the alphabet:
Omog Mongol ulsyn xuv'tand bolgoxyn tuld Olon adil dürstei üsegnüüdiig Onc tus bür angid xül'cel ügüi giigülen yalgazh Oloxuiyaa xyalbar mongol üzeg [üseg] zas[1]
The clear script succeeded at distinguishing between the various phonemes that were transcribed with a single character in the Uigarzhin script: o/u, ö/ü, d/t, c/ch, zh/z, x/γ, and k/g. In addition, the script was able to indicate long vowels and diphthongs. The script is significant in Mongolia's cultural history as it reflects a specific Mongolian dialect of the 17th century, as well as having been used for the writing of many historical, literary and religious works.
Some scholars believe that the script was developed, first and foremost, as a means of uniting the four Oirad aimags in a struggle to overcome the domination of the Manchu regime, pointing out that the clear script was developed based on the Oirad dialect. Yet the script came to be used not only among the Oirad population, but also among the Kalmyks and the Mongols of Xinjiang and Xöx Nuur.
Notes
- ↑ " To simplify the lives of the Mongol people Write with simple Mongol characters Which, as far as possible, separate and distinguish between The many characters of similar form." Zaya Bandida. Üzgiin [üsgiin] nairuulga (Composition of Letters)
 | In commemoration of the legacy and teachings of His Holiness Dulduit Danzanravzhaa Fifth Wrathful Noble Xutagt of the Great Gobi (1803-1856) I did not overbearingly sophize Nor preach with pride and arrogance But having found a sense in this world Spoke the truth of my dear heart. |   |