SMC 4
The Writing System of Scribe Zhou -
Evidence from Late Pre-imperial Chinese Manuscripts and Inscriptions (5th-3rd Centuries BCE)
By Haeree Park
This book investigates the nature of regional variation in the early Chinese writing system through bamboo manuscripts and inscriptions dating from the late pre-imperial China (5th-3rd centuries BCE). Diachronic and synchronic comparisons of graphic details show that none of the well-recognized regional varieties developed independently from one another. Furthermore, differences in graphic components can be accounted for as alternations of graphs that are compatible in their semantic or phonetic values. The phonological systems underlying various regional orthographies unanimously point to a single coherent sound system with some mixture of dialect pronunciations. This strongly suggests that all the late pre-imperial regional scripts derived from a kind of orthographic meta-system based on one spoken standard language. This orthography and its phonological systems should reasonably be dated to ca. 9th century BCE, just about the time when the earliest known Chinese lexicography "Book of Scribe Zhou" (ca. 830 BCE) was written. The conclusions of this book have further implications on reading and understanding manuscript texts in general as well as on using them as data for linguistic studies.
Contents
Symbols and AbbreviationsXIII-XIV
1 Introduction1
1.1 Goal of the study1
1.2 Subject materials3
1.3 The Shanghai Museum “Zhouyi 周易” manuscript7
1.4 The Shuowen jiezi in the light of the Warring States manuscripts15
1.4.1 Three archaic scripts, xiaozhuan, guwen and Zhouwen15
1.4.2 The xiaozhuan ‘Small Seal script’ as a regional variety of the Warring States script17
1.4.3 The identity of the Zhouwen ‘Script of Scribe Zhou’ and guwen ‘Old script’ 22
2 The Old Chinese phonology31
2.1 Manuscripts as new sources of data for Old Chinese31
2.2 A reconstruction system of Old Chinese phonology34
2.2.1 Overview36
2.2.1.1 The third vs. non-third division syllables and the second division medial *-r-37
2.2.1.2 The initial *r-38
2.2.1.3 The initials *l- and *[g]-38
2.2.1.4 The initials *z-, *s-g- and *s-d-40
2.2.1.5 Uvular initials41
2.2.1.6 The diphthongs -wa- and -wə-41
2.2.1.7 Nasal initials, *N- prefix, *s- prefix42
2.2.1.8 Sources of MC sy-46
2.2.1.9 Palatalization of velar and uvular initials46
2.2.1.10 The coda *-r49
2.2.1.11 The post-codas *-Ɂ and *-s, and *-s as a suffix51
2.2.1.12 Inventories of simple initials and rhymes55
2.2.2 Two notes57
2.2.2.1 The uvulars57
2.2.2.2 A reconsideration of the ‘Rounded vowel hypothesis’66
3 The Shanghai “Zhouyi” and the Warring States script73
3.1 Elaborate and casual styles73
3.2 Decorative strokes83
3.3 Simplification and development of the Warring States script87
3.3.1 Stroke simplification88
3.3.2 Simplification of graphic components91
3.3.2.1 Deletion and interruption of components91
3.3.2.2 Replacement by simpler forms93
3.3.2.3 Compression and merger of components94
3.3.3 Simplification and residue of iconicity98
3.3.3.1 Diminishment of heavy dots, thick lines, and fillings98
3.3.3.2 Neutralization of iconicity101
3.3.3.3 Transition to the Warring States script102
3.4 Structural variability in the early Chinese writing system106
3.4.1. Graphic components and functional values 107
3.4.2 The tendency towards Signific-Phonophoric compound structure109
3.4.2.1 Increase of compound characters in the Warring States script111
3.4.2.2 Consequences for textual variation115
3.4.2.3 The case of Shanghai “Zhouyi” and the received version117
3.4.3 The case of the fu 簠 vessel123
4 The Chu Script139
4.1 The Five-region script system139
4.2 The Common Warring States character forms142
4.3 Chu regional character forms143
4.3.1 Regional variation in componential structure144
4.3.2 Regional variation in use of decorative strokes153
4.3.3 Regional variation in simplified forms155
4.3.4 Regional character shapes162
4.4 The nature of regionalism in the Warring States script166
4.5 Some ‘true’ Chu characters for a diagnosis of the Chu script169
5 The Shanghai “Zhouyi” and the Early Chinese Orthography171
5.1 Synonymous Significs171
5.2 Equivalent phonophorics196
5.2.1 Phonophorics in the early Chinese orthography199
5.2.2 Western Zhou and Chu phonophorics208
5.2.3 Negative particles215
5.2.4 Sound symbolism and Phonograms220
5.2.5 Old Chinese dialect words222
5.2.6 Etymological relations227
5.2.7 Phonologically motivated lexical variation239
6 Conclusions241
6.1 The last phase of the early Chinese writing system241
6.2 Regionalism in a single script system242
6.3 The Old Chinese phonology and the early Chinese orthography243
6.4 Further implications244
Appendix I: A Lexicon of the Shanghai “Zhouyi”247
Appendix II: Index of Synonymous Significs and Equivalent Phonophorics311
Index of Equivalent Phonophorics317
References323