Vernacularization in Medieval Chinese : A quantitative study on classifiers, demonstratives, and copulae in the Chinese Buddhist Canon
Research output: Journal Publications and Reviews (RGC: 21, 22, 62) › 21_Publication in refereed journal › peer-review
Author(s)
Related Research Unit(s)
Detail(s)
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 64–81 |
| Journal / Publication | Digital Scholarship in the Humanities |
| Volume | 34 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Online published | 25 Jul 2018 |
| Publication status | Published - Apr 2019 |
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Abstract
While studies on diachronic Chinese syntax have identified a number of linguistic changes in Medieval Chinese, they have mostly been underpinned by qualitative analyses. In the most large-scale quantitative analysis to-date, this article investigates changes in the use of classifiers, demonstratives, and copulae. Our analysis, based on the Chinese Buddhist Canon, examines over 40 million characters in texts spanning a millennium. Results suggest that from the late Eastern Han period (circa 150 CE) onwards, the vernacular style became increasingly widespread, at the expense of the literary style, as reflected by changes in the use of classifiers and demonstratives, and in the construction of nominal sentences. However, the vernacular style became less frequently used in the Northern Sung period (960–1127 CE). This reversal may shed light on the work of the Stylists, editors appointed by the Sung court to polish Buddhist texts with more literary elements.
While studies on diachronic Chinese syntax have identified a number of linguistic
changes in Medieval Chinese, they have mostly been underpinned by qualitative
analyses. In the most large-scale quantitative analysis to-date, this article investigates changes in the use of classifiers, demonstratives, and copulae. Our analysis, based on the Chinese Buddhist Canon, examines over 40 million characters in
texts spanning a millennium. Results suggest that from the late Eastern Han
period (circa 150 CE) onwards, the vernacular style became increasingly widespread, at the expense of the literary style, as reflected by changes in the use of
classifiers and demonstratives, and in the construction of nominal sentences.
However, the vernacular style became less frequently used in the Northern
Sung period (960–1127 CE). This reversal may shed light on the work of the
Stylists, editors appointed by the Sung court to polish Buddhist texts with more
literary elements.
changes in Medieval Chinese, they have mostly been underpinned by qualitative
analyses. In the most large-scale quantitative analysis to-date, this article investigates changes in the use of classifiers, demonstratives, and copulae. Our analysis, based on the Chinese Buddhist Canon, examines over 40 million characters in
texts spanning a millennium. Results suggest that from the late Eastern Han
period (circa 150 CE) onwards, the vernacular style became increasingly widespread, at the expense of the literary style, as reflected by changes in the use of
classifiers and demonstratives, and in the construction of nominal sentences.
However, the vernacular style became less frequently used in the Northern
Sung period (960–1127 CE). This reversal may shed light on the work of the
Stylists, editors appointed by the Sung court to polish Buddhist texts with more
literary elements.
Citation Format(s)
Vernacularization in Medieval Chinese: A quantitative study on classifiers, demonstratives, and copulae in the Chinese Buddhist Canon. / Wong, Tak-sum; Lee, John S. Y.
In: Digital Scholarship in the Humanities, Vol. 34, No. 1, 04.2019, p. 64–81.
In: Digital Scholarship in the Humanities, Vol. 34, No. 1, 04.2019, p. 64–81.
Research output: Journal Publications and Reviews (RGC: 21, 22, 62) › 21_Publication in refereed journal › peer-review
