판본비교법과 중국어사 연구 — 《노자》 6종 판본 비교대조를 중심으로

Abstract

This study compares how Chinese characters are used in Lao-Tzu of Guodian, the oldest version unearthed so far, and the five other texts that came later, finds differences in variant characters, and confirms that changes in variant characters in Lao-Tzu’s different texts have reflected some traces of the evolution of Chinese language syntax. For instance, the texts published since the Qin and Han Dynasties showed that the gradual removal of the conjunction ER (而) and the deletion of CI (此) in the subject of the main clause in conditional sentences reflected the Chinese language type changed from the coordinate structure to the modifier structure. The deletion of ZHI (之) in the ZHU-ZHI-WEI (主之謂) structure since the Eastern Han Dynasty reflected the decline of a nominal marker, which was commonly used during the Old Chinese period, in the Middle Chinese. In addition, the replacement of the auxiliary verb KE-YI (可以) with KE (可) in the texts published since the Eastern Han Dynasty, the gradual replacement of SHI-YI (是以) with GU (故) in the texts since the Qin and Han Dynasties reflected changes in the grammatical function of KE (可), a decline in the usage of the conjunction SHI-YI (是以), and an increasing usage of GU (故). Although most of these language evolution phenomena were evident in the texts since the Middle Chinese period, some changes gradually began in the texts since the Qin and Han Dynasties in the late Old Chinese period. The contrast method of texts and the findings identified from the method suggest another approach to grammar studies in Chinese language history.