CONCEPTS FOR CLASSIFYING APHORISTIC UNITS IN CHINESE LINGUISTICS: THE PROBLEM OF TERMINOLOGY AND CRITERIA
Keywords:
Chinese language, aphoristics, phraseology, geyan, shuyu, chengyu, guanyongyu, taxonomy, differential criterion, terminology.Abstract
This article provides a comparative analysis of three leading concepts for classifying aphoristic units in Chinese linguistics — the "traditional" concept and the concepts of Wen Duanzheng and Liu Shuxin. The aim of the study is to identify the differential criteria of these concepts and to evaluate their practical applicability. The definitions given by Chinese linguists, data from explanatory dictionaries, and proposed classification schemes were examined using the methods of definitional analysis and criteria analysis. The analysis established that the undifferentiated use of the terms 格言 geyan and 熟语 shuyu in terminology is a systematic source of confusion. It was shown that none of the three concepts is able to draw the boundary between the groups "chengyu", "guanyongyu", "yanyu" and "xiehouyu" in a consistent manner; the principal reason for this is that the differential basis is tied rigidly to neither a synchronic nor a diachronic status.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format for any purpose, even commercially.
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
- The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
Under the following terms:
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit , provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made . You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
Notices:
You do not have to comply with the license for elements of the material in the public domain or where your use is permitted by an applicable exception or limitation .
No warranties are given. The license may not give you all of the permissions necessary for your intended use. For example, other rights such as publicity, privacy, or moral rights may limit how you use the material.
