雲南昭通“趣馬門”音義考辨

Textual Research on the Sound and Meaning of Zhaotong’s“Coumamen”(趣馬門)

鄂爾泰作《昭通四門記》説明了昭通四個城門的命名由來,其中"趣馬門"音義較為特別,不容易理解。"趣馬"來自《周禮》,雖然只是掌管王馬的小官,但因為接近君王,所以於君王安危、國家興替意義重大,鄂爾泰以"趣馬"自況,並借此表達自己的治國理念。"趣馬"之"趣"不讀qù,文獻傳承讀倉苟切(cǒu),現代詞典均注音此音,當遵依。

Eertai wrote an article titled Zhaotong’s Four Gates,which tells how were the four gates of Zhaotong named.Among the four gates’names,"Coumamen"(趣馬門)is a special one,in both sound and meaning.The word"Couma"(趣馬)comes from Zhouli.It is a minor official’s name in ancient China,whose job is to take care of horses.However,as emperor’s servants,their job is also very important for emperors and their countries.Eertai compared himself to"Couma"(趣馬),in order to explain his governing philosophy.The word should be read as"couma",instead of"quma".Both ancient literature and modern dictionaries could verify that.