试论近代南方官话的形成及其地位

Modern Southern Mandarin: Its Formation and Social Status

近代汉语史上有没有通行全国的官话？如果说有，是北方官话还是南方官话？是以什么方言为基础、以什么话为标准？这是近代汉语史的核心问题，迄未廓清，又甚少讨论。本文依据一些新材料提出如下观点：有明一代至清末的汉语官话分南北两支，南方官话以江淮官话为基础方言、以南京官话为标准，且长期处于主导地位，通行全国；而认识南方官话如何形成及其在汉语史上的地位。

Was there a Mandarin commonly used in the history of modern Chinese? Was it northern Mandarin or southern Mandarin if there was? What dialect was used as the basis and standard of this Mandarin? This is a clouded issue at the core in the history of modern Chinese,which has never been cleaned up and under enough discussion.The present paper,according to some new materials,puts forward such points of view that the Mandarin of the period from the founding of the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty was composed of two branches:northern Mandarin and southern Mandarin while the latter as the standard,held a dominant position and was used all over China for a long time,and that the understanding of how southern Mandarin was formed and what a social position it held in the history of Chinese is the key to having an exact understanding of the history of modern Chinese.