“隅/角”历时替换小考

Chronological Analysis on the Words Yu and Jiao(隅/角)

表示“角落”义的词语,在上古汉语中主要用“隅”,现代汉语中用“角”。这个交替过程发生在魏晋南北朝时期。本文详细考察了从上古至中古不同时期的历史文献,从中寻绎“角”替换“隅”的发展轨迹:在先秦时期用例极少;西汉也甚为零落;东汉魏时期才逐渐多起来;占据绝对优势则是在两晋南北朝时期,这一时期,南方与北方均较多使用,尤其是北方口语文献中“角”已代替“隅”完成了历时替换。

This article searched thoroughly for the words Yu and Jiao（隅／角）in the important literatures before the South and North Dynasty,and analyzed their applications. We find out the development of Jiao （隅／角） which means “角落”. There are few examples in the Old Chinese. It was used mostly in the Middle Chinese, especially after the East Jin Dynasty and the west Jin Dynasty （两晋）. So, we come to a conclusion that the evolution of the words Yu and Jiao（隅／角） started from the period of Weijin Dynasty（魏晋） ,South and North Dynasty（南北朝）.