中文无机名词之“化”字：1896—1945年

The Character Hua (Change)in Chinese Inorganic Nomenclature:1896—1945

甲午战争之后,中文无机化学名词命名明显受到日文无机化学名词命名的影响。其中最明显的地方便是其名词上有一个“化”字,而且元素的顺序恰巧与它们的分子式相反。从法文化学名词的角度来看,这并无不妥之处,但自鸦片战争之后,英文是中国人翻译外国名词的最主要来源,从英文化学名词的角度而言,这样的名词便显得有些不恰当。有趣的是,这些与分子式相反的无机名词早在1868年便在《化学入门》中出现过,但是没有引起任何反响。20世纪后,含有“化”字的无机名词便大量出现在中文化学书籍中,这其中也包括具有官方色彩的化学出版物,例如,1907年的《化学语汇》及1920的《化学术语》。大量与“化”字有关的化学名词及来自翻译日本化学书籍是促进这类中文无机名词形成的重要原因。

Under the influence of Japanese nomenclature, a character hua that means change appeared in Chinese inorganic terms. The three characters ： the negative element, a connecting inorganic salts and bases are written with symbol,hua, and the positive element. Although similar to French, this order is opposite to the English system of naming the metal first. But after the Opium Wars, English became the main language to be translated for the Chinese. It is interesting to note that a similar term had appeared in 1868 ,but it caused little resonance. By the 20th century, the terms hua in Chinese inorganic nomenclature were recognized by the public. Even though, such a term with hua was subjected to discussion in the view of chemical theories, Chinese language and education at that time. The formation of many Chinese terms that are related with hua is one of the reasons for their use today.