《说文解字》所收异体篆文的文字学启示

A Philological Inspiration on the Varied Forms of Characters in the Analytical Dictionary of Chinese Characters

中国第一部字典《说文解字》收录了1163个异体字,其中接近一半是秦代的标准字体——篆文。该文通过比较正体篆文和异体篆文的形体、形构,分析其造字理据以及繁简的取舍,从而获得了尚不为人知的信息和数据。这些信息和数据反映了《说文解字》的作者许慎处理正体、异体的原则:1.与其简约,毋宁精确(精确地表音、表意);2.与其表音,毋宁表意(缘于汉字的表意系统规律之制约);3.基于上述两项前提,才考虑简约(省声或省形)。这些原则,对今天汉字的使用以及规范化无疑有着重要的意义。

Analytical Dictionary of Chinese Characters(Shuo Wen Jie Zi),the first dictionary of China,collected 1163 varied forms of characters,among which nearly a half are standard forms in the Qin Dynasty.By comparison of the forms and structures of the standard and the varied,it analyzes the motivation of formation,complication and simplification,thus revealing Xu Shen's fundamentals of differentiating standard and varied forms of characters:rather being exact than simple(being exact to express meaning and pronunciation),being ideogram rather than phonic symbol(restricted by the ideographical system of the Chinese Characters),and the third,simplification based on the first two fundamentals.These fundamentals are doubtlessly very important for the use and standardization of today's Chinese characters.