中世纪欧洲“汉萨”等概念辨析

An Etymological Interpretation of “Hansa” and Related Concepts

"汉萨""汉萨同盟"和"行会"等是西欧中世纪史研究中常见的一组概念,它们皆与商业活动有关。三者在存续的时间和空间上,以及在组织制度、社会构成和活动领域等方面存在着一些差异,但词源学的考察表明,它们之间有着密切的内在关联。从词源看,"汉萨"是指中世纪早期的日耳曼行商共同体,常被看作中世纪"行会"和德意志"汉萨同盟"的雏形。"汉萨同盟"作为中世纪自治共同体发展的顶峰,也是一种特殊的"行会"形式。从职能看,"行会"对内平衡对外垄断的保护宗旨同样在"商人汉萨"和"汉萨同盟"的组织制度中有所体现。因此,对三者共性的考察不仅有助于梳理hansa词根下各共同体历史沿革的脉络,也有助于理解西欧经济社会诸要素在长时段变迁中的连续性特征。

'Hansa',' die Hansa'and'hanse'are a series of terms with similarities which often have been seen in the study on the economic and social history of Medieval Western Europe. There are some differences in their existing contexts, also differences in organizational system, membership and activity fields. However, the same etymological origin implies a close connection among these three terms. From the etymological angle,' Hansa' indicates the Germanic travelling merchant community in Early Middle Ages, which is often deemed as rudiments of Medieval' hanse' and German' die Hansa'. As a culmination of the Medieval autonomous community,' die Hansa' is also a special form of' hanse'. Taken functions as the viewpoint, the purpose of' hanse' about internal balance and external protection also ref lects in the organizational system of' Hansa' and' die Hansa'. The study on these three historical terms would not only be able to prove their homology and homogeneity, but also help people to understand the continuity of all economic-social factors in long-term transformation of Western Europe.