中古汉语词义求证法论略

On How to Demonstrate Middle Chinese Vocabulary

An inquiry into the methodology of interpreting lexical meaning should be one of the contents of the research on Middle Chinese vocabulary. To demonstrate the lexical meaning of Middle Chinese, differentiating Chinese characters and identifying words should be done before interpreting the lexical meaning. Differentiating Chinese characters refers to differentiating true Chinese characters from false ones. Particular attention should be paid to differentiate nonstandard popular forms of handwritten Chinese characters in explaining the lexical meaning of vocabulary available during the Northern and Southern Dynasties (420-589).Identifying words refers to identifying them by segmenting Chinese words on the basis of determining the research object. Interpreting the lexical meaning includes such steps as consulting, collecting citations, deducing and explaining, examining citations, contrasting, tracing the origin, and verifying. Usually, several methods are used in doing specific interpretation.