楚系出土文献所见*n-、*l-不分现象及其源流与成因考

The blend of*n-and*l-in unearthed manuscripts of Chu and its origin and cause

以往的研究对*n-、*l-不分的现象只追溯到唐五代。本文梳理了楚系金文、楚简以及部分保留楚人用字习惯的汉代简帛文字资料,如马王堆帛书、银雀山汉简等出土文献中泥母与以母交替的例子,发现在战国至汉初的楚方音里*n-被读成*l-。这种现象在汉语史的各个阶段都存在,只是有的是*l-被读成*n-。汉语史上*n-、*l-一直都是两个独立的音位。*n-、*l-不分只是局部现象。这大概是不同时代、地域的人们对鼻化度的感知差异及发音习惯不同造成的。

Many scholars have traced the blend of*n-and*l-back to the time of the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties.This paper studies the bronze inscriptions and bamboo slips unearthed from the Chu region together with silk manuscripts of the Han Dynasty which preserved the writings of the Chu people,and points out that,in the Chu dialect spoken from the time of the Warring States to the beginning of the Han Dynasty,*n-could sometimes be read as*l-.Such phenomenon of the blend of*n-and*l-can be attested in all phases of Chinese.Sometimes the*n-was read as*l-while in other times the reverse situation occurred.However,generally speaking,*n-and*l-have always been two independent phonemes in the history of Chinese.The blend of*n-and*l-should be regarded as regional exception caused by regional pronunciation habits concerning the nasals.