段玉裁《说文解字注》释“昌”考辨

A Study of the Meaning "Chang"(昌) in Duan Yucai's Annotation to Origin of Chinese Characters

许慎《说文解字·日部》释“昌”为“美言”,《段注》认同许说,将“美言”作为“昌”的本义,强调“昌”从“曰”,并认为许慎“一曰,日光也”的说法可能源于魏晋人妄增许昌之说。但结合字源演化、文献用例考辨发现,“昌”字上部不变、下部多变,“昌”字“从日从口”不从“曰”,且传世文献中无“昌”释“言”义之例证,其本义应为“日光亮时的大喊声”,由此引申出“明亮”“光明”义,进而衍生出“昌盛”“正当”“兴旺”“壮大”“美好”等其他意义。许慎、段玉裁训“昌”本义为“美言”,余义为“日光”的观点恐有失偏颇。

Xu Shen's“The Radical of Ri(日)”in Origin of Chinese Characters interprets the word“chang”(昌)as“beautiful language”(美言).Duan Yucai in his Annotation to Origin of Chinese Characters agrees with Xu Shen􀆳s view.He also takes“beautiful language”(美言)as the original meaning of the word“chang”(昌),emphasizes that the word“chang”(昌)is derived from the word“yue”(曰),and considers that Xu Shen's view that“yue”(曰)can also be interpreted as“sunlight”(日光)may be an absurd amplification due to people in Wei and Jin dynasties catered to the capital city Xu Chang.However,combined with the evolution of the character source and use cases in the literature,it is found that the upper radical of the word“chang”(昌)remains unchanged,but the radical below is changeable.The word“chang”(昌)should be derived from the radical“ri”(日)or the radical“kou”(口),rather than the radical“yue”(曰).Also,there is no case of“chang”(昌)interpreted as“yan”(言)in the existing literature.Its original meaning should be“the shout when the sun shines”,which extends the meaning of“brightness”and then derives other meanings such as prosperity,rightful,strengthening,beautiful and so on.The view of Xu Shen and Duan Yucai that“chang”(昌)means“beautiful words”or“sunlight”may be inappropriate.