“三十六岛”观念史:国人对周边海域地理认知变迁管窥

A History of the Idea of“36 Islands”:The Chinese View of the Surrounding Oceanic Regions and Their Development

在关于中国周边海域地理状况的历史文献中,“三十六岛”的说法十分常见,有时用以统称海外诸国,有时候又用来称呼我国的澎湖列岛,或者日本列岛、琉球群岛。梳理发现,“海外三十六岛”之说产生于宋代,脱胎于古典传说“海外三十六国”,并在元、明、清相继衍生出“澎湖三十六岛”“日本三十六岛”“琉球三十六岛”三种说法。这些说法的出现不仅是文献传抄过程中鲁鱼亥豕的结果,更有其深刻的历史背景。宋元时期海外贸易兴盛和航海技术发展,明清时期中日纠葛和中琉往来,以及西方近代地理知识和测绘技术的传入,无不塑造和改写了“三十六岛”的故事。“三十六岛”的观念变迁反映了国人对周边海域地理的认知范式在近世以来逐渐由神话想象转变为实证导向,并最终与现代地理科学实现接轨的过程。

The term“36 islands”appeared frequently in the Chinese historical documents about the geography of China’s surrounding oceanic regions.This term could be used as a general concept for overseas countries.It was also used to refer in particular to Penghu Islands,Japanese Islands,or Ryukyu Islands.A careful examination of the historical texts shows that the notion of“36 islands of overseas”emerged during the Song dynasty but its origins can be traced back to the ancient legend of“36 overseas countries”.Later during the Yuan,Ming,and Qing dynasties,other derivative sayings such as the“36 islands of Penghu”,the“36 islands of Japan”and the“36 islands of Ryukyu”appeared.The multiplication of these terms was more than the result of reckless transcription of manuscripts.It was a product of profound historical transformation.This paper highlights the multiple factors in the rewriting of the story of“36 islands”:The rise of maritime trades and the advance of navigation technologies in Song and Yuan eras,the Sino-Japanese conflicts,and the China-Ryukyu exchanges in the Ming and Qing era,as well as the introduction of the western geographical knowledge and mapping techniques.The changing concept of the“36 islands”reflects the critical changes in the Chinese understanding of the surrounding oceanic regions that shifted from myth to empirical knowledge,and eventually made steps towards modern geographical science.