汉语方言韵律与节奏类型学研究述评与思考

Review of and Reflection on Typological Research on Prosody and Rhythm of Chinese Dialects

言语韵律与节奏是语流在最高层面上的体现,是人类在语言交流、相互理解中不可或缺的一环。由于它涉及的韵律层级较多,容易受到各种语言或非语言因素的影响,因此,一直是语言学领域的研究难点,对于具有复杂声调系统的汉语方言来说,更是如此。通过梳理近十几年来国内外有关韵律与节奏类型学的理论、实证研究,可以看出,目前基于重音的西方韵律类型学系统并不适合描述汉语方言韵律与节奏模式。以普通话为例,提出了较为简洁的以声调为支点的两级核心韵律结构,为今后相关领域研究提供参考。

Speech prosody and rhythm reflect speech flow at its highest level.They constitute an indispensible link in human language exchange and mutual understanding.However,their involvement in multiple prosodic hierarchies subjects them to various linguistic and non-linguistic influences,hence having long been considered as a difficult research area in linguistics.It is especially true when it comes to Chinese dialects with complicated tone systems.The current paper reviews theoretical and experimental research on prosody and rhythm over decades and across home and abroad.In doing so,it claims that the current stress based prosodic system from the West is not suited for describing prosodic and rhythmic patterns of Chinese dialects,and therefore it uses Mandarin Chinese as example to propose a relatively simple two-layer core prosodic structure pivoting on tone.This proposal serves as a reference point for future research in the relevant area.