探究地名用字“屿”

Exploring the Chinese Character“Yu”in Place Names

考察地名用字“屿”的词义演变和地理分布有重要发现。梳理前人考释,“岛”宜释为“海中山”,“屿”宜释为“海中洲”。运用地理学工具统计发现“屿”的现代分布区域与闽语区基本重合。古代文献用“须”为“屿”记音,海外地图将“屿”记录为su,这与我国闽方言“屿”的读音[su]是一致的。研究证明,钓鱼岛名称主要经历了“钓鱼屿”“钓鱼台”到“钓鱼岛”的转变,历史文献资料、地图史料均可证明钓鱼屿自古以来都是中国的领土。

An important discovery has been made by examining the evolution of the meaning and geographical distribution of the Chinese character“Yu”used in place names.By reviewing the interpretations of previous researchers,“Dao”should be interpreted as“sea mountain”while“Yu”as“sea island”.The results of the statistics by using geographical tools indicate that the modern distribution of“Yu”mostly coincides with the area where Min dialect is spoken.In ancient documents,the sound of“Yu”was recorded as“Xu”and in foreign maps,it was recorded as[su],which is consistent with the pronunciation of“Yu”in Min dialect[su]in China.The study proves that the name of Diaoyu Island experiences the shift from“Diaoyuyu”,“Diaoyutai”to“Diaoyudao”.Documentary evidence and historical maps both prove that Diaoyu Island has been a territory of China since ancient times.