中古以来的南北方言试说

On the Southern and Northern Chinese Dialects Since Ancient Times

汉语有方言乃自古而然。但重视南北之别,从现有的文献来看,却是从中古开始的。魏晋以来颜之推等诸家多有论及南北差异,从一个侧面反映出汉语方言的南北演变大势。中古以来的南北演变在现代方言中留下痕迹,如"大"字读音的差异,止摄开口齿音字的不同分布以及同义词"下"与"落"应用搭配的从北而南此消彼长,都反映出中古以来汉语南北演变的痕迹。

The differences among Chinese dialects can be traced back to the remote ages, however, they have been much valued since the ancient times according to documents available now. Since the Wei Dynasty and the Jin Dynasty, many scholars like Yan Zhitui have often discussed the dialectal varieties between the north and the south, which have reflected the main trends in the northern and southern Chinese dialects from an indirect source. The traces of the shift can be found in modern Chinese dialects: such as the different pronunciations of the Chinese word'大'; the diverse distribution of open mouth words of apical sibilants like the Chinese word '止摄'; the collocations of the synonyms of the Chinese word'下' as well as the Chinese word'落'.