From Colloquialism to Metaphorical Expression: A Diachronic Study of Chinese Dialect Words Based on Chán Buddhist Literature
Chán Buddhist literature is not only an important source for the study of religious thought during the Chinese late medieval and early modern periods, but also constitutes a treasure trove for investigating the development of the colloquial language of the respective periods, both in terms of semant...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Religions |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/10/900 |
| _version_ | 1797470138529742848 |
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| author | Chen Zeng Christoph Anderl |
| author_facet | Chen Zeng Christoph Anderl |
| author_sort | Chen Zeng |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Chán Buddhist literature is not only an important source for the study of religious thought during the Chinese late medieval and early modern periods, but also constitutes a treasure trove for investigating the development of the colloquial language of the respective periods, both in terms of semantics and syntactic constructions. Since the editors of Chán Buddhist literature—such as the <i>Recorded Saying</i> and <i>Transmission of the Lamp</i> texts—claimed to convey the “living words” of the patriarchs and masters, numerous vernacularisms were integrated in the dialogue sections of the texts, and the use of traditional Buddhist terminology was often reduced to a minimum. Frequently, Chán Buddhist texts are among the earliest sources in which these colloquialisms surfaced. In this paper, we focus on expressions which derive from the colloquial language of the late Táng and Sòng periods, and which were integrated in Chán Buddhist literature, often assuming a particular metaphorical meaning in the rhetorical structure of the texts. We reconstruct their original meaning, their use in the Chán texts, as well as their further development in Sinitic languages and dialects. Besides contributing to a better understanding of the vocabulary used in the enigmatic language of Chán literature and the metaphorical mapping of originally colloquial expressions in a religious context, in this preliminary study, we also hope to contribute to a better understanding of the development of semantic items from the perspective of historical linguistics, their complex paths of metaphorical extensions, as well as their usage in local linguistic contexts. In addition, the case studies also illustrate the transformative force of religion on the development of language, and the complex interplay between religious ideas and linguistic expression. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T19:32:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3f965443660c447588518649d2800308 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T19:32:29Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj.art-3f965443660c447588518649d28003082023-11-24T02:16:03ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442022-09-01131090010.3390/rel13100900From Colloquialism to Metaphorical Expression: A Diachronic Study of Chinese Dialect Words Based on Chán Buddhist LiteratureChen Zeng0Christoph Anderl1The College of Literature and Journalism, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, ChinaDepartment of Languages and Cultures, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, BelgiumChán Buddhist literature is not only an important source for the study of religious thought during the Chinese late medieval and early modern periods, but also constitutes a treasure trove for investigating the development of the colloquial language of the respective periods, both in terms of semantics and syntactic constructions. Since the editors of Chán Buddhist literature—such as the <i>Recorded Saying</i> and <i>Transmission of the Lamp</i> texts—claimed to convey the “living words” of the patriarchs and masters, numerous vernacularisms were integrated in the dialogue sections of the texts, and the use of traditional Buddhist terminology was often reduced to a minimum. Frequently, Chán Buddhist texts are among the earliest sources in which these colloquialisms surfaced. In this paper, we focus on expressions which derive from the colloquial language of the late Táng and Sòng periods, and which were integrated in Chán Buddhist literature, often assuming a particular metaphorical meaning in the rhetorical structure of the texts. We reconstruct their original meaning, their use in the Chán texts, as well as their further development in Sinitic languages and dialects. Besides contributing to a better understanding of the vocabulary used in the enigmatic language of Chán literature and the metaphorical mapping of originally colloquial expressions in a religious context, in this preliminary study, we also hope to contribute to a better understanding of the development of semantic items from the perspective of historical linguistics, their complex paths of metaphorical extensions, as well as their usage in local linguistic contexts. In addition, the case studies also illustrate the transformative force of religion on the development of language, and the complex interplay between religious ideas and linguistic expression.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/10/900Chan Buddhismmetaphorical expressionsChinese dialect wordsChan Buddhist literature of the Song DynastyBuddhism and linguisticsChinese historical linguistics |
| spellingShingle | Chen Zeng Christoph Anderl From Colloquialism to Metaphorical Expression: A Diachronic Study of Chinese Dialect Words Based on Chán Buddhist Literature Religions Chan Buddhism metaphorical expressions Chinese dialect words Chan Buddhist literature of the Song Dynasty Buddhism and linguistics Chinese historical linguistics |
| title | From Colloquialism to Metaphorical Expression: A Diachronic Study of Chinese Dialect Words Based on Chán Buddhist Literature |
| title_full | From Colloquialism to Metaphorical Expression: A Diachronic Study of Chinese Dialect Words Based on Chán Buddhist Literature |
| title_fullStr | From Colloquialism to Metaphorical Expression: A Diachronic Study of Chinese Dialect Words Based on Chán Buddhist Literature |
| title_full_unstemmed | From Colloquialism to Metaphorical Expression: A Diachronic Study of Chinese Dialect Words Based on Chán Buddhist Literature |
| title_short | From Colloquialism to Metaphorical Expression: A Diachronic Study of Chinese Dialect Words Based on Chán Buddhist Literature |
| title_sort | from colloquialism to metaphorical expression a diachronic study of chinese dialect words based on chan buddhist literature |
| topic | Chan Buddhism metaphorical expressions Chinese dialect words Chan Buddhist literature of the Song Dynasty Buddhism and linguistics Chinese historical linguistics |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/10/900 |
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