Readers 读者
SUCH ERRORS COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED: Review of Old Chinese: A New Reconstruction. By William H. Baxter and Laurent Sagart.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014. Pp. x, 431. ISBN 9780199945375.
這樣的錯誤不該有
—評 Old Chinese: A New Reconstruction (上古音: 構擬新論)
William H. Baxter (白一平), Laurent Sagart (沙加爾) 著
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014. x, 431頁. ISBN 9780199945375
Ho Dah-an 何大安
Abstract 摘要
This article reviews the newly published Old Chinese: A New Reconstruction by Baxter and Sagart from three perspectives: attitude toward languages, methodology and types of evidence. This book contains many defects that cannot be overlooked and some suggestions are given regarding how to prevent these defects. This review consists of six sections and examines the following problems: 1) One rhyme group with many vowels, 2) Retention of old features in the Xiaoyi dialect, 3) Using phonetic transliteration to prove final coda, 4) 午 and 五 not homophonous, 5) Calling a horse a deer and 6) “A mountain is a river bank.” After careful investigation, we regret to say that many of the errors from this new book could have been avoided. These errors reflect the outdated concepts of the authors and the insufficiency of their basic training. In summary this monograph is rather disappointing.
Keywords 關鍵詞
Old Chinese 上古漢語 Reconstruction 構擬 Rhyme groups 韻部 Final coda 韻尾 Loanwords 借詞