從支謙譯經語言論三國時代複音節的動詞變化=Variation in Dual-Syllabic Verbs of Three Kingdom Period (A.D.220-280): A Study Based on Zhi Qian’s Buddhist Scripture Translation
This thesis is conducted based on the translated Buddhist scriptures of Three Kingdom Period (A.D.220-280). From these translated Buddhist scriptures, we can see that dual-syllabic verbs have become a mainstream in contemporary literatures, providing researchers with several evolution signs to study the entire language transformation from monosyllabic verbs in Old Chinese to dual-syllabic verbs in Middle Chinese. Since verb is the most fundamental grammatical category in language expression, this thesis mainly focuses on the studies of verb composition. From these compound verbs, we are provided with ample opportunities to study the combinations, structures and rules for monosyllabic verbs, as well as how these verbs are combined to generate new meanings. All these subjects are worth our further analysis and observations to locate the foundation and regulations for verb combination and entire language evolution. Subject matters in this thesis can be broken down into three parts. The first part focuses on the development of the phrase “Verb + 著 (pinyin: zhe)”. The second part focuses on the combination of the verb “行 (pinyin: xing)” with other verbs to form new phrases, such as “行見、行住、行亂 (pinyin: xing-jian, xing-zhu, and xing-luan)”. “行” is a verb with strong word composition power. Due to its original meaning, this verb can be utilized to create “lenition”, which softens the entire phrase. Usually, “行” is placed right before other verb to emphasize that the latter is indeed a verb. The third part focuses on the development of the phrase “Verb +上 (pinyin: shang) / Verb + 下 (pinyin: xia)”. These are the most prominent features in the verb compositions of Three Kingdom Period. Since Three Kingdom Period is a tipping point where Chinese literatures transforms from Old Chinese to Middle Chinese, while verbs remain the core issue in grammatical rules, this thesis focuses on the contemporary language transformation through analyzing verb compositions in Buddhist scriptures translated by Zhi Qian.
