The formation and development of ancient Mandarin, the differences between the official dialects of different dynasties and generations
Although ancient China was mainly agricultural, and the special way of life and production required people to live in a small area, and the dialect was sufficient to meet the needs of weekday communication, it was used for merchants, scholars, and other people who commuted in different places"Ten miles apart"language is obviously more difficult. In order to facilitate communication, there was a kind of called at that time"Yayan"or"Mandarin"but this standard is subject to constant change due to the exchange of power and capital, population movements, and other factors.
Let's briefly recap"Official language"(Yahoo language).
Xia, Shang and Zhou periods Luoyang Yaji.
Luoyang Yayan, formerly known as the Heluo dialect or today's Luoyang dialect, has a traditional ancient Chinese phonetic system and is generally considered to be the oldest lingua franca in China.
In fact, the pronunciation of Yayan before the Zhou Dynasty is no longer verifiable, but it is said that the Xia Dynasty was founded in the Luoyang area of Henan, and the Shang Dynasty was founded in the Central Plains region centered on Luoyang. Therefore, it is generally believed that the standard Yayan of the Xia and Shang dynasties must have been based on the spoken language of the Luoyang region, and therefore it is believed that the standard pronunciation of Mandarin in the Xia and Shang dynasties must have been based on the ancient playful language (today's Luoyang dialect).
The Zhou Dynasty originated in the northwest, so in the process of the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, part of the pronunciation of the ancient Qiang language was incorporated into the Zhou language. Therefore, the official language of the Zhou Dynasty should be based on the Heluo dialect, a new type of language that incorporates the ancient Qiang language, that is, the Western Zhou Yayan, which spread throughout the country when Zhou Tianzi divided the world. However, after King Ping of Zhou moved his capital to Luoyi in 770 BC, the Luoyi oracle bone inscription gradually became the basis for the entire Eastern Zhou Dynasty.
Two Han Dynasty, Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties: Luoyang Yayin (Jinling Yayin).
The standard language of the Qin Dynasty is also not verifiable, and it is generally believed that the ancient Guanzhong dialect prevailed at that time. According to the "Li Xi Shangshu", the grammar system at this time was relatively complete, and the basic grammar of ancient classical Chinese had been formed. The implementation of Qin Shi Huang's "Decree on the Unification of Writing" was also later"Mandarin"The foundation of the grammatical system was laid.
The official language of the Han Dynasty inherited the Yayan of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, and was based on the Heluo dialect"Orthophony"、"Yayan"The standard language of the Han Dynasty, also known as"Colleagueric"。
After the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cao Wei, Western Jin and Northern Wei successively established their capitals in Luoyang, inheriting the language of the Han Dynasty and adopting the elegant Luoyang dialect as the Chinese language.
However, due to the relationship between the Eastern Wu and the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the Southern Dynasties language family also developed rapidly during this period. After the Eastern Jin Dynasty built the capital Jiankang, the Luo language and the Wu language were fused to form the Jinling Yayan, also known as the five words and Nanjing dialect, which was used in the Southern and Northern Dynasties and basically used in Luoyang Yayan during the Northern Dynasties.
Sui, Tang and Song: The official voice of Chang'an.
When the Sui Dynasty unified the whole country, to"Jinling Yayin"with"Luoyang Yayin"On the basis, Chang'an Guanyin was unified and formed, also known as Qin Yin, and Lu Fayan and others compiled it into Khitan rhyme.
After the fall of the Sui Dynasty and the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, the Tang rhyme based on the Book of Sui - Che Yun gradually evolved into the standard pronunciation of the Tang Dynasty, and the Tang rhyme must also be used in the imperial examination.
After the Song Dynasty, the official pronunciation of Chinese characters was based on Tang rhyme and Cantonese rhyme. During the Southern Song Dynasty, after the fall of the Northern Song Dynasty, Liu Yuan created Pingshui Yun on the basis of Guangyun.
From the Sui Dynasty to the Sui Dynasty, although the specific pronunciation of each dynasty is different, it is basically in the same line, with the official pronunciation of Chang'an or Qin as the mainstay. After the fall of the Northern Song Dynasty, the official pronunciation of Chang'an spread southward as Jianyang moved southward as a whole.
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, Nanjing dialect was the official language, and Beijing dialect was the official language.
After the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty, the rulers of the Yuan Dynasty basically did not use Chinese much, but the official language was still mainly Mongolian, so many official translations were produced. However, the Chinese language of the Yuan Dynasty was still influenced by the Mongolian language, and its biggest feature was the absence of the first consonant, which formed a unique one"Mostly Chinese"。
After the Ming Dynasty,"Mandarin"The term began to be officially replaced"Yahua"with"As the saying goes"。Zhu Yuanzhang was formed because of the Tang style north of the Yangtze River, Song Yun, the correct mention of the Central Plains Yayu by the Minister of Ling Yin and the imperial court, and the establishment of the capital of Nanjing in the Ming Dynasty"Jinling Ya language"The connection with the Old Ya language of the Central Plains, will"Nanjing Mandarin"After the merger and the Yongle Emperor moved the capital to Beijing, due to the large population in the north"Nanjing Mandarin"It became"Mandarin"，"Mandarin"etc,"Nanjing Mandarin"It became"Mandarin"，"Mandarin"etc., due to the large population of the north,"Nanjing Mandarin"It became"Mandarin"，"Mandarin"etc,"Nanjing Mandarin"It became"Mandarin"，"Mandarin"etc,After the Yongle Emperor moved the capital to Beijing, due to the large number of people moving north,"Nanjing Mandarin"It also moved north and became the basis of the Beijing dialect.
In the early years of the Qing Dynasty,"Nanjing Mandarin"It was still the main language, and at that time there was a very strange phenomenon, that is, it was spoken in the imperial city"Nanjing Mandarin", speaking the Beijing dialect outside the imperial city. It was not until the establishment of the Zhengyin Pavilion during the Yongzheng period (1728) that the official language became"Beijing Mandarin", ie"Nanjing Mandarin"Fusion with the Beijing dialect.
In conclusion, the results of the study show that although the official language changes with the change of dynasties and the migration of populations, it is still not difficult to trace the history of its development.