是，形语字的形符，由于子形显示字义常有种种局限、·般只能 表示字义所属的·个大类，而并不等上字义，如“梨”的形符 汉 “木”，只表示梨树属于木本植物：形声宁的声符，则丙语音的山 字 今演变、今大读来已饲旬字苦：生了一定的距离，如“江”的声 的 符“工”、并不与“”同音。 世 界 三、汉字构词知识 汉 作为汉语的书面形式，汉字记录汉语的方式古今并不致。 字 具休来说，文字单位对应的诘言单位古代主要是词，现代主要是 概 词素。之所以会发生这种变化，是因为汉语词孔在自身的发展 论 演变中，有一种双音化的趋问。古汉语问汇是以单音节为土的， 时代越早，单音词的比重越大。付随着时代的推移，汉语中的单 音节词逐渐被双音节词所取代，于是汉宇所记录的语言单位也 就随之由主要为词转化成主要为诃索。例如，“老虎”这个词，古 汉语只说成“虎”，字与词是完全对应的；但在现代汉语中，古汉 语的“虎”这个词变成了双音词“老虎”，“虎”字就只能对应“老 虎”的词素“虎”了。 这种情况表明，学汉字对于我们提高汉语水平具有重要的 意义。中于词是语言组织能够独立运用的基本单位，所以人们 学习语言往往只注重了解词的意义。但是在现代汉语中，词的意 义往往是建立在问素一宇的意义的基础之上的，所以学习汉字 坷以帮助我更深刻地理解词的意义，从而有效地提高汉语水平。 四、汉字书写规则 汉字书写规则包含两个方，·是兑个文字抄时的笔顺 规恻是成篇义字书写时的文字排列规则。笔顺规则，是以扔 与的便捷高效为基础而形成的，其主要内容为先左后右，先上后 下，这种规则白古以来使是此也与其他文宁的写原则州 炎似，不必作太多的说明，汉字的文子排列规则.就现代米看
⊙ 也与一般其他种类的文字相同，即同行中的字序是从左到右·行 汉 序则是从上到下。但就汉字的历史耐言，这种排列规则定型很 字 晚、只有儿【年的力史，而传统的文字排列规则却是字序从.上到 的 下形成竖行，行序则是自右到左。这种传统的文字排列规则，实 世 乐 际上.与中国占代的书写材料一竹简有关。竹简是一种长条形 的竹片，用韦（熟皮条）将它们竖向编起来，便成了简册。在这样 汉 的书写材料上书写文字，文字排列最方便的选择便是字序从上 到下、行序从右至左了。 概 论 &
汉 字 的 A brief history of Chinese characters 世 界 Being a textbook-like book about Chinese characters,this 汉 book will inevitably involve some special knowledge and tech- 字 nical terms on Chinese philology (characicrology),which are 将 new to the readers.Following is a very brief introduction to the Chinese characters. A.The history of Chinese characters Chinese characters are one of the oidest writings of the world,though it is still a matter under discussion that how long its exact history is.But as far as we know,the oracle bone inscriptions of late Shang (Yin)dynasty (about 14h. 1I'h century BC)are a kind of mature and systematic writing. This shows that Chinese characters have a history of no less than 3.300 years. ()racle bone inscriptions() Oracle bone inscriptions were incised on turtle shells or animal bones.Most of them were the records of divination of the royal families of Yin dynasty.The rulers of Yin were very superstitious.They divined on almost everything,big or small,to decide whether there would he good luck or bad luck awaiting them.The turtle shells and animal bones were the materials in divination.The procedure of divining was like this:first a series of hollow would be bored into the back of 9
⊙ the shells or bones;then fire was applied to the hollows;thus 汉 on the front of the shells or hones would produce cracks upon 字 heating.Then the diviner would interpret the future according 的 to the shape of the cracks.Later the diviners would incise on 世 the shells or bones the reason,result and verification of the 界 divination.These inscriptions are known as oracle bonc in- 汉 scriptions.Generally speaking,oracle bone inscriptions are 字 vivid depictions of the objects and have the characteristic of the 概 pictogram.As they were inciscd on the shells,the strokes 论 were thin and straight. Bronze inscriptions(金文) Besides oracle bone inscriptions,the men of Yin also practiced inseriptions on bronzewares.Bronze was call""in remote times,that is why bronze inscriptions were named" "Though Yin dynasty saw the budding of bronze engrav- ing.the bronze inscriptions were booming in Zhou dynasty when oracle bone inscriptions were fading out.Posterior to Warring States period,with the fading out of bronzewares as ritual utensils,the hronze inscriptions died away.In Yin and early Western Zhou dynasties,the hronze inscriptions were quite picture-like,with curving strokes and varying sizcs and even some block shapes.This is related to the way of writing. Posterior to the middle Western Zhou dynasty,the block shapes disappeared and the'strokes were also siraightened.In Spring and Autumn period,the bronze inscriptions had local variants.To Warring States period,tbe writings were usually engraved directly on bronze vessels,so the strokes of this peri- od were thin and cursive. 10 Small seal script(小篆)
When Emperor Shihuang of Qin dynasty united China,he made the characters of Qin.small seal script,the standard of 汉 the whole country and abolished other different character sys- 字 tems of other six states.Small seal seript broke away from 的 pictographic forms and minimized the pictorial feature.The 世 scal characters were more symmctrical and regular in form. The strokes were also identical in width. 汉 ()fficial script(隶书) 学 In Yin and Zhou dynasties,writing was the privilege of 概 the ruling class.From the period of Warring States on,writ- 论 ing was widely used by many lowly people.They hoped to write in a more efficient way.So a convenient way of writ- ing-official script-was budding.In Han dynasty,official script became mature.The change from small seal script to of- ficial script was known as“隶变”(official change),which was considered the most important transitional phase between ancient and modern writings.This is hecause official script made a full break with the pictographic nature of the character composition and turn into a purely symbolic writing system. The curving strokes became level and straight.The stroke varied in width and often ended in unculation. Regular script(楷书) Official seript,in nature,is the cursive form of ancient writing.But when it became the standard in Han dynasty.of- ficial script had its own cursive form.This cursive form strengthened the interrclations among strokes and eliminated the undulation in horizontal strokes.Upon natural selection, this cursive form was regularized into a new standard in Wei and Jin dynasties--that is the regular script we now use. 11