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Chinese Literature - Shiming

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Shiming 釋名 "Interpreting words"

Literature by A to Z
Literature by time
Literature by theme
Literature by Sibu
This is the first dictionary in China that works with sounds instead with classifiers or meanings. It was compiled by Liu Xi 劉熙 or Liu Zhen 劉珍 at the beginning of the 2nd century AD. The author tries to trace back the meaning of a word/character to a word that is similarly pronounced. He goes so far as to group together even words that have a similar meaning and tries to show that a similar sound eventually leads to a similar meaning, even if the characters are written totally different. This was a common method of Han Dynasty philosphers and commentors. A few examples: "emperor" 帝 (di), exactly pronounced like "careful, attentive" 諦 (di). Other examples are the words for "righteousness, humanity" 仁 and man 人, both pronounced ren, or "friendship" 誼 and "proper, right" 宜, both pronounced yi.
The chapters of the Shiming - showing the trend to the creation of encyclopedias - are:
1. Heaven (1), Earth (2), Mountains (3), Rivers (4), Hills (5), Ways (6), Administration (7), Body (8)
2. Movement (Verbs, 9), Life and Age (10), Parents and Relatives (11), Language (12), Feedings (13), Materials (14), Adornments (15)
3. Clothing (16), Palaces (17), Furniture (18), Writings (19), Canons (20)
4. Objects of daily use (21), Music instruments (22), Military (23), Chariots (24), Boats (24), Diseases (25), Funerals (26)
天,豫,司,袞,冀,以舌腹言之。天,顯也,在上高顯也。
The words tian (Heaven), yu (pleased), si (charged), gun (robe), and ji (hoping) are spoken with the back of the tongue. Heaven tian, is manifest xian, eminent in the utmost height.
青,徐以舌頭言之。天,壇也,坦然高而遠也。
The words qing (bluegreen) and xu (calm) are spoken with the tip of the tongue. Heaven tian, is an altar tan, peacefully high and wide.
日,實也。光明盛實也。月,闕也。滿則闕也。
Sun ri, is ripe and solid shi. It is clear brightness and prosperous ripeness. Moon yue, is deficiency que. Its fullness is a measure for lacking.
光,晃也。晃晃然也。亦言廣也,所照廣遠也。
Brightness guang, is dazzling huang. It is glaring and dazzling. You can also say, it is broad guang, because it radiates broad and wide.
陰,蔭也。氣在內,奧蔭也。陽,揚也。氣在外,發揚也。
Darkness yin, is shady yin. The breath is inside it, in the innermost part of shadow. Sunlight yang, is blazing yang. The breath is outside of it, spreading around.
寒,扞也。扞格也。暑,煮也。熱如煮物也。
Coldness han, is resisting han. It is obstructing measures. Heat shu, is cooking zhu. It is hot as if you were cooking things.
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摘句:力障百川東。攜琴又向東。河源落日東。
Quotations: Separated by force, the hundred rivers flow to the east... Taking the zither and going to the east... At the source of the Yellow river, the sun sets in the east.
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