QUANTITATIVE STUDIES IN MIN DIALECTS

閩方言計量研究

鄭錦金(Chin-Chuan Cheng)

《Journal of Chinese Linguistics Monograph Series》 14期 (1999/08) Pp. 229-246

摘要

A number of dialects are spoken in Fujian Province. Chen and Li (1983) and Li and Chen (1985) have chosen a few hundred morphemes, words, and phrases for comparison to establish a grouping for the 18 localities of Fuzhou, Gutian, Ningde, Zhouning, Fuding, Putian, Xiamen, Quanzhou, Yongchun, Zhangzhou, Longyan, Datian, Youxi, Yongan, Shaxian, Jian'ou, Jianyang, and Songxi. Once they have established the five subgroups of Eastern Min, Pu-Xian, Southern Min, Central Min, and Northern Min they have no formal means to express the inter-group distance except to reiterate the criteria for classification. This inability to express the degrees of closeness among related dialects is a weakness of the traditional language classification. In this paper two methods for quantification are discussed with respect to the dialects of the 18 localities. The first one deals with calculation of correlation. Utilizing the data given in Li and Chen (1985), Lu (1986) computed the correlation coefficients on the basis of sharing or lack of phonological and lexical-syntactic characteristics. A cluster analysis of the coefficients has yielded an affinity tree that is shown on a numerical scale ranging from 0.0 to 1.0, thus providing a way to express degrees of relatedness of these localities. The second method involves the calculation of dialect mutual intelligibility. The method proposed in Cheng (1992, 1994a, 1996) was used to derive the degrees of mutual intelligibility among these 18 localities. It first established sound correspondence patterns in the calculation process. The patterns that cover more morphemes can be thought of as general rules and should be assigned higher values than those covering fewer items. The syllable initials, medials, vowels, endings, and tones of all the items of the established patterns were given some values according to a weight scale established with this principle. The indices of Mutual intelligibility were then derived from these values. They provided a basis for establishing a grouping. The grouping looks much like what Li and Chen have established. But now we have a way to express dialect distance on a numerical scale.

並列摘要

福建省內方言多，陳章太、李如龍（1983）以及李如龍、陳章太（1985）選取數百個單字、詞語和詞組來排比，建立福州、古田、寧德、周寧、福鼎、蒲田、廈門、泉州、永春、漳州、龍岩、大田、尤溪、永安、沙縣、建甌、建陽、松溪等18個地點的分區。閩東、蒲仙、閩南、閩中以及閩北五類方言片一旦建立起來，其間的關係和距離卻沒法表達，最多只能重復分類的基準來說明其分合。不能表達相關方言之間的關係程度是傳統的語言分類法的缺點。本文以這18個方言點來討論兩個計量方法。第一個方法是相關系數的計算，陸致極（1986）利用李如龍、陳章太（1985）的語料以音韻和詞匯及語法的差異算出方言點之間的相關系數，接著把相關系數用聚類分析畫出系屬樹形圖，方言點之間的關係就在0.0到1.0的尺度上顯示出來。第二個方法是方言溝通度的計算，用鄭錦全（Cheng 1992, 1994a, 1996）提出的方法算出這18個方言點間的溝通度。計算程序是先建立語音的對當類型，類型所包括的字多的話就形成一般性的規則，因而給予比少數字的類型高的數值。每個類型的字的聲母、介音、元音、韻尾和聲調都以根據這個原則建立的加權指數算出數值，溝通度就從這些數目演算出來。這18個方言點兩兩之間的溝通度就用來決定方言分區，所得的分區和李如龍、陳章太所提出的大致相同，但是我們能夠在數值尺度上表達方言之間的距離。