The Systematic Research Of Color Words In Main Dictionaries Throughout Ages

Words about colors are human's visual identification to a further recognition of the world on the base of identify all things, thus they followed them into the color terms of each nation's cultural history of mankind, and gradually formed a relatively fixed, complete and regular system. Thus in the study of language field, they draw the attention of scholars home and abroad. Our previous study of those words focus mostly on the angle of the voice, grammar, culture, and foreign language contrast and so on, the study of ontology of vocabulary about color is rare. Though in terms of research on those words, scholars' study has also failed to break through the range of the basic color words or a certain category of color words. Especially for the formation of the ancient Chinese system of color vocabulary with a comprehensive description of which lasted, semantic field to establish, Yi-term changes in the division and class venue, evolution of features such as exploration of causes and laws, all of them looked pale and cramped. According to the documents before "Shuo Wen Jie Zi", some were described in details,some simply outlined the basic contours, and others elaborated on the original neglect rheological, materials are also limited and rarely involved in the evolution of the color of the words system after the Han Dynasty, and so on, then sequence of integration has always been the lack of consistent research so that we are not clear about development route of words from ancient time to modern society. In addition, the research about the reasons and features for the evolution of color terms is not enough in depth and system.In this paper, the auther selects the Oracle dictionary, Clementi Dictionary"Explanation", "Jade Articles", "Type Articles", "Kangxi Dictionary", which are roughly apart from the same age, in order to regard as a model for each language corpus, after sorting out all the color words the auther classifies and merges the materials. Then according to the other historical documents of the corresponding phase, the auther divides into six periods, and do the comprehensive multi-angle observations color words which contain the entire ancient Chinese words and the duration of the system, in order to describe a development of complete and thorough ancient Chinese vocabulary. This can avoid the limit to the basic color words of a certain historical period or a certain type of color words on the breadth of the material collection, material use and seminars. The author initially reconstructs lexeme system of color words meaning during those six periods to direct at the generation, the development and disappearance of color words. That has a complemental and detailed influence to the establishment of the color sub-field which is a branch of ancient Chinese general Semantic field and promote gradual in-depth study of color words. At the same time this paper studies evolutionary process of color words in the more subtle manner specific to each type of the source of each color word generation, development and disappearance of each word of each color, and systematically clears out development of the color words from the Oracle to the "Kangxi Dictionary". The previous studies didn't explore the disappearance of color words,which I first attempt to analyze. On this basis, the author discusses the phase and the overall developmental characteristics of the color words in six periods on the base of accurate statistics.Final thesis exposits the external and internal causes that the evolution of color words completely and systematically from the social production, cognitive patterns, voice, meaning, rhetoric, creating characters. The paper studies color words synchronic and diachronic locus in generating development, increase or decrease of the number, the systemetic structure, the derive of meaning. This is regarded as a new attempt in the train of thought, and to a certain extent, it provides an methodological evaluation for the study of the history of words and vocabulary.The whole text is divided into seven parts:introduction, an overview of the reasons of selection of the topic, development of the study, materials and analysis methods of study, as well as the purpose and significance of study. The first chapter sorts out the vocabulary of color coming from the six major periods, according to the time and meaning of words, using the dictionaries of different dynasties (Mainly "Jiaguwen Dictionary", "Jin wen dictionary," "Er Ya," "shuo wen," "Yu Pian", "Guang Ya", "Lei Pian, "Guang Yun", "Long Kan Shou Jian", "Kangxi Dictionary"). Besides, it also gives some works of the same time to verify, replenish and explain the ideas. Chapter II uses modern semantic theory to establish the color word meaning field system of six periods, under the analysis of meaning of different kinds of words. And mark the words' appearance, disappearance and change in each period, furthermore analyze the whole development trends of color word system. Chapterâ…¢explores the development rules of color words' production, disappearance and changes with their developing trend. Chapter IV focuses on the developing features of color words and their changes with the development of history, from the point view of statistics and evolution. Chapter V combines the ancient Chinese culture development with cognitive development of human thinking to explore the reasons according to social culture and language itself, under the guide of the vocabulary, meaning, sound, rhetorical features and other literary theories. The summary part concludes the whole paper and explain the conclusion and the value of the thesis and make some forward-looking research questions and we hope to continue the study.