Phonetic Research On Shanghai Dialect Transcribed By Kana In Five Textbooks In Meiji Period

In the history of modern China,Shanghai served as a window for the world to have a better knowledge of China,especially for modern Japan during its Meiji period.Out of the commercial and military intention,the teaching and learning of Shanghai dialect substantially became the pressing demand for the Japanese settling in Shanghai.Based on five Shanghai dialect textbooks collected in Archives of Chinese Textbooks Compiled by Japanese Scholars in Edo and Meiji Period edited by professor Li Wuwei,we have digged out the mechanism of the phonetic notations of Shanghai dialect by Kana,also phonological features of Shanghai dialect within the scope of the Kana system.Phonetic research based on these five textbooks is a combination of researches on the phonetic history of Chinese dialects under East Asia linguistics,the history of Japanese Chinese education in Meiji period as well as the history of international communication of Chinese.These five textbooks not only serve as new materials which present unprecedented opportunities of transferring our academic perspectives for Chinese historical linguistic research,but also meet the present demand to promote the overseas sinological study.Even though we have made many textual researches on Chinese textbooks compiled by Japanese scholars in Meiji period,the immature situation of such researches has not been fundamentally changed in that our researches,especially on the basic issues,are very superficial and extensive,and granted that considerable achievements have been made.One is the linguistic ontology,the mechanism of phonetic notation by Kana and its rule of phonetic transcription in Meiji period are not so clear yet;the other is research methodology,the basic methodology of diachronic comparative linguistic research is ignored,especially the consistency of phonetic transcription,namely research objects and contrasted targets don't share the same time level.The main research approach we adopt is based on Chinese dialect research method:In chapter three,we have digged out the mechanism of phonetic notation of Shanghai dialect by Kana according to the homonyms table transcribed by Kana in three Shanghai dialect textbooks;In chapter four,we have found the rule of phonetic transcription by Kana and the phonological features of Shanghai dialect within the scope of the Kana system by contrasting with the homonyms table of Shanghai Vernacular English-Chinese Dictionary by D.H.Davis and J.A.Silsby in 1900 transcribed by IPA by professor Qian Nairong;In chapter five,we have summarized the mechanism of tonal notation and tonal sandhi according to two textbooks compiled by Obata Masafumi:Shanghai Dialect for Businessman and Guide of Shanghai Dielect.