QūSòng gǔyīn yì 屈宋古音義
Old-phonology and Meaning of Qū Yuán and Sòng Yù by 陳第 (Chén Dì, 1541–1617)
About the work
Chén Dì’s companion-piece to his foundational Máo Shī gǔyīn kǎo KR1j0072 (1606), extending the same Old-phonology methodology to the Chǔcí corpus. Composed Wànlì guǐchǒu (1613) at the Jiāngxīnsì in eastern Ōu (Wēnzhōu). 3 juàn. Coverage: 24 pieces by Qū Yuán (the Lísāo and 23 others, omitting the Tiānwèn); 10 pieces by Sòng Yù (Jiǔbiàn in 9 + Zhāohún); plus 4 pieces from the Wénxuǎn attributed to Sòng Yù (Gāotáng fù, Shénnǚ fù, Fēng fù, Dēngtúzǐ hǎosè fù) — 38 pieces in total. From these, 234 graphs whose Chǔcí rhyme deviates from the modern reading are listed with reconstructed Old reading, each cross-referenced to its parallel in the Máo Shī gǔyīn kǎo — a key piece of methodological self-cohesion (the Chǔcí rhyme-evidence ought to align with the Shī-rhyme evidence; where it does, Chén’s Old-phonology system is confirmed). Format: juàn 1 lists each Old-reading with its běnzhèng (primary text-evidence) only — the pángzhèng (parallel text-evidence) is merged into the entry. juàn 2-3 give running commentary on the 38 Chǔcí pieces, with phonology marked under each rhyming line. The work is the second cornerstone of Chén Dì’s Old-phonology project (after the Máo Shī gǔyīn kǎo) and was therefore catalogued by the Sìkù in xiǎoxué alongside its companion, despite the Chǔcí-corpus content.
Tiyao
The QūSòng gǔyīn yì in 3 juàn. Composed by Chén Dì of the Míng. Chén Dì having composed the Máo Shī gǔyīn kǎo, he then took the Chǔcí — recognising that it stands close to the Shī-makers and that it too preserves Old-phonology evidence — and worked through Qū Yuán’s 25 pieces (less the Tiānwèn: 24 pieces); Sòng Yù’s Jiǔbiàn in 9 + Zhāohún + the four Wénxuǎn pieces (Gāotáng, Shénnǚ, Fēng, Dēngtúzǐ hǎosè); 38 pieces in all. Of these, the 234 graphs whose rhyme departs from the modern reading are each given an Old reading and cross-referenced to the Máo Shī gǔyīn kǎo. The běnzhèng (primary evidence) is listed under each entry; the pángzhèng (parallel evidence) is folded into the single-line entry rather than a separate column — a slight format change from the previous book (juàn 1 alone differs in this way; the earlier book’s structure is fully exposed there). The 1st juàn lists the 234 graphs with Old readings; the 2nd and 3rd juàn present the 38 pieces in full with rhyming-line readings annotated. The book treats Old phonology by reference to Old-period intertextual rhyme-evidence and adds running commentary on the Chǔcí. Catalogued in xiǎoxué — not jíbù — because it forms a unit with the Máo Shī gǔyīn kǎo. Presented Qiánlóng 43 / 7 (1778). General Editors Jì Yún, Lù Xīxióng, Sūn Shìyì; Chief Collator Lù Fèichí.
Abstract
The QūSòng gǔyīn yì (1613) is the Chǔcí extension of Chén Dì’s 陳第 foundational Old-phonology project of 1606. Methodology: 234 Chǔcí graphs whose rhymes deviate from the Guǎngyùn base are given Old readings, with the readings cross-checked against Chén’s earlier Máo Shī gǔyīn kǎo KR1j0072 — so that the Shī-rhyme system and the Chǔcí-rhyme system are mutually corroborating. The work is a milestone in the foundation of Chinese Old-phonology research: alongside the Máo Shī gǔyīn kǎo it represents the first systematic argument that pre-Qín texts encode a coherent phonological system distinct from the Guǎngyùn — eclipsing the xiéyùn paradigm of Wú Yù 吳棫 and Yáng Shèn 楊愼. notBefore = notAfter = 1613 (Chén Dì’s preface dated Wànlì guǐchǒu, 12th-month-eve, at the Jiāngxīnsì in Wēnzhōu).
Translations and research
- Pulleyblank, Edwin G. 1962. The Consonantal System of Old Chinese. — Treats Chén Dì as the founder of modern Old-Chinese phonology.
- Wáng Lì 王力. 1985. Hàn-yǔ yǔ-yīn shǐ. — Standard.
- Hawkes, David. 1985. The Songs of the South: An Anthology of Ancient Chinese Poems by Qu Yuan and Other Poets. Penguin. — Translation of the Chǔ-cí with phonological appendices drawing on Chén Dì.
Other points of interest
Chén Dì’s preface explicitly pairs the QūSòng gǔyīn yì with the Máo Shī gǔyīn kǎo: “I composed this further volume for like-minded readers — not only the QūSòng corpus, but to wing the Máo Shī, so that the world and posterity may believe firmly in Old phonology and not doubt.” The work is one of the most concise statements of Chén’s anti-xiéyùn methodological commitment.