The Explanation of the Vernacular Words in the Dunhuang Liwen〔*〕

Yu Zheng’an

(Literature Institute Xuchang University，Xuchang Henan 461000)

Dunhuang Liwen，unearthed in Mogao Grottoes，mainly focuses on accounting during the reign of Tubo kingdom.It can be divided into three types，namely documents about temples，Yamen(government office in feudal China)and Sheyi(Buddhism society)，among which those about temples are found in the largest quantity，including Zhu Se Ru Po Li(诸色入破历)and Chang Zhu Shi Wu Dian Jian Li(常住什物点检历).Dunhuang Liwen is of great value in politics，economy，culture，folk customs，religions and foreign exchanges，particularly in economy.It is noteworthy that Dunhuang Liwen studied the economic systems and temple economy of the Five Dynasties(907-960)of China，generating abundant productive results which have attracted the attention of economic historians home and abroad.In fact，in terms of language，Dunhuang Liwen features spoken characteristic and vernacular words，thus making it the valuable corpus in the study of ancient Chinese vocabulary.The paper selects five vernacular words to explain so that we can correct some wrong explanations.

Lou Shang(楼上)

1.《归义军衙内酒破历》，p.2629)，“十五日，楼上祭拜酒壹角，北宅酒壹斗……廿七日，楼上镇压酒壹瓮。”

2.(《己未年—辛酉年(899-901)归义军衙内破用纸布历》，p.4640)，“又衙官令狐回君传处分，楼上纳粗布两疋。”

Lou Shang，literally indicating“upstairs”，refers to Gui Yi Jun Khrom Yamen(归义军节度衙门)，a type of government office in feudal China.In Tang Dynasty，when khroms assumed office，Jie Lou(节楼)，a type of storied building，would be built for them to deal with official affairs.Later，Lou Shang is used to refer to Khrom Yamen as a result of metaphor，which can be seen in abundant documents of ancient China，for instance，in Cao Yuanzhong She Zhai Gong De Shu(《曹元忠设斋功德疏》，S.3565).Ren Aijun(1999)holds that Lou Shang is a variant form of Lou used by the Uyghur.“Among regimes established by nomads，Khan’s Wo Lu Duo(斡鲁朵)，namely Lou，actually serves as the center of all power and affairs，thus being referred to as Han Gong(the Palace of Khan’s).Therefore，it is natural that minority languages are often used to refer to Gui Yi Jun head of government in Dunhuang which have witnessed the mixed culture of southern and northern regions.”However，the paper does not agree with Ren’s opinion that Lou Shang is a borrowed word.The first reason is that since Gui Yi Jun regime adheres to the new calendar promulgated by the emperor of central plains，the title of khroms shall be given in accordance to the rules and regulations of Tang Dynasty with uniformed rituals，as is written in relevant historic documents.Thus，it is justifiable that Lou Shang can be used to refer to Khrom Yamen.The second reason is that Wo Lu Duo should be a transliteration of ordo in Turki with the meaning of“palace”，which seems to have little to do with Lou，a storied building.As a nomad，Uyghur has no fixed abode，or they“live where there is plenty of water and grass”.Therefore，ordo(Wo Lu Duo)should refer to the living pattern suitable to the habits of nomads，whereas Lou is the product of agricultural civilization.Despite the frequent contacts between Dunhuang and northern nomads during the Five Dynasties，Dunhuang is primarily occupied by the Han nationality since Emperor Wu of Han administered the western regions.Lou，as an architectural style，must have been seen in Dunhuang.Besides，the word Lou Zi(楼子)appears in Dunhuang Liwen，for example，in《己未年—辛酉年(899-901年)归义衙内破用用纸布历》(p.4640)and in《归义军时期军资库司纸破历状稿》(S.6249).Therefore，it can be assumed that new meanings are given to the two phrases，Lou Shang and Gui Yi Jun Khrom Yamen，which are derived from original Chinese by using metaphor.

Bi(鐴)is the iron plate equipped on plough which is used to crack and turn soil.Bi(鐴)can be seen in many ancient Chinese documents，such as“鐴，犂耳也。”(Yu Pian· Jin Bu)(《玉篇·金部》)，and“There are various kinds of Bi in different shapes according to their functions”(Wang Yuanzhen，On Farming).It can also be referred to as Bi Er(鐴耳)，as is written in“犁上铁板曰鐴耳。”(Shu Yu)(《蜀语》)written by Li Shi of Ming Dynasty.“离”is sometimes used to replace“犁”，for example，“牛羊之肺，犁而不提心。”(Li Ji·Shao Yi)《礼记·少仪》).And Lu Deming explains that“犁”is by nature the same as“离”.In one word，Bi Li(离)refers to the plough with Bi.

Dian(簟)refers to the matting weaved by bamboo or reed，as is evidenced by the record，such as“Dian refers to the bamboo-made matting.”(Shuo Wen· Zhu Bu)(《说文·竹部》)，“载驱薄薄，簟茀朱鞹。”(Book of Poetry·Poetry of Qi·Zai Qu)(《诗·齐风·载驱》)，“Dian，namely matting.”(Mao Zhuan)(毛传)，“Dian refers to the bamboo-made matting.”(Zheng Xuan)，“君以簟席，大夫以蒲席。”(Book of Rites·Sang Da Ji)(《礼记·丧大记》)and“Dian，namely matting weaved by fine reed”(Zheng Xuan).Du Zhaohui(2006)holds that“簟”refers to bamboo-made matting，and he says，“ Bamboo does not grow in Dunhuang.However，‘保真造簟’，namely making Dian，is mentioned in records，which indicates that the raw material bamboo of making Dian is transported from the central plains.”His saying is debatable in that:first，Dian refers to the matting weaved by bamboo or reed，according to Mao Shi written by Zheng Xuan，so bamboo-made matting is a one-sided definition;second，bamboo-made articles，such as Zhu Long(bamboo cages)and Zhu Xiang Zi(bamboo cases)，can be found in Liwen，indicating that bamboo was widely used in Dunhuang at that time，therefore，the saying that“Bamboo does not grow in Dunhuang”is not well-grounded;third，“”，a derivative of“苇”，is used to modify“簟”.“苇簟”is the same as“苇席”，namely matting made of reed.Plenty of record of“苇”can be found in Dunhuang Liwen，such as“酒半瓮，付打(苇)子百姓解火用。”(P.4697《(941?)粟酒破用历》)，“油半升，载(苇)子车牛来日调臛用。”(P.2040V《后晋时期净土寺诸色入破历算会稿》).As a result，it is more reasonable to define“簟”as reed-made matting，as is evidenced by many ancient documents，such as“ The offerings of Cang zhou include sugar crabs，Dian，silk and so on.”(Volume 22 of Yuanhe County Annals wirtten by Li Jifu，Tang Dynasty)and the descriptions in Jin Hua Zi Za Bian，Liu Chongyuan，Five Dynasties)(《金华子杂编》)，“Facing the mountain and living in the hutch，lying on Dian and feeling the summer breeze”(Yu Shui Ji，Li Fu，Song Dynasty)(《潏水集》)，and the record in New History of the Tang Dynasty·Geography Records)

Se wu(色物)

1.S.5691《付色物饼粟历》:“付团家色物十九段，又后付色物八段。”

2.P.5003V《社人纳色历》:“社人纳色物:赵平生布一疋，本名白领巾三条，长生布一疋。”

通常来说，和谐课堂教学内容的筛选应遵循三个原则：一是知识点数量原则，二是难易度原则，三是引导性原则。知识点数量原则是指在选定和谐课堂教学内容时，应考虑学生能够有效接受的知识点数量，在条件允许的情况下尽量将数量降低。调查显示，小学生通常在课堂开始前15分钟能够保持较高的专注度，这一时段的学习效率往往也是最高的。因此，教师可以将知识点讲解集中在这一时段。

3.S.3405《付亲情社色物历》:“主人付亲情社色物生绢八疋，非绢五疋。”

Se(色)refers to“type”here，such as“所谓色色不能”(Su Wen· Mai Jie Pian)(《素问·脉解篇》)，“……客内无此色人。”(…there are no such people among the guests.)(Bei Shi·Zhang Sun Dao Sheng Zhuan)(《北史·长孙道生传》)，“……皆是非时瓜菓及马牛驴犊麞鹿等肉并诸药酒三十余色……”(there are fruits，beef，venison and about 30 types of medicinal liquor…)(Old History of Tang Dynasty·Rui Zong Zhu Zi Zhuan·Rang Huang Di Xian Zhuan)(《旧唐书·睿宗诸子传·让皇帝宪传》).Se Wu(色物)refers to“all types of items”，including food and fabrics，such as the record in Volume 434 of Wen Yuan Ying Hua)(《文苑英华》)，the Volume Two of Tang Da Zhao Ling Ji，Song Minqiu，Song Dynasty)(《唐大诏令集》)and that in the Volume 74 of Tang Da Zhao Ling Ji，Song Minqiu，Song Dynasty).Besides，Se Wu specifically refers to fabrics in Dunhuang Liwen，such as“A lot of Se Wu have been offered”(S.1845V《(976 年)四月十七日祝定德阿婆身故纳赠历》).Se Wu，literally“colorful items”in Chinese，is used to refer to fabrics as they feature various types and colors.Se Wu can also be used as Wu Se，such as in“……都维菩提性、典座善戒、直岁善性等一伴执掌常住物色，谨具分析如后。”(S.1776《后周显德五年(958年)某寺法律尼戒性等交割常住什物点检历状》).

In one word，according to the examples recorded in ancient documents and Dunhuang Liwen，Se Wu，equals“item”，including sacrificial offering，cloth，grain and so on.Besides，it can be used to refer to fabrics in Dunhuang Liwen.It is noteworthy that Se Wu is defined as“soil used to indicate positions and colors”in the dictionary，which is another case.And Hei Weiqiang’s(2005;2010:359)definition“silk fabrics”is not accurate enough.

Qi Mu(栖木)

S.1053V《己巳年(909或969年)某寺诸色入破历算会残卷》:“麦伍斗，卖(买)栖木用。”

Qi Mu，meaning a type of wood in Chinese，belongs to the colloquial language of Dunhuang during the Five Dynasties.It comes out quite lately in written documents，namely in a book about raising livestock，Collection on Farming·Raising Livestock·Eagles written by Yang Gong，Qing Dynasty，“ As to teaching eagles to recognize Qi Mu，we’d better tie live chicken to Qi Mu and hide ourselves so as to keep ourselves out of eagles’sight，then shout aloud to attract eagles’attention to prey on the chicken.”Ji Qi Mu(鸡栖木)is also called as Ji Mu(鸡木).In Volume 16 of Ci Lin Hai Cuo(《词林海错》)，Xia Shufang notes the use of Ji Mu in the story of Liu Fang and Sun He，which is recorded in the New Saying of the World.Ji Qi Mu can be used as building materials，as is recorded in Volume Six of Ying Zao Fa Shi(《营造法式》)(Li Jie，Song Dynasty)，a book about architecture，“All decorations of Wu Tou Men，such as Ji Qi Mu，Men Zan，Men Zhen，Zhu Shi，E’Tan… ”.Besides，Ji Qi Mu has medical value in treating aphasia，as is evidenced in Volume 14 of Zheng Lei Ben Cao(《证类本草》)，a medical book written by Tang Shenwei of Song Dynasty，“The non-toxic Ji Qi Mu can be used to treat aphasia.Burn it into ashes and drink the ashes with plenty of water，and the medicine will take effect.”However，killing livestock is forbidden as one of the five religious disciplines of Buddhism.Besides，raising chicken is one of the evildoing of Buddhism.Practice like raising chicken in temples has not been found in other documents of Dunhuang.Therefore，Qi Mu considered here should probably not refer to Qi Mu in Collection on Farming written by Yang Gong.According to Fa Zao Ying Shi and Zheng Lei Ben Cao，Qi Mu is probably used as building material and medicine.

Notes:

〔1〕季羡林:《敦煌学大辞典》，上海:上海辞书出版社，1998年。

〔2〕黄征:《敦煌俗字典》，上海:上海教育出版社，2005年。

〔3〕扬之水:《敦煌文书什物历器物丛考——传统中国研究集刊(第三辑)》，上海:上海人民出版社，2007年。

〔4〕黑维强:《敦煌吐鲁番社会经济文献词汇研究》，兰州:兰州大学博士学位论文，2005年。

〔5〕黑维强:《敦煌吐鲁番社会经济文献词汇研究》，北京:民族出版社，2010年。

〔6〕杜朝晖:《敦煌文献名物研究》，杭州:浙江大学博士学位论文，2006年。

〔7〕Lu Xiangqian，A Study on Bu Zhi Po Yong Li during Gui Yi Jun’s Reign，Collected Essays on Tu Bo Fan documents(the 3rd edition)，Beijing:Beijing University Press，pp.394-466.

〔8〕Lu Xiangqian，A Study on Bu Zhi Po Yong Li during Gui Yi Jun’s Reign，Collected Essays on Tu Bo Fan documents(the 3rd edition)，Beijing:Beijing University Press，pp.394-466.

〔9〕 Volume Seven of Upasaka(《优婆塞戒经》)(translated by Tan Wuji，Northern Liang)records 15 evildoing，namely raising sheep，raising chicken，raising pigs，fishing，netting fish，slaughtering oxen，serving as jailors，raising hounds，making arrows for hunting，cursing dragons，murdering，stealing，stirring up enmity and torturing others by whipping，shackling or cauterizing them.Volume Six of Da Fang Bian Fo Bao En Jing(《大方便佛报恩经》)records 12 evildoing，namely serving as butchers，serving as executioners，raising pigs，raising chicken，fishing，serving as hunters，netting birds，hunting anacondas，cursing dragons，serving as jailors，stealing and serving as officials catching thieves.