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Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn (; "The phonology of the Central Plains") is a rime book from the Yuan Dynasty compiled by Zhōu Déqīng (周德清) in 1324. It is widely regarded as an important milestone in the history of Mandarin. In this rime book we see many characteristic features of Mandarin, such as the reduction and disappearance of final stop consonants and the reorganization of the Middle Chinese tones.
Background The Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn continues the Qieyun tradition of using rime dictionary methods for indicating pronunciation. Due to the changes in pronunciation between the Sui and Yuan Dynasties, the rhyming dictionaries needed to be updated in accordance with the current phonological system at that time. From the middle of the 13th Century to the end of the 14th Century, Běiqǔ (北曲) underwent quick development. The author of Sanqu (散曲), Zhōu Déqīng, delved into research on the Běiqǔ, discovering that it created many problems by not adhering to the rules of classical poetic composition. He thought that in order to better develop Běiqǔ , one would need to make a definite standard, especially in respect to language. According to his own experience, he was able to propose a set of rules for creating and reciting Běiqǔ, which came to be known as "Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn". Style In the first part of Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn, Zhou drew up rhyming charts for Quyun (曲韵 -- songs or dramas). Zhou took 5,866 characters commonly rhymed in songs of the time and, according to how they were used in Mandarin, divided them into 19 rhyme groups, each group in turn subdivided into seven categories: ping sheng yin (平声阴) "Feminine level tone" ping sheng yang (平声阳) "Masculine level tone" shang sheng (上声) "Rising or falling-rising) tone" qu sheng (去声) "Departing tone" jin sheng zuo ping sheng (入声作平声) "Entering/level tone" jin sheng zuo shang sheng (入声作上声) "Entering/rising or tone" jin sheng zuo qu sheng (入声作去声) "Entering/departing tone" The entering tones, though, were assigned to the aforementioned groups according to contemporaneous songs’ Xingqiang (行腔) recitation rules. (Xingqiang was a practice by which performers would interpret a song’s melody within the confines of classical Chinese poetry’s rules.) The entering tones were also sorted into homophonic character groups, called Xiaoyun (小韵 -- “small rhymes”), according to a method called Meikong shi Yiyin (每空是一音 -- “each space is one sound”). All told there are 1,627 Xiaoyun, and they do not use Fanqie (反切) phonetic notation. Zhou regarded the principal works of The Four Great Yuan Playwrights (元曲四大家 -- Yuanqu si dajia) as foundational to verse in general; he considered their works to be “rhymes joined with nature, words able to connect with the language of the world” (“韵共守自然之音，字能通天下之语”), and at the same time also distinguished where the playwrights used rhymes in non-standard places. Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn’s second half, Zheng Yu Zuo Ci Qi Lie (正语作词起例), employs various examples to explain in detail both the rhyme charts’ methods of use as well as issues concerning Běiqǔ’s creation, standards and other aspects. List of rhymes 歌戈韵 Ge-Ge 家麻韵 Jia-Ma 车遮韵 Che-Zhe 齐微韵 Qi-Wei 支思韵 Zhi-Si 鱼模韵 Yu-Mo 皆来韵 Jie-Lai 萧豪韵 Xiao-Hao 尤侯韵 You-Hou 寒山韵 Han-Shan 先天韵 Xian-Tian 桓欢韵 Huan-Huan 监咸韵 Jian-Xian 廉籤韵 Lian-Qian 真文韵 Zhen-Wen 侵寻韵 Qin-Xun 庚清韵 Geng-Qing 江阳韵 Jiang-Yang 东锺韵 Dong-Zhong Influence & criticism In respect to contemporaneous and later Běiqǔ works, Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn has played a very strong guiding role; moreover, many later rhyme works have regarded it as a model on which they based their interpretations. Up until the flourishing of Nanqu (南曲 -- “Southern Verse”), Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn still held a tremendous influence. With respect to historical research into Chinese language and drama, all of Zhōngyuán Yīnyùn is quite valuable material. See also | ||||||||
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