From the ancient legend of word-making in Cangjie to the discovery of Chinese characters in Oracle Bone Inscriptions more than 65,438+000 years ago, scholars in China have been working hard to uncover the mystery of the origin of Chinese characters. On the origin of Chinese characters, there are many sayings in China ancient literature, such as "knot rope theory", "gossip theory", "picture theory" and "calligraphy contract theory". Ancient books also generally recorded the legend of Cang Xie, the historian of the Yellow Emperor who created Chinese characters. Modern scholars believe that systematic writing tools cannot be completely created by one person. If Cang Xie really exists, he should be a text organizer or publisher.
The earliest carved symbols were more than 8000 years ago.
In recent decades, Chinese archaeologists have published a series of unearthed materials about the origin of Chinese characters earlier than Oracle Bone Inscriptions in Anyang Yin Ruins. These materials mainly refer to the carved or painted symbols that appeared on pottery in the late primitive society and early historical society, and also include a few symbols engraved on Oracle Bone Inscriptions, jade and stone tools. It can be said that they provide a new basis for explaining the origin of Chinese characters.
Wang, a doctoral supervisor of Zhengzhou University, made a systematic investigation and comparison of the carving symbols on pottery pieces unearthed from more than 100 archaeological sites in China, and thought that the earliest carving symbols in China appeared in Jiahu site in Wuyang, Henan Province, with a history of more than 8,000 years.
As a professional worker, he tried to comprehensively sort out these original materials by comprehensively using scientific methods such as archaeology, ancient Chinese character configuration, comparative philology, scientific archaeology and high-tech means, so as to compare some clues about the occurrence and development of Chinese characters before Shang Dynasty.
However, the situation is not so simple. In addition to the existing small-scale data of Zhengzhou Shangcheng site and Xiaoshuangqiao site (in recent years, more than 10 cases of Zhu Shutao's early characters of Shang Dynasty have been found), other symbols before Shang Dynasty are scattered and lack of contact with each other, and most of them are out of touch with Shang Dynasty characters. There are also some symbols with heavy regional colors and complex backgrounds.
The 500 most commonly used Chinese characters
One is that when we want people, we can't be a great country. We can use them when we are born and when we go out. We can work in pairs. We can also work together every year. We can study law after hard work. People have to go through 13 years of equal education, the electricity at home is as high as water, and there are more and more small things in reality. Both systems should emphasize practice, and sex should be open and closed. It is also because of other reasons that social justice is the same as the previous four days. However, this change in mass and gas direction has not been solved. Building a month without a military department is the most important thing for the public. I want to make a phone call and ask questions directly. The five fruit images in the party exhibition were placed in the position of Chang Wen, and the special parts were always flawed. The long-term demand for the elderly's funds and road flow is less than that of the mountain system. What she means by the root of her hand is that the ninth district should be forcibly released to the west, and the team should be won back after the war. The south will give the light door color, that is, the right to receive the certificate, change the beauty, and then adopt a simpler style. It is really necessary to achieve every goal. It is difficult to get close to the mine. Just like a history of the Millennium Committee of Qinghai Province.
The Chinese character system was formally formed in the Central Plains.
Wang believes that the formal formation of the Chinese character system should be in the Central Plains. Chinese characters are a writing system of independent origin, independent of any foreign language. However, its origin is not single. After many times and long-term running-in, probably in the early summer, our ancestors creatively invented the writing symbol system of recording language on the basis of extensively absorbing and using early symbols. At that time, the Chinese character system matured rapidly.
According to reports, according to the written materials unearthed from archaeological excavations, China had a formal written language at least in the Xia Dynasty. For example, in recent years, archaeologists found the word "Wen" for writing brush and bamboo calligraphy on a flat pottery jar unearthed from Taosi site in Xiangfen, Shanxi. These symbols belong to the basic configuration in the early writing system, but unfortunately such unearthed writing materials are still rare.
Characters first matured in Shang Dynasty.
As far as the written materials of Yin Shang Dynasty are known and seen at present, there are many kinds of written carriers. At that time, in addition to writing on simplified Chinese characters with a brush, other main writing methods were carved on tortoise shells and animal bones, and pottery, jade and Tao Zhu were carved on bronzes. Oracle Bone Inscriptions and bronze ritual vessels used in Yin Ruins are the earliest mature written materials found in China.
The Shang dynasty characters reflected in Yin Ruins are not only reflected in the large number of characters and rich materials, but also in the way of creating characters that has formed its own characteristics and laws. The structural characteristics of basic characters in Shang Dynasty can be divided into four categories: based on the physical characteristics of human body and a certain part of human body; Based on labor creation and labor object; Taking the images of animals and livestock as the basis of word formation; Taking natural images as the basis of word formation. Judging from the cultural connotation of the configuration, the objects selected by these early mature hieroglyphs are quite close to the social life of our ancestors and have strong realistic characteristics. At the same time, the content described by these hieroglyphs involves all levels of people and nature, so it also has the characteristics of extensive sources of configuration.
1. Oracle Bone Inscriptions
Oracle Bone Inscriptions is a written language in the Yin and Shang Dynasties, which was only used by a few divination historians. Mainly carved on the tortoise shell bone with a knife. Because the tortoise shell bone is hard, the strokes are mainly straight and rarely round. Because Oracle Bone Inscriptions was carved with a sharp knife, the lines were thin and even. Oracle Bone Inscriptions is the earliest Chinese character, which has the characteristics of early Chinese characters: strong imagery, no stereotyped writing, different sizes and great randomness.
2. Jinwen
Bronze inscriptions, also known as Zhong Dingwen, prevailed in the Western Zhou Dynasty. This is a kind of writing carved on bronze wares. The shape and structure of bronze inscriptions are similar to those of Oracle Bone Inscriptions. Because the inscriptions on bronzes are carved on a mold and then cast, it is easier to write. Therefore, its strokes are characterized by rounded shape and uniform size. Compared with Oracle Bone Inscriptions, the pictograph is lower, and the stereotyped characters are improved, but there are more variants.
3. seal script
There are two kinds of seal script: big seal script and small seal script. Dazhuan is a kind of writing in Zhou Xuanwang in the late Western Zhou Dynasty, also known as Wen Shu. During the Warring States Period, Shi Guwen and Zhou Xuanwang used a literacy textbook, Literacy Articles. The physical features are generally consistent with the inscriptions on bronze, with the characteristics of many strokes. Xiao Zhuan is a unified font issued when the same writing policy was implemented in Qin Dynasty. Li Si and others revised the font after finishing the text. Because it is a unified font issued by the government, after finishing and simplifying, the variant characters are greatly reduced, and the font is rectangular, which lays the foundation for the "square characters" of Chinese characters. Xiao Zhuan's strokes are more symmetrical and neat, the lines are even in thickness, more rounded, more symbolic, and the meaning of the picture disappears greatly. Because Xiao Zhuan is simplified on the basis of Da Zhuan, it is generally said that Xiao Zhuan is a simplification of Da Zhuan.
4. Official script
Lishu originated in the Qin Dynasty and prevailed in the Han Dynasty. The parallel of official script and seal script in Qin dynasty is a convenient font for official document copying by official script. Small seal script is difficult to write, which can't meet the needs of official documents in Qin Dynasty. Often used in more formal occasions. In order to write conveniently and quickly, Li Shu changed the circle of Xiao Zhuan into a straight stroke with square folds. Change the vertical cohesion structure style of Biography to horizontal extension; At this time, the official script has become a Chinese character symbol that is no longer pictographic. Official script has greatly changed the font of Chinese characters, so "official script change" has become the boundary between ancient and modern Chinese characters. The Chinese characters before Xiao Zhuan are ancient Chinese characters. Their similarity is characterized by strong pictograph and poor rigidity. Chinese characters are composed of lines, without any word-formation element-strokes. The Chinese characters after Lishu are modern Chinese characters. Nowadays, Chinese characters are characterized by strong symbols and stereotypes, and the characters are composed of a limited number of strokes. The official script of Han Dynasty replaced Xiao Zhuan as a formal writing form, also known as "Han Li". Han Li's writing styles are diverse. First, Fang Bi is the main one, such as Zhang Qianbei; One is mainly round pens, such as Cao Quanbei.
5 official script
Official script is basically evolved from seal script, mainly changing the round strokes of seal script into square folds, which makes writing faster, and it is difficult to draw round strokes when writing with pigments on wooden slips.
Official script is also called "official character" and "ancient book". It is a font produced on the basis of seal script to meet the needs of convenient writing. The seal script is simplified, and the uniform circle lines of the seal script are changed into straight strokes, which is convenient for writing. Official script can be divided into "Qin Li" (also called "Guli") and "Han Li" (also called "Golden Calendar"). The appearance of official script is a great change in ancient writing and calligraphy.
Official script is a common solemn font in Chinese characters, with a slightly flat writing effect, long horizontal drawing and short straight drawing, and pays attention to "swallow tail of silkworm head" and "twists and turns". It originated in the Qin Dynasty and reached its peak in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Calligraphy is known as "Han Li Tang Kai". It is also said that official script originated in the Warring States period.
Official script is relative to seal script, and its name originated from the Eastern Han Dynasty. The appearance of official script is another great change of China characters, which brings China's calligraphy art into a new realm, is a turning point in the development history of Chinese characters, and lays the foundation for regular script. Official script is flat, neat and exquisite. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, stippling such as skimming was beautified as upward provocation, with different degrees of severity and artistic beauty of calligraphy. Styles also tend to be diversified, which is of great artistic appreciation value.
6 official script
According to legend, it was arranged by Qin Wei and Cheng Miao in prison. He simplified the traditional Chinese characters, rounded the fonts into squares and changed the strokes into straight ones. Changing "Lian Bi" into "broken pen" and changing lines into strokes makes writing more convenient. "Li Ben" is not a prisoner, but a petty official, that is, a small official in charge of documents, so in ancient times, official script was called "Zuo Shu". Lishu prevailed in Han Dynasty and became the main style of calligraphy. As a start-up Qin Li, seal script has many meanings, and it has been continuously developed and processed. It broke the writing tradition since the Zhou and Qin Dynasties and gradually laid the foundation for regular script. Under the unification of the thought of "ousting a hundred schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone", the official script of the Han Dynasty gradually developed into the dominant script, and at the same time, cursive script, regular script and running script were derived, laying the foundation for art.
7 regular script
Regular script is also called official script, or real book. Its characteristics are: square shape, straight strokes, can be used as a model, hence the name. Began in the Eastern Han Dynasty. There are many famous regular script writers, such as Ou Ti (Ou Yangxun), Yu Ti (Yu Shinan), Yan Ti (Yan Zhenqing), Liu Ti (Liu Gongquan) and Zhao Ti (attached).
In the early days, there were few official handwriting, the structure was slightly wider, the horizontal painting was long and the vertical painting was short. In Wei Jinzhong handed down from ancient times, such as Zhong You's "Declaration Form" (left), "List of Recommended Seasons", Wang Xizhi's "Le Yi Lun" and "Huang Ting Jing" can all be regarded as representative works. Look at its characteristics, as Weng Fanggang said: "Change the wave painting of official script, pick it up, and still keep the vertical of official script."
After the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the north and the south were divided, and calligraphy was also divided into two factions. The calligraphy style of the Northern School has inherited the legacy of Han Li. Its brushwork is simple and rigorous, but its style is simple and rigorous, so it is called "Weibei". Southern calligraphy is more sparse and beautiful than letters. During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, because of regional differences, personal habits and book styles were very different. The books in the North are strong and the books in the South are rich, each of which is wonderful and inseparable, while Bao and Kang Youwei highly admire the books of the two dynasties, especially the epitaphs of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Kang cited ten beauties to emphasize the advantages of Weibei.
Regular script in the Tang Dynasty, like the prosperity of the national situation in the Tang Dynasty, is really unprecedented. Calligraphy style is mature, and calligraphers come forth in large numbers. In terms of regular script, Yu Shinan, Ou Yangxun, Chu Suiliang in the early Tang Dynasty, Yan Zhenqing in the middle Tang Dynasty and Liu Gongquan in the late Tang Dynasty all valued their regular script works and regarded them as models of calligraphy.
8 cursive script
Cursive script: a style of Chinese characters. Formed in the Han Dynasty, it evolved on the basis of official script for the convenience of writing. There are Cao Zhang, Cao Jin and Crazy Grass. There are rules to follow in the changes of strokes, such as the urgent chapter of the Three Kingdoms Wu in Songjiang Edition. Today's grass is eclectic and fluent, and its representative works include Wang Xizhi's "The First Moon" and Jin Dynasty's "Getting Time". Mad grass appeared in the Tang Dynasty, represented by Zhang Xu and Huai Su, and its brushwork was wild and uninhibited, which became an artistic creation completely divorced from practicality. From then on, cursive script was only the works of calligraphers imitating Cao Zhang, Cao Jin and Kuangcao. Masterpieces such as Zhang Xu's Abdominal Pain Post and Huai Su's Autobiography Post. Cursive script is a font produced for the convenience of writing. It began in the early Han Dynasty. At that time, it was "Cao Li", that is, scribbled official script, which gradually developed into a kind of "Cao Zhang" with artistic value. At the end of the Han Dynasty, Zhang Zhi changed "Cao Zhang" to "modern grass", and the character style was formed in one fell swoop. In the Tang Dynasty, Zhang Xu and Huai Su developed into "weeds", with continuous strokes and changeable glyphs.
Nine-line script
A font between regular script and cursive script, which can be said to be cursive or cursive. It is to make up for the shortcomings of slow writing in regular script and illegible cursive script. The brushwork is not as sloppy as cursive script, and it is not required to be as correct as regular script. There are more methods of mold opening than cursive writing, which is called "mold opening". Cursive calligraphy is more than modular method, which is called "cursive calligraphy". Running script was produced in the late Eastern Han Dynasty.