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2024/25 School of Chinese Research Student Seminar

漢語南方方言的雙及物結構

Ditransitive Constructions in Southern Chinese Dialects

Abstract:

雙及物結構作為漢語方言南北差異的一項顯著指標一直廣受關注，學界普遍認為北方方言中使用雙賓A式（動詞+間接賓語+直接賓語，如普通話「給我一本書」）表達所有權的轉移，而南方方言多使用雙賓B式（動詞+直接賓語+間接賓語，也稱為「倒置雙賓結構」，如香港粵語「畀本書我」）。在實際的語言使用中，雙及物結構的運用遠比想象中複雜。除雙賓句外，介賓結構（與格句）、處置式等句式也常用來傳達相近的語義，不同方言對各種雙及物事件亦有不同的表達偏好。

本研究對南方方言的雙及物結構進行實地調查，收集不同漢語方言母語人士對於相關事件的表達，對包括吳、閩、客、粵、湘、贛、徽語在內的各南方方言的雙及物結構進行描寫、比較及提供類型學上的分析。本次講座將從方言演變、方言分區與方言的區域特徵等方面對研究成果進行匯報，強調方言描寫的重要性和語法研究的獨特性。

Ditransitive constructions have been widely recognized as a key distinguishing feature between Northern and Southern Chinese dialects. Northern dialects generally adopt the double object construction (DOC, V+NP_R+NP_T, as in Putonghua "give me a book") to express a physical or metaphorical move of possession, while Southern dialects tend to use ‘Inverted DOC’ (IDOC, V+ NP_T+NP_R, exemplified by Hong Kong Cantonese “bei² bun² syu¹ ngo⁵”). However, actual language use reveals a more complex picture: besides double object sentences, dative constructions, disposal constructions and other sentence patterns are applied to convey similar semantics, with each dialect showing different expression preferences for various ditransitive events.

This research project involves comprehensive fieldwork on ditransitive constructions in Southern Chinese Dialects, documenting how native speakers of Wu, Min, Hakka, Yue, Xiang, Gan, and Hui dialects express concepts involving transfer of possession and providing descriptive, comparative, and typological analysis. The seminar will discuss findings from multiple aspects including the evolution of dialect features over time, patterns of consistency within dialect groups, and areal characteristic of grammatical features, emphasizing the importance of dialect documentation and uniqueness of grammatical analysis.