Comparative Study On English And Chinese Kinship Terms And Fictive Kin Terms

Kinship term, an indispensable part of verbal communication, is clearly highlighted in address system of a language. Both English and Chinese languages have their unique kinship term system, among which only a few share the same semantic constants. In this thesis, I attempt to provide a brief outline of the theoretical development in kinship term studies, make a comparative study on differences between English and Chinese kinship terms, and define social meaning in relation to literal meaning in the context of address systems with a view to illustrating the communicative utility of kinship terms in non-kin interactions. From the research we can find that, in contrast to English kin term system, there are more specific kinship terms and fictive kin terms in Chinese. In succession, I state the main causes of these differences. Finally, I propose a hypothesis that consanguineal kin terms are the very foundation of fictive kin terms system, and indicates the social meaning of fictive kin terms from the perspective of sociolinguistics.The present study will, hopefully act as a springboard for comparative research in English and Chinese kinship term systems, especially the extensive use of kinship terms in verbal communication. It is of both theoretical and practical significance to launch an explicit study on them. Through the comparison, the study carries great social significance for us, explicates a culturally distinct system of kinship terms for a particular communicative resource as expressed and interpreted by the interlocutors themselves, and expands our knowledge of the links between culture and communication. To make translation and cross-cultural communication natural and fluent, we should acquaint ourselves with this field. Moreover, the thesis provides readers with experience of recognizing English and Chinese own culture in the usage of kinship terms and fictive kin terms.