A Study On Noun-Modifying Quantifiers Of Song Dynasty

Rich quantifier is one of the characteristics of the Chinese,and noun-modifying quantifiers constitute the main part of the system of Chinese Classifiers, in-depth study on the noun-modifying quantifiers of each period will provide the basis for establishing the history of Chinese Classifiers,thus helping to build a scientific and comprehensive Chinesehistory. Yet Song quantifier system has not been studied comprehensively. However, the Song has a rich corpus of popular literature, such as Zen and Song Confucian quotations, then the fiction, its highly spoken is the best material for research quantifiers. Based on this, the proposed name of the Song quantifier study investigated the circumstances of this period, the use of the noun-modifying quantifiers, hoping to make a little more work for the study of Chinese Classifiers.We’ll employ the methods of synchronic description and diachronic comparison in this paper, firs,t to sort out the Song noun-modifying quantifier system; then according to the characteristics of this period quantifiers, we divide them into the following four categories:the individual Classifiers, the collective quantifiers,the standard quantifiers, the boatloads of quantifiers as well as the temporary quantifiers, and then,after describing each of them,we’ll summarize the syntax and semantic features of the noun-modifying quantifiers in this period. At last,we’ll do a diachronic comparison between the noun-modifying quantifiers system of Song and the one of the Tang and Five Dynasties which aims to examine the historical evolution and syntax degree of the Song noun-modifying quantifiers.Through the study,we found that compared with the Tang and Five Dynasties, in Song Dynasty, the semantic of noun-modifying quantifiers is in a high degree of imaginary and generalization,and the lexical and syntactic is more and more mature.The Song Dynasty plays an important role in the process of quantifiers’ grammaticalization,the "数+量+名"structure was finally established in this period, the noun-modifying quantifiers have completed the process of grammaticalization,and become a necessary Syntax Notation.