Journal | Bhasha
Monographic journal issue | 2 | 1 | 2023
Research Article | Phonographic Characters in the Biography of Xuanzang by Hui Li
Phonographic Characters in the Biography of Xuanzang by Hui Li
The Declension of puruṣa (bùlùshā 布路沙)
Abstract
The article discusses an interesting case of the use of Chinese characters as phonographic devices: the Sanskrit declension of puruṣa (bùlùshā 布路沙) ‘man’ as transcribed by the Chinese monk Hui Li in his Biography of Xuanzang. In particular, the analysis will focus on two aspects: the way Hui Li renders the different Sanskrit nominal endings; the evaluation of the general accuracy of these transcriptions. For the latter point, I will take as reference the phonetic reconstructions of Chinese characters proposed by Pulleyblank (1991) and Baxter - Sagart (2014).
Submitted: Feb. 10, 2023 | Accepted: March 13, 2023 | Published June 26, 2023 | Language: en
Keywords Chinese siddham studies • Chinese historical phonology • Sino-Indian contact • Chinese Rime Tables • Middle Chinese
Copyright © 2023 Chiara Pette. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/bhasha/2785-5953/2023/01/004
