On the Usage of Chinese Characters “NIAN”and “SA”on Both Sides of the Taiwan Straits

本文以语料库的方式分析“廿“和“卅“的使用情况。在大陆,以20世纪50年代初为界,前后两个时期“廿“和“卅“的用法有明显区别。主要表现为:使用频率由高到低,表数字的功能日趋淡化,指称对象愈来愈单一。在台湾,这两个字的用法基本上保持了1950年之前在大陆使用的特点,即可以较灵活地与其他数字汉字进行搭配,较自如地起到数字表达的作用。本文还探讨了“廿““卅“的记数功能在台湾地区得到延续,而在大陆地区则明显萎缩并几乎消失殆尽的原因。This article analyses the usage of Chinese Characters"NIAN 廿"and"SA卅"by the way of corpus.It is found out that there are significant differences in the usage of Chinese characters "NIAN"and"SA"in mainland China before and after early 1950 s which is a demarcation line.The differences are mainly the following three points.First,the frequency of use was lowered; second,the functions of representing figures were weakened; third,the reference objects became more and more simplified.However,in Taiwan,the usage of the two characters basically preserve the characteristics of that in mainland before 1950,being that they are flexible to form collocations with other numbers and Chinese characters,and thus more expressive as numbers.Finally,this paper discusses the reasons why the counting function of "NIAN 廿"and "SA 卅"can bepreserved in Taiwan but is remarkably weakened and has almost disappeared in mainland.国家社科基金项目(项目编号:14BYY051); 福建省社科规划项目(项目编号:2010B087); 厦门大学哲学与社会科学繁荣计划课题的资