字幕列表 影片播放
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Let's talk about Chinese characters.
我們來聊聊中文字吧!
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They look tough and scary with all of their random lines, swoops and slashes
它們有好多撇來撇去的線條, 看起來既困難又可怕
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but they're not actually as difficult as you think.
但是它們其實沒有想像中那麼困難。
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They're just very different from the phonetic alphabets
它們只是跟西方人
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that westerners are used to.
習慣的拼音文字不同而已。 (吼~~~)
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With alphabets, the letters act like "building blocks"
在英文字母表裡, 每個字母就像一個"積木",
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that combine to form words.
一個個拼起來變成一個"字"。
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When you see the letter "T",
當你看到字母"T",
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you know it represents the sound /t/.
你就知道它的聲音是 /t/
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When you see the letters "T-R-E-E",
當你看到 “T-R-E-E”這些字母,
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you recognize all of those sound symbols
你認得出每個字母代表的聲音
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and you can put them together to form the sound "tree".
然可把字母拼在一起並念出"tree"。
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If you want to write the word "tree",
如果想要寫"tree" 這個字,
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you think about how to say the word,
你會先思考怎麼念這個字,
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pay attention to the sounds that you make,
專注在你發的聲音
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and then write down those letters.
然後寫下這些字母,
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That's how a phonetic writing system works.
這就是拼音文字的書寫方法。
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Chinese is much different though.
但是中文字非常不同,
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It's a pictographic writing system,
中文是一種象形文字,
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not a phonetic writing system.
不是拼音文字。
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Being a "pictographic writing system" means that Chinese characters
象形文字表示每個中文字
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are pictures, like Egyptian hieroglyphs.
都是一個圖片, 就像埃及文字,
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So, when you want to write the word "tree"
如果你要寫"樹",
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you don't have to bother with writing letters
你不用把字拼出來
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so the reader can sound-out the word...
讓讀者念出這個字,
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You simply draw a picture of a tree (木).
你只需要畫一棵樹就好了,
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It's that simple.
就這麼簡單。(木)
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That's how a pictographic writing system works!
這就是象形文字的書寫方法。
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The Chinese writing system is based on drawings of things they saw
中文書寫系統基本上是
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in the world around them.
把人看到的所有事物畫下來。
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When you look at a Chinese character,
當你看著一個中文字,
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you are looking at a stylized drawing that depicts an object or an idea.
其實是看著一幅表達一個東西 或想法的簡化圖片。
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If a Chinese character is a picture of an object, like a tree,
如果是表達一個物體的中文字, 像是樹,
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it's called a "pictograph".
這就叫做"象形文字"。
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If a Chinese character is a picture of an abstract idea like "three" or "happy"
如果是表達一個抽象概念的字, 像是"三"或是"快樂",
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it's called an "ideograph", which means "idea picture".
這就叫做"意形文字", 意思是”概念的圖片”。
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In layman terms though,
簡單來說,
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you can simply refer to the Chinese script as "Chinese characters".
你可以簡單的稱中文字體為 "Chinese characters"
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You are actually quite familiar with pictographs and ideographs;
其實你已經對象形及意形文字很熟悉了,
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you see these types of symbols on a daily basis
在世界各地,
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all around the world in the form of street signs and warning labels
你每天都會在街上 看到路標跟警告標誌等這些符號,
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(like recycle, radioactive, wet floor, no swimming, no smoking, etc.).
像是回收,小心幅射, 地板濕滑,禁止游泳,禁止吸菸等,
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These are examples of pictographic symbols
這些都是象形符號的例子,
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and they are universally understood because the human mind
而且是全世界通用的,
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is excellent at pattern matching.
因為人腦對於圖案比對很在行,
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When an eye sees a pattern,
當人的眼睛看到一個圖案,
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the brain has an innate drive to decipher the pattern
腦筋會直覺的把這個圖案解讀成
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as something it recognizes.
它原本就認識的東西。
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It's easy enough to draw pictographs for simple objects such as a tree (木),
要畫一個簡單的物體很容易, 像是"木"
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fire (火)
或是"火"
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or a multi-floored tower (高) to express the idea "tall".
或是一個數層樓的塔代表"高"。
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However attempting to draw abstract ideas like "have"
然而,若是想要畫一些抽象的概念
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or "may" as in "May I?" is a little more complicated.
像是"有","可以" 就比較複雜。
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Consider for a moment what you would draw
先想一下你會如何畫出
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to capture the essence of "have/possess".
"擁有"的意思,
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Perhaps you could draw a hand with something in it?
或許是一隻手拿著一個東西?
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That's exactly what the Chinese ideograph portrays:
這就是中文意形文字的描述方式:
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it's a simple two-part picture depicting a hand with an object in it (有).
由一隻手跟一個物體的圖片合起來就是"擁有"。
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How about graphically illustrating the idea "may"?
那麼如何表達"可以"?
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What could be drawn to represent this complex idea?
該畫什麼來傳達這個複雜的概念呢?
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The actual Chinese ideograph for this (可)
中文意形字"可"
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is composed of two simpler pictographic parts:
是由兩個簡單的圖片合起來:
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"obstacle" (ㄎ) and "opening" (口).
"障礙" (ㄎ) 以及 "開口" (口)。
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By these two simpler pictures combining together,
藉由結合這兩個簡單的圖片,
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they paint a picture that can be interpreted as
它們變成一個可以解釋成
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"a way through an obstacle",
"穿越障礙的方法"的圖片,
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which is a very interesting way to think of getting permission.
用這種說法來解釋"允許"很有意思。
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Most Chinese characters work like the two examples above.
大部分的中文字都是用這樣的方式來表達意思,
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Multiple simple pictographs are combined to convey increasingly
數個簡單的象形圖片結合成
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complex objects and ideas.
複雜的概念。
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This approach makes sense
而使用這種方法是很自然而然的,
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because there is a seemingly endless list of objects, ideas,
因為語言中有太多的物體,概念,
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situations, actions, and descriptive words used in communication.
情況,動作,形容詞。
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It would be very difficult for every word to have
不可能每一個字都有一個
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its own completely unique symbol.
完全獨一無二的圖片。
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Just for fun, let's look at a few more examples of how
我們來看看一些例子,
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Chinese characters depict nouns, verbs,
中文字如何表達名詞,動詞,
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adjectives, adverbs, prepositions and conjunctions.
形容詞,副詞,介係詞,以及連接詞。
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"Autumn" is the season when grain stalks (禾) in the fields are burned (火).
秋天是 燒(火)田中稻草(禾)的季節。
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The verb "see" depicts a hand (龵)
"看"這個動詞代表看著遠方時,
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shading an eye (目) as it gazes into the distance.
把手(龵)放在眼睛 (目)上方的動作。
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Shells were used as currency in ancient times.
貝是古代的貨幣,
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To make some purchases, an entire basket (貝)
買貴的東西時需要用
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of shells (貝) was needed, so this is how the Chinese character
一整個籃子來裝貝,
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for "expensive" is drawn.
這就是中文表示"貴"的方法。
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To express "not", the Chinese character shows a hand (又)
為了表達"沒有",中文字用一隻手(又)
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reaching into swirling water (氵) searching for a lost object (⺇).
伸進水裡 (氵) 尋找失去的物體(⺇)來表示。
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The character for "to" shows a bird swooping down towards the ground (土),
"至"這個字代表一隻鳥降落在地上(土),
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arriving "to" its destination.
"至"牠的目的地。
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The conjunction "must" reminds us of an ancient decree imposed on all men
連接詞"須"表達古代男人被要求
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that required them to maintain long beards and hair (彡) on their heads (頁).
頭上(頁)要留長髮及鬍子(彡)。
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All of these simple pictographic components
這些簡單的象形部件
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fit together like puzzle pieces
像拼圖一樣合在一起
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to create a balanced visually pleasing Chinese character of uniform size.
創造了一個大小相同, 整體視覺上"對稱"的中文字。
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Some of these component parts are thin and tall,
有一些部件比較細而長,
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others are short and wide,
有一些比較短而寬,
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and some bend.
還有一些是彎曲的。
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Depending on how many of these are combined,
根據一個字裡部件數量,
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along with the shape of each component part
以及每一個部件的形狀,
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the following layouts are possible:
有以下不同的中文字結構。
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2 or 3 component parts might be stacked vertically,
2到3個部件可以向上疊在一起,
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lined up next to each other horizontally,
或左右排在一起。
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one component could encompass or partially encompass another,
一個部件可以全部或部分圍著另一個部件,
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or any combination of these three.
或者以上三種結構互相結合。
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There are also rare instances where two components will merge together,
偶而,兩個部件也會合併在一起,
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as if one has been laid on top of the other.
像是其中一個躺在另一個上方。
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Additionally, some of these simple pictographic components - but not all -
另外,有些簡單的部件也可以獨立存在,
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are able to stand alone without combining with other components.
不須和其他部件結合。
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For example, the component "heart" (心) is often combined with other components
例如"心"這個部件常常和其它部件結合
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to help relay abstract meanings,
來表達抽象的意義,
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however it also stands alone for the actual Chinese ideograph "heart".
但它也是一個獨立的象形文字,表示"心"。
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The pronunciation of the components is worth learning
部件的發音是值得學習的,
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for they sometimes provide clues to the pronunciation
因為有時候部件的發音
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of the character in which they occur.
已經暗示了他們所在文字的發音。
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This means that even if it's your first time to see a new Chinese character,
也就是說,即使看到一個新的字,
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you can probably guess what it means and also guess how to say the character
如果你認得這些文字裡的部件,
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if you recognize all of the smaller parts that are in the character!
你也大概猜得到這個字的意思及發音,
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All of the components within a character contribute to its meaning,
每一個字裡的每一個部件都代表一個意義,
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and about half of the time
而有一半的機會
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one of the components will carry the pronunciation of the entire character.
其中一個部件便傳達了這個字的發音。
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However, this doesn't occur consistently
但是,這種情況發生的並不一致
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because the spoken language existed far before the written language.
因為口說語言比書寫語言早存在了好幾年。
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When creating Chinese characters, drawing them to relay the meaning
造中文字的時候,字跟意義間的關係
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of the character took precedence over relaying their pronunciation.
比字跟發音間的關係來的重要。
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However, as the Chinese script has evolved through the centuries,
然而,隨著中文字千百年來的演變,
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scholars have occasionally added additional components
學者有時會在字裡
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to the original version of some characters in an attempt
加入一些部件,
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to clarify the character's meaning or pronunciation.
讓字的意思或發音更清楚明瞭。
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It should also be noted that due to the evolution of the spoken Chinese language
值得一提的是,隨著中文口語的演變,
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sometimes the character is no longer pronounced the way it once was,
有時人們也不再依照古時的發音,
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and thus the phonetic clue - if present at all -
所以,原本可能提供發音的線索, --如果存在的話--
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may not be completely accurate.
也不完全正確了。
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The red component provides the character's pronunciation
紅色的部件是這個字的發音,
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Alright, you get the idea of how Chinese characters work.
好了,你現在了解中文字是如何形成的了,
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Now let's talk about numbers.
那麼來看一些數據吧。
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People often ask how many Chinese characters there are.
人們常問到到底有多少個中文字,
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Different sources give different numbers.
不同的來源提供不同的數字,
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One of the most famous dictionaries in China, the Kangxi dictionary,
其中,在中國最有名的字典, 康熙字典,
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contains over 47,000 characters.
收錄了超過47,000個中文字。
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The Taiwan Ministry of Education has been working to standardize
台灣教育部從1980年代
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traditional Chinese characters since the 1980's
就開始致力於讓繁體中文標準化,
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and to date they have published a total of 48,172 characters.
到目前為止, 已經建立了48,172個中文字了。
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The recently published Hanyu Da Cidian lists over 60,000 characters.
最新出版的"漢語大辭典"列舉了60,000個字。
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If we look at computer encoding, due to the necessity to type Chinese characters
以電腦打字來說,為了打出中文字,
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we find that Unicode 5.0 has approximately
Unicode 5.0的字表裡
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70,000 Chinese characters in its tables.
有將近70,000個中文字。
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And lastly, the 5th official version
最後,正式的第五版異體字字典
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of the Dictionary of Chinese Character Variants contains 106,230 characters.
包含了106,230個中文字。
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The good news is you don't really need to learn all of them.
好消息是,你不需要真的學會每一個字,
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The Taiwan Ministry of Education has published
台灣教育部編印了一個清單,
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a list of 4,808 most frequently used traditional Chinese characters,
列出最常用的4,080個中文繁體字,
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followed by an additional 6,341 second most frequently used
另外有次常用的6,341個
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traditional characters.
中文繁體字。
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In Hong Kong, the Education and Manpower Bureau
香港教育局
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established a list of 4,759 most frequently used traditional characters.
列出了最常用的4,759個中文繁體字。
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And in Mainland China,
在中國大陸,
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the Chart of Common Characters of Modern Chinese only contains
現代漢語常用字表
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3,500 in its list.
只包含了3,500個字。
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The point is, these characters cover 99% of a 2 million word sample,
重點是,這些字囊括在 兩百萬字樣本中的99%,
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which means that to be considered "literate",
也就是說,你只需要
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one really only need to recognize 3,500 simplified characters
認識3,500個簡體字,
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or 4,800 traditional characters.
或4,800個繁體字,就代表"識字"了。
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Phew!
太好了!
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So there you have it!
就是這樣了!
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Just by having watched this presentation you are already
光是看了這個介紹影片,
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way ahead of the race because you understand
你就已經領先了,
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that Chinese characters are much more
因為你已經知道中文字不只是
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than just a sequence of lines to be memorized.
一連串需要背起來的線條。
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A Chinese character is a picture
一個中文字是由
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created by combining several simpler pictographic components.
許多部件組合成的一個象形圖片。
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These simpler pictographic components are the "building blocks"
這些簡單的象形部件就是組成中文字的積木,
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of Chinese characters, just like alphabets are the building blocks
就像拼音文字中,
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of phonetic languages.
英文字母是組成英文字的積木一樣。
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We hope you enjoyed this "pictographic" video presentation!
希望你會喜歡這個"象形"的介紹影片。
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To learn how to use the intrinsic building block nature
為了瞭解如何使用
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of Chinese characters to your advantage in order
這種中文字積木的特性
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to quickly learn huge amounts of Chinese characters,
並快速地學會大量的中文字,
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watch the next video "The ABCS of Chinese Teaching Methodology".
請看接下來的影片 "The ABCs of Chinese Teaching Methodology",
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It will forever change your approach to learning Chinese characters!
它會徹底地改變你學中文的方法。
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And if you're just starting out or considering if you want to study
如果你才剛開始學中文, 或正在考慮是否要學,
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Chinese or not, already living in Asia and functionally illiterate,
或者目前住在亞洲國家但是個"功能性文盲",
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or studying Chinese in university be sure to watch the 3rd segment,
或者目前在大學裡學中文, 那麼就要看第三段影片,
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"The Importance of Learning Chinese".
“The Importance of Learning Chinese” (學中文的重要性)。 �