西夏語在漢藏語言比較研究中的地位

The Position of Tangut in the Comparative Study of Sino-Tibetan Languages

西夏語是漢藏語系，藏緬語族的語言，它擁有十一、二世紀的文獻記錄，是漢藏語系四大古典語言之一，在原始漢藏語與原始藏緬語的構擬中佔有很重要的地位。西夏語中所保存的漢藏同源詞，有助於解決漢語上古音構擬中所發生的若干爭論，而它所保存的藏緬同源詞則提供給藏緬語比較研究非常寶貴的材料。可惜在以往的漢藏語以及藏緬語的比較研究中，西夏語幾乎完全受到忽視。本文舉了一些具體的例證，討論西夏語中所保存的漢藏與藏緬同源詞，對漢語上古音的研究以及原始藏緬語的構擬提供了哪些重要的資訊。

Tangut is an extinct Tibeto-Burman language, recorded in the literature of the 11th and 12th centuries. It is one of the four classic languages of the Sino-Tibetan language family, and plays an important role in the reconstruction of Proto-TibetoBurman as well as Proto-Sino-Tibetan. The Sino-Tibetan cognates preserved in Tangut help clarify some issues in the reconstruction of Old Chinese, whereas the Tibeto-Burman cognates in it provide valuable information for the reconstruction of Proto-Tibeto-Burman. Unfortunately, Tangut has been completely neglected in the comparative study of Tibeto-Burman languages as well as Sino-Tibetan languages. This paper gives some concrete examples to show how Tangut cognates provide important information for the comparative study of Sino-Tibetan and Tibeto-Burman languages.