《左傳》人物名字考論八則

The Discussion on Eight Characters in Zuo Zhuan by Their First Names and Courtesy Names

本文討論《左傳》八位人物之名與字，具體結論如下：一、晉大夫狐突字伯行，取義《毛詩．小雅．六月》「元戎十乘，以先啟行。」「元戎」功能為「啟突敵陳」，又為軍隊之「啟行」。「啟突敵陳」之「突」有突擊義，「行」釋為「行列」或「道路」，名與字以此關聯。二、楚大夫文之無畏字子舟，「畏」讀「渨」而訓「沒」，期許乘舟不逢沉沒之事。三、衛人孫襄字伯國，名「襄」乃「攘除」之意，取義「攘除他國」。四、楚右司馬名寧字子國，「寧」取義止暴綏靖，取義「綏靖國家」。五、鄭卿駟歂字子然，《解詁》讀「歂」為「顓」、讀「然」為「㒄」，「顓」、「㒄」皆有敬慎義。六、宋卿仲幾亦字子然，其字與駟歂同，名與字關係可類比。仲幾之名讀「僟」，《說文》釋「精謹」；其字亦可讀「㒄」，名與字皆敬慎義。七、魯卿孟孺子名彘字洩，「彘」即豕、豬，乃已馴化之牲畜。字「洩」亦讀「」而訓「習」，名與字皆貫習義。八、齊人東郭賈字子方，名取義買而有之，字依〈鵲巢〉毛《傳》則釋為「有之」，名與字皆具「有」義。

This article discusses the first names and courtesy names of the eight characters in Zuo Zhuan, and the specific conclusions are as follows: 1. Hú, Tū (the Dàfū of Jin State) whose courtesy name is Bó-Xíng. His courtesy name refers to the sentence ''Yuán róng shí chéng, yǐ xiān qǐ xíng'' in the classic ''Máo Shī, Xiǎo Yǎ, June''. The function of ''yuán róng'' (a kind of chariot with four horses) is ''qǐ tū dí chén'' (to breach a main defense position). It always launches into the battle field first before troops and it is so-called ''qǐ xíng''. The word ''tū'' in the phrase ''qǐ tū dí chén'' is to breach the defense of enemy. The word ''xíng'' could be interpreted as a queue or a roadway. 2. Wén, Zhī-Wú-Wèi(畏) (the Dàfū of Chǔ State) whose courtesy name is Zi-Zhōu. The word ''wèi'' (畏) reads as the word ''wēi'' (渨) and it means to ''mò'' (to sink). Thus the meaning of his courtesy name is to hope that the boat will not be sunk while he is on board. 3. Sūn, Xiāng (from Wèi State) whose courtesy name is Bó-Guó. The meaning of the word ''xiāng'' is to resist. Thus it could be interpreted as to resist other States. 4. Gōng-Sūn, Níng (an assistant to a ranking official or general in Chǔ State) whose courtesy name is Zǐ-Guó. The meaning of the word ''níng'' is to stop violence and to appease. Thus it could be interpreted as to appease the State. 5. Sì, Chuǎn(歂) (the Qīng of Zhèng State) whose courtesy name is Zi-Rán(然). According to ''Jiě Gǔ, the word ''chuǎn''(歂) reads as the word ''zhuān'' (顓) and the word ''rán''(然) reads as the word ''rǎn''(㒄). Both ''zhuān''(顓) and ''rǎn''(㒄) could be interpreted as to be respectful and cautious. 6. Zhòng, Jǐ(幾) (the Qīng of Sòng State) whose courtesy name is Zi-Rán(然), too. His courtesy name and Sì, Chuǎn’s are the same; therefore, the first names and the courtesy names of these two persons might be deduced by analogy. The word ''jǐ''(幾) reads as ''jī''(僟). According to the classic ''Shuō Wén'', the word ''jī'' (僟) could be interpreted as to be conscientious and careful. The word ''rán'' (然) reads as the word ''rǎn'' (㒄), too. It could be interpreted as to be respectful and cautious. 7. Mèng, Zhì(彘) (the Qīng of Lǔ State) whose courtesy name is Xiè(洩). The meaning of the word ''zhì''(彘) is pig, a kind of domesticated livestock. The word ''xiè''(洩) reads as ''yì''() and it means ''xí''(to be skillful). Both his first name and his courtesy name could be interpreted as to understand thoroughly and to be skillful. 8. Dōng Guō, Gǔ (from Qí State) whose courtesy name is Zi-Fāng. The meaning of his name is to buy something and to own it. According to the classic ''Què Cháo Máo Zhuán'', his courtesy name could be interpreted as to own something. Thus, both his first name and courtesy name mean to own something.