The Sino-Vietnamese Negative Prefixes <i>bất</i>, <i>vô</i>, <i>phi</i> and Their Coexistence with Sentential Negators: A Synchronic and Diachronic Analysis
This paper presents a comprehensive synchronic and diachronic analysis of the Sino-Vietnamese negative prefixes <i>bất</i> (Chinese 不 <i>bù</i>), <i>vô</i> (無 <i>wú</i>), and <i>phi</i> (非 <i>fēi</i>), examining their historical...
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| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Languages |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2226-471X/10/6/146 |
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| Summary: | This paper presents a comprehensive synchronic and diachronic analysis of the Sino-Vietnamese negative prefixes <i>bất</i> (Chinese 不 <i>bù</i>), <i>vô</i> (無 <i>wú</i>), and <i>phi</i> (非 <i>fēi</i>), examining their historical development and modern usage in Vietnamese, with a comparative perspective on their Chinese equivalents. By investigating the interaction between these prefixes and Vietnamese sentential negators—such as the native <i>chẳng</i> and the Chinese-derived <i>không</i>—the study explores the evolution of negation in Vietnamese over several centuries. The research draws on a corpus of three bilingual Classical Chinese–Vietnamese translations of Confucius’s <i>Analects</i> from the 17th, 19th, and 21st centuries, two written in traditional <i>Nôm</i> script and one in the modern <i>Quốc ngữ</i> alphabet. This corpus provides valuable insights into linguistic shifts driven by language contact in Vietnam. The findings reveal that in the 17th century, the Sino-Vietnamese prefixes <i>bất</i>, <i>vô</i>, and <i>phi</i> were largely absent, with native <i>chẳng</i> dominating. By the 19th century, <i>chẳng</i> persisted, but <i>không</i> emerged as a sentential negator, and <i>bất</i> appeared, both reflecting Chinese forms and demonstrating innovative uses. In the 21st century, <i>không</i> became the dominant negator, with <i>bất</i> and <i>vô</i> seeing increased usage, reflecting broader trends of linguistic modernization. This study situates these changes within the broader context of 20th-century East Asian literacy expansion, where Japan played a pivotal role in disseminating modernized Chinese-based vocabulary. By examining the selective adaptation and integration of Sino-Vietnamese elements, this paper contributes to a deeper understanding of language contact, syntactic influence, and lexical innovation in the evolving Vietnamese lexicon. |
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| ISSN: | 2226-471X |