A Study on the Corresponding Phenomena of Chinese Characters in Relation to Sino-Vietnamese Elements
The study investigates the phenomenon of corresponding Chinese characters in relation to Sino-Vietnamese elements (SVEs). Generally, each SVE corresponds to one Chinese character. However, the SVE system also contains cases in which multiple SVEs share similar or corresponding Chinese characters. Among 3,010 commonly used SVEs, 201 elements were identified as having similar corresponding Chinese characters, accounting for 6.6% of the data surveyed. The phenomenon of corresponding Chinese character similarity in SVEs is formed based on the relationship between SVEs and their corresponding Chinese characters in terms of pronunciation and meaning. This phenomenon is categorized into two groups: the first group is formed based on the adaptation of Chinese characters with multiple pronunciations; the second group is formed based on the adaptation of Chinese characters with multiple meanings. The number of SVEs in group 1 includes 129 elements、 accounting for 64%, while group 2 includes 72 elements, accounting for 36%. This reflects that the formation of SVEs tends to favor phonetic compatibility over semantic compatibility with the original Chinese characters. This phenomenon differs from the phenomenon of phonetic variation in SVEs. Though both phenomena share similarities in terms of their correlation with Chinese script and linguistic complexity, they differ in meaning and substitutability. In terms of origin, phonetic variation arises from factors such as name taboo、 phonetic distortion, and linguistic habit. In contrast, the phenomenon of corresponding Chinese character similarity in SVEs reflects the Vietnamese language’s ability to adapt Chinese script both selectively and creatively in terms of meaning. This phenomenon also demonstrates the capacity of Vietnamese to both preserve similarity and creatively modify pronunciation when assimilating Chinese script. The methods of expanding pronunciations in SVEs (five methods) reflect the diversity and also the lack of standardization in the process of forming this system of increased pronunciations. The phenomenon of corresponding Chinese character similarity in SVEs also reflects the capacity for development and the influence of Chinese characters in terms of meaning and pronunciation within a distinct linguistic environment like Vietnamese.