論汉语男性稱谓词及其文字符號

The Cultural Connotation in Male Appellations and Their Written Symbols

This paper studies the cultural connotation of three male appellati ons “男”(man), “夫”(husband) and “父”(father) from the perspective of Chinese linguistics, history and culture and folklore. The three Chinese characters refer to the different environment and growing phase a man was in. “男” symbolizes a man working in a filed; “夫”indicates a married man; “父” represents a sophisticated man with wives and children. There is a world of difference existed between “男” and “女”, “夫” and “妇” ,“父” and “母”. Such a huge difference stems from the highly-centralized patriarchal social system that China had adopted since Shang and Zhou Dynasties. While endowing men with high social status and noble reputation, patriarchal society imposed multiple behavior criterions and moral responsibilities upon men. By studying the cultural connotation in male appellations and their written symbols, we could find the interaction between Chinese linguistics and the history and social customs of Han ethnic group.