A Re-evaluation of Qingqing Zhongzhuo（轻清重浊）: Focusing on Chinese Prosody

Abstract

Mair and Mei 1991 suggest that the Sanskrit terms laghu and guru are the origins of “level” and “deflected” tones, which are the key concepts of Chinese Prosody. By re-evaluating the definition of Qingqing Zhongzhuo with the aid of Bunkyoohihuron and Siddhaṃ corpus, this paper arrives at the conclusion that Mair and Mei’s argument is flawed. This paper also reviews two blind spots of current research on Qingqing Zhongzhuo as well as the definition of relevant terms such as Tongyun（通韵）, Luoyun（落韵）, Qingyun（清韵）and Zhuoyun（浊韵）. These terms are found to be related to the initials of Chinese and Sanskrit phonology.