Looking for terms of address, taboos, and euphemisms?

What is an address term?

According to the explanation of "Modern Chinese Dictionary", "title" refers to "the name that people get due to relatives and other relationships, as well as due to status, occupation, etc." Appellations are both language and Phenomenon is also a social and cultural phenomenon. In any language, address terms play an important role in social etiquette.

Generally speaking, titles can be divided into two types: kinship titles and social titles.

(1). Relative appellation

Relative appellation refers to a name that determines the relationship between a family member and the person with the person as the center. It is a name and title for relatives to call each other based on blood and marriage. It is a symbol that determines the relationship between relatives and the person with the person as the axis.

In modern Chinese, most kinship titles can clearly show their identity, such as generation (father: uncle, uncle; peers: brother, sister, cousin), paternal or maternal line (aunt, aunt) ), direct or collateral lineage (grandson, grandnephew), age (uncle, uncle, brother, brother) and blood or marriage relatives (brother, sister-in-law, sister, brother-in-law).

The Chinese kinship appellation system is complex and diverse, and direct and collateral lines, blood relatives and in-laws, elders and juniors, older and younger, male and female, close relatives and distant relatives, etc. are strictly regulated and distinguished one by one. , its detailed semantic function and precise description are breathtaking.

(2) Social titles

Social titles refer to the title customs that reflect people’s mutual relationships in social life, except for relatives’ titles. Social titles are divided into non-relative titles and contextual titles. Non-relative titles are those titles that express interpersonal relationships based on the "person" standard in social life, excluding titles that express kinship.

Social titles in Chinese can basically be used as titles as long as they have titles. Such as Monitor Shi, Assistant Zhang, Section Chief Wu, Accountant Chen, etc. All positions: ministers, governors, directors, department directors, principals, deans, factory directors, managers, etc.; military ranks: general, lieutenant general, lieutenant colonel, second lieutenant, etc.; professional titles: engineer, senior engineer, professor, lecturer , editor and reviewer, etc.; degree: doctorate; occupation: doctor, nurse, teacher, accountant, lawyer, coach, etc. You can add your surname to address others.

(3) Honorific and modest words

The cultural tradition of the Chinese nation requires that people should use honorifics and modesty towards others in their interactions, and should try their best to belittle themselves and elevate others. Humility, respect and politeness, etc. Therefore, there are a large number of honorific and modest words and phrases in Chinese. For example, he calls himself "I, my humble, my younger brother, my subordinate, my elder brother, etc." and calls my family members "my father, my dear, my elder brother, my east, my dear, my humble wife, my son, my son, etc." The above are modest names. The honorific titles for others include "your lord, your wife, your lord, your mansion, your lord, your brother, your son, your daughter, your grandson, etc." and "...jun,...gong,...lao, etc." This kind of respectful and humble speech reflects the relatively unique interpersonal attitude of the Chinese people.

A. "The family is big and the family is small, but the outsiders are small"

a. When referring to one's elders and older peers as "family", such as family father (family strictness), family mother (family kindness), family uncle, family brother, etc.;

b. When referring to family members who are younger than oneself, the title "She" is used, such as brother-in-law, sister-in-law, nephew-in-law, etc.; (she, house between, contains the meaning of family.)

c. When calling people in other people's families, use "ling" to show respect, such as your father's house, your father's honor, your son, your love, etc.

B. In addition, "dog", "little girl", "step", etc. can also be used to express humility.

For example: Interesting talk about age titles

Since ancient times, our country has had many titles for infants, young, young, young, strong, middle-aged and old. Tasteful and fun.

Under one year old - infancy; 2~3 years old - child; 7 years old for girls - 40 years old;

8 years old for boys - 40 years old; general term for childhood - total angle ; Under 10 years old - Huangkou;

13~15 years old - the year of dancing spoon; 15~20 years old - the year of dancing elephant; 12 years old (female) - the year of golden hairpin;

13 years old (female) - the age of cardamom, 15 years old (female) - the age of hairpin, 16 years old (female) - the age of broken melons and jasper;

20 years old (female) )——The age of peach and plum blossoms; 24 years old (female) the age of flowers and letters; to get married——the year of plum blossoms;

To 30 years old (female)——half-old lady; 20 years old (male)—— - Weak crown; 30 years old (male) - the age of 30;

40 years old (male) - the age of fortitude and strength;

50 years old - over half a century old , the year of knowing wrong, the year of knowing destiny, the year of AI service, the year of Dayan;

60 years old - sixty years old, flat-headed armor, ear-shun year, and the year of Zhangxiang;

70 years old - the age of ancient times, the year of the country of the stick, the year of doing things, the year of the government;

80 years old - the year of the stick dynasty; 80~90 years old - the age of the octogenarian; 90 years old The year of the back; 100 years old - Qi Yi.

Exercise:

Please choose one of the following items that uses communicative language appropriately. ( )

A. Listening to the lofty opinions of all the sages today, it was really enlightening. B. This is my humble work, please enlighten me.

C. My brother-in-law is very hot-tempered, so I hope you can bear with me. D. My family is very strict in my upbringing, and my father-in-law often warns me to be an honest person in society.

3. Taboo words

What are taboo words?

In language communication, there are some words that cannot be said casually. Saying them may cause the listener to be unhappy and disgusted. These are what is called "taboo words" in linguistics.

Contents that need to be avoided in daily conversations generally include:

1. Physical defects.

Such as deafness, blindness, numb face, hunched back, short legs, abnormal facial features, and inappropriate fat or thinness. If the other party is not so intimate, or the other party is not cheerful and generous enough, you should avoid all of the above when speaking, and you have to use indirect expressions as a last resort.

2. Family misfortune.

Such as the death of a relative, divorce of parents, discord between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, tense relationship between father and son, bad moral character of children, cold knees in old age, hidden problems in the body, and incurable diseases, which are not mentioned by the parties concerned voluntarily , it is not appropriate to ask rashly.

3. Personal shortcomings in dealing with others, deficiencies in academic ability, various unseemly experiences and current situations, these are also sensitive nerves that do not want others to collide.

4. Specific customs and habits.

The Hui people do not eat pork, and of course they don’t like people talking about pigs. Westerners generally don't like others asking about their age and salary. In many rural areas, it is taboo for people to come to collect debts during the New Year and festivals, and they are afraid that people will say unlucky words when there is a happy occasion. If you don't know this, you can unintentionally make people unhappy.

It has long been a matter of concern for people to avoid taboos when speaking. Let’s discuss the specific methods of avoiding taboos. Generally, there are the following aspects for reference:

1. Change the statement and find alternatives.

Be polite to the lame person and say, "Your legs are inconvenient, please go first!" Show care to the deaf person by saying, "You are deaf, please sit forward!" Lao Zhang is fat. He was born "rich", Lao Li was thin, he was "slim", he was injured and bleeding because he was "dead", and the coffin prepared for the end of his life was "longevity material".

2. Pay attention to the language environment to prevent resentment.

If your lover does something wrong, it doesn’t matter how much you criticize him or her behind closed doors. If you scold him or her in front of outsiders, where will you put your face? There are a few who don’t shy away from it!

3. Pay attention to the language objects to avoid misunderstandings.

A person who is familiar with foreign literature talks about the importance of mastering foreign languages ??in front of several people who are not familiar with foreign languages. He even says that in today's era, if you don't master a foreign language, you are simply a new type of illiteracy.

4. Ask about the customs when entering the country, and do as the customs do when entering the country. This way you can take the initiative to avoid taboos.

In Sichuan dialect, "tongue" has the same pronunciation as "zhe" and "eclipse". Businessmen in Sichuan hotel butcher shops consider this to be auspicious, so they call pig tongue and beef tongue "pig attracts wealth". , "Cow attracts wealth", when you arrive in Sichuan, don't keep talking about buying pig tongue or cow tongue. Nanjing people are taboo about giving umbrellas as gifts when they get married. "Umbrella" and "san" have the same pronunciation, which is very unlucky. Of course I can't say that I can't give it away. Shanghainese people are not allowed to bring apples when visiting patients. In fact, it is a homophony. It turns out that in Shanghai dialect, "apple" and "die of illness" are pronounced in the same way. In order to avoid being unhappy, you have to follow the custom and control your tongue.

Exercise: Are the following slogans consistent with the location where they are posted?

A. At the entrance of the examination room: Failure is the mother of success B. In the workshop of the cigarette factory: Smoking is strictly prohibited

C. At the entrance of the bathhouse: Visitors are not allowed D. At the entrance of the crematorium: Improve the economy. The population has dropped

E. The entrance of the hospital: feel at home F. The placard at a certain city intersection: Dora, run against time

4. Euphemism

Euphemism Euphemism is a common language phenomenon in communication that corresponds to direct language or taboo language. In fact, euphemism is produced under the constraints and effects of context to reflect the psychological needs of the communicative subject. The expresser does not speak directly It is a linguistic phenomenon in which the original meaning is replaced by a 'saying' that has the same reference or meaning as the direct language.

Think about: Under what circumstances are euphemisms usually used, and how should they be used? ?

Discuss and summarize:

1. People never speak directly about some things or phenomena and must use polite words. If people avoid saying "death", they can use other words to say "pass away", "see Marx", "gone"...

2. For certain diseases, physical defects, etc., it is often necessary to Use polite words.

3. When talking about oneself in communication, humility is often used. For example, describing one's own opinions as "immature opinions" and describing one's outstanding achievements as "I haven't done enough", etc.

4. When asking others to do something in communication, the imperative tone is often used to express discussion. If you are borrowing a pen from someone else, you can say: "Please lend me the pen for a while, okay?"

5. When someone asks you to do something you don't want to do, you can use someone else's pen. Reasons to politely decline. If someone invites you to go to a movie and you don’t want to go, you can say: "I'm sorry, I'm very busy today. Let's go another day."

6. When criticizing others, try to use polite words and soften your tone to avoid lest the other person Resistance arises.

Exercise:

At a meeting for persons with disabilities, the deputy director of the Civil Affairs Bureau said excitedly: "I saw that everyone has overcome many difficulties and achieved such great results. It's really disappointing. People are happy. I think everyone here must read more, study more, and keep their minds clear. What is the use of a person without wisdom? The disabled man left in anger.

If you are waiting in line to buy something and a person from behind cuts in front of you, what should you say?

A. "Don't jump in line! Be more conscious!" B. "Queue in order, please go to the back!" C. "Please don't jump in line!"

D. "You If there's an emergency, please stand here and I'll line up behind you."

At the market, a salesperson noticed that a customer peeled off a lot of vegetable leaves while buying vegetables. So she stepped forward and said a kind word. What do you think she should say to be tactful?

A. "Comrade, you can't peel off the leaves!" B. "Be careful, you can't buy vegetables like this!"

C. "Please be careful, don't Knocked off the vegetable leaves.

” D. “Is there such a way to buy groceries?” Who wants the vegetable leaves you peeled off? ”

Which one of the above uses euphemisms?

5. Summary

In communication, we have learned accurate names, pay attention to avoid taboos, and can use them skillfully With gentle words, there will be more understanding and friendship in the world, and there will naturally be more harmony and civilization in human interactions.

6. Assign homework:

1. Today is a good day for the one-month-old son of Wang Fang’s good friend Luo Hong. Wang Fang cannot attend the banquet due to important matters. She wants to express her apology and blessings to Luo Hong. Wang Fang should say:

2. Li Lei’s uncle was sick and hospitalized. Li Lei went to the hospital to visit him. When he saw his uncle, he quickly stepped forward and said respectfully:

3. Engineer Li and his wife paid tribute to their Japanese During the family dinner held by a good friend from China, the Japanese lady said very politely: "Mrs. Li is so elegant, just like us Japanese women, she doesn't look like a Chinese. "How should Mrs. Li answer?