Abstract
Language issues occupy a special and significant position in the field of folklore studies, not only because folklore has the inherent characteristic of “oral transmission and practical teaching”, but also because oral language serves as the carrier of folk literature and the core medium of cultural heritage. As the founder and leader of 20th-century Chinese folklore studies, Zhong Jingwen places particular emphasis on linguistic phenomena related to folklore. From the perspective of a folklorist, he elaborates on the nature and functions of language, and the relationship between language and folklore. His works cover fundamental concepts and dual attributes of language, as well as the academic value, historical development, theoretical perspectives, and research methods of linguistic folklore studies. He stresses that language research cannot be separated from its users, social activities, and cultural factors, explicitly stating that “folk language is a folkloric phenomenon” and placing special emphasis on the value of oral language. He strongly advocates the establishment of “linguistic folklore” as a vital branch of folklore studies, proposing clear conceptualizations regarding its name, disciplinary status, research perspectives, and methodologies. His ideas have laid the theoretical foundation and provided methodological insights for subsequent research, thus playing a pivotal pioneering and guiding role in advancing linguistic folklore from fragmented observations to a systematic discipline.
Key words
Zhong Jingwen /
linguistic thoughts /
linguistic folklore /
oral language
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Huang Tao.
Zhong Jingwen’s Language Perspective and Its Guidance for the Development of Linguistic Folklore[J]. Chinese Journal of Language Policy and Planning. 2026, 11(2): 53-63 https://doi.org/10.19689/j.cnki.cn10-1361/h.20260204
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