Color Terms and Comparison of Their Connotations

in English and Chinese

[Abstract] Color terms are impersonal existence of nature, so it is beyond human beings’ category to learn about colors. And color not only has some objective attributions, it also contains various cultural connotations and extending meanings. And it will make language livelier to properly use color terms. As man can see color with their own eyes, it seems that people have the same description of color words. However, because different peoples have different geographic environments, customs, ways of thinking, religious beliefs, regimes, literature and arts and ways of living, there is no surprise that colors are described diversely in different countries. They show the particular personalities of each nation. And language is not only the carrier of culture, but also it is an important part of culture. In other words, culture includes and influences language. People could know culture through language. So only to combine culture with language can people success in communicating with each other. There are various color terms in both Chinese and English, and almost all of them have similar and different associations, indications and connotations in both the two languages. So to have a good master of the differences and similarities of these words and their associations, indications and cultural connotations is a prerequisite for a better understanding of the different cultures of Eastern and Western countries, which will make the communication between Eastern and Western countries easier.

[Key Words] color terms; cultural differences; comparison; connotation

英汉颜色词及其文化内涵比较

【摘要】 颜色是自然界客观存在的事物，因此对色彩的认识是人类最基本的认知范畴之一 . 色彩不仅具有物理属性，还有着丰富的文化内涵和延伸意义，恰当地使用颜色词能使语言生辉添色。颜色词作为一种视觉效果，人们对它的感知应该是一致的。但是，由于世界各民族语言表达受地理环境，民俗风情，思维方式，宗教信仰，社会制度，文学艺术及其生活方式的差异的影响，不同民族语言表达颜色词语多寡不一，分类各异，颜色词也表现各民族独特的“个性”。而语言不仅是文化的载体，也是文化的一个重要组成部分。换句话说，文化包含语言并影响语言，通过语言可以更好的了解文化。因此，必须把语言与文化知识结合起来才能顺利地进行交际。在英汉两种语言中，表示颜色的词汇占据了很大的一部分。而且，英汉两个民族对各种颜色词在视觉上和心理上所产生的联想，象征意义，蕴含的寓意不尽相同，同中有异，异中有同。因此，了解这些颜色词及其它们的联想象征意义和蕴涵的寓意在中西方的异同点，有利于我们更好地了解中西方的文化，并促进中西文化交流。