Definition
中古 refers to a historical period: in Chinese historiography, it covers roughly the 3rd to 9th centuries (Wei-Jin through Tang). It is also used to translate the European Middle Ages, though 中世纪 is more common for that sense. As a noun, it appears in academic contexts like history, linguistics (中古汉语), and archaeology.
n.
middle antiquity (3rd–9th cent. in Chinese history)Middle Ages (European context)
Examples
- 中古。zhōng gǔ shíqī de wénhuà duì Zhōngguó wénxué yǐngxiǎng hěn dà.The culture of the middle antiquity period had a great influence on Chinese literature.
- 中古515。Xīfāng zhōng gǔ tōngcháng zhǐ gōngyuán wǔ shìjì dào shíwǔ shìjì.The Western Middle Ages usually refer to the 5th to 15th centuries AD.
- 中古。Yánjiū zhōng gǔ Hànyǔ xūyào liǎojiě dāngshí de yǔyīn xìtǒng.Studying Middle Chinese requires understanding the phonetic system of that time.
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