Western Summer

The Tangut state existed in the northwestern part of China (today's Gansu and Ordos regions) for almost 200 years, from 1032 until its downfall by Genghis Khan in 1227. After the reigns of Li Jiqian and Deming, during the reign of Li Yuanhao, he became emperor of the Great Xia state, completely seceded from Song rule, and established the Western Xia Kingdom, which controlled an area spanning over 10 states, including Xiazhou and Yinzhou at the time, and bordered Song to the east, Khitan (Liao) to the north, Uyghur to the west, and Tibet to the south. The official language was Western Xia, and the official script was Western Xia characters. The Western Xia script was promulgated in 1036 and was used for over 400 years. It was created to resemble Chinese characters, has a unique form and complex construction, and has a total of well over 6,000 characters. Today, most of the pronunciation and meanings are known. The Printing Bureau published many books, including word lists and rhyming books that organized the phonological structure, in order to popularize the use of letters.

Western Xia was a key transportation route between the East and the West, and monopolized the profits of trade. The country was roughly divided into agricultural and nomadic regions, with livestock farming and agriculture being the main industries, and salt from salt ponds being one of the important products. When the state was first founded, it imitated the Song Dynasty's official system, but gradually created its own unique system. The legal codes written in the Western Xia language, the Tiansheng Jiu Kaixin Dingqinling (1149), the (Guangding Jinshin) New Law (1212), and the Pig Year New Law (1215), remain. Official positions, both civil and military, were divided into three ranks: senior, middle, and lower. The county and prefecture system is unclear, but the names of four prefectures, 11 provinces, seven counties, six counties, and eight towns are recorded in the records of Western Xia literature. Indigenous religions similar to Bon religion were widespread among the general public, but Confucianism was revered among the upper classes, and works such as the Analects and Mencius were translated into Western Xia. Buddhism also flourished, and the government established offices such as the Office of Merit for Monks and the Office of Merit for Monks to support its growth. Temples and pagodas were built throughout the country, and Tibetan-style Buddhist art paintings have been discovered in Harakhoto and Dunhuang. Many types of sutras were translated from Chinese and Tibetan into Western Xia, and many Zen books, including the Zengen Zhuxian Jidu Xu, are now written in Western Xia. In terms of literature, works such as the New Collection of Jinshui Shochibun and the New Collection of Jinhe Daoli remain.

[Tatsuo Nishida]

“Nishika Monji” by Tatsuo Nishida (1980, Tamagawa University Press)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

中国の西北地域（いまの甘粛(かんしゅく)・オルドス地方）に、1032年からチンギス・ハンに滅ぼされる1227年まで、ほぼ200年間続いたタングート人の国家。李継遷(りけいせん)、徳明(とくめい)を経て、李元昊(りげんこう)の時代に大夏(たいか)皇帝と称し、宋(そう)の支配から完全に離脱して、当時の夏州、銀州など10数州にわたる地域を領有し、東は宋、北は契丹(きったん)（遼(りょう)）、西はウイグル、南はチベットに接する西夏王国が建設された。公用語を西夏語、公用文字を西夏文字と定めた。西夏文字は1036年に公布され、以後400年余り使われた。漢字を擬してつくられ、独特の形態と複雑な構成法をもっていて、全体で6000を大きく上回る文字がある。いまは大部分の発音と意味がわかっている。刻字司（印刷局）は、文字普及のため、単語集や音韻組織を整理した韻書など多くの書物を刊行した。

　西夏は東西交通の要路にあたり、貿易の利益を独占した。国土は農耕地域と遊牧地域に大別され、牧畜と農耕を主要産業として、塩池の産塩も重要産物の一つであった。建国当初は宋の官制を模倣したが、しだいに独自の体制をつくりあげた。西夏語で書かれた法典『天盛旧改新定禁令』（1149）、『（光定壬申(じんしん)）新法』（1212）、『猪年(ちょねん)新法』（1215）が残っている。官職は、文官、武官ともに上司、中司、下司の3階級に分けられた。郡県制度ははっきりしないが、4府、11州、7郡、6県、8鎮(ちん)の名が西夏文の記録にある。一般には、ボン教と通じる土着宗教が浸透していたが、上層部では儒教が崇(あが)められ、『論語』『孟子(もうし)』なども西夏語に訳されている。仏教も栄え、政府は、和尚(おしょう)功徳司、出家功徳司といった役所を設けて、仏教の隆盛を援助した。寺院や塔が各地に建立され、チベット風の仏教美術絵画がハラ・ホトや敦煌(とんこう)で発見されている。多種類の経典が漢訳やチベット訳から西夏語に翻訳され、禅籍も『禅源諸詮(せん)集都序』をはじめ、少なからず西夏文になっている。文学では『新集金砕掌置文(きんすいしょうちぶん)』『新集錦合道理』などの創作が残っている。

［西田龍雄］

『西田龍雄著『西夏文字』（1980・玉川大学出版部）』

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