“Speech is Civilization Itself”: A Comparison Drawn between the Chinese and Indian Cultural Tradition

Abstract

The great civilizations are created both in ancient China and India, but they differ considerably in the forms in which the culture achieves expression. This article puts in order the different forms from the aspects of language, linguistics, the philosophy of linguistics, the relation between language and literature, etc., which keep alive the cultural traditions of the two countries. The article explores the underlying causes and explains how the Indian Buddhism makes the direct connection with the ancient Chinese culture, and plays the complementary and supplementary role in the development of the ancient Chinese linguistics and literature.

Key words： language; linguistics; the linguistic philosophy; the relation between language and literature