Treason by Bilingualism? Xenophobia, Clique, and the Impeachment of Yu Jing

Abstract

余靖（1000-1064）精通汉文和契丹文， 而且与辽人交好，熟悉当地文化，是北宋与 辽国外交上的一名重要使节。余靖优秀的双 语能力让他在宋夏关系紧张之时发挥了不可 取代的调解作用，然而，这个优点却似乎同 时成为了他被宋廷猜忌以及贬谪的主因。史 载余靖最终因为一首以契丹文书写、逢迎契 丹统治者的胡语诗，被宋廷弹劾，后人亦多 确信此事乃余靖取败之道。本文尝试从北宋 政局入手，考索余靖被遭劾的真正原因。除 了考证相关胡语诗的本事，也重新检视余靖 因宋人夷夏观而被贬谪的论调，通过对于余 靖政坛交往及当时宋廷党争的局面，归纳出 余靖最终被贬谪，乃是因为其被政敌反复对 付的结果。 A gifted linguist, diplomat, and negotiator, Yu Jing (1000-1064) is uniquely qualified among Northern Song officials in his extensive knowledge of Khitan language and culture. At a time when Liao-Song relationship was at its most contentious, the advantage of having an official who could communicate fluently in both languages cannot be overstated. However, according to official history, not only did his bilingualism not endear him to the court, it aroused constant suspicion and led to his eventual impeachment, which occurred after he composed a poem in the Khitan language and presented it to the Emperor of the Liao State as a token of gratitude. The purpose of this paper is to reexamine the cause of Yu Jing’s indictment in the context of political machination. By contextualizing his composition of the Poem in the Language of the Barbarian and subsequent impeachment within the politics of the court, my goal is to supplement, even challenge, our above conventional acceptance of xenophobia as the sole cause of Yu’s downfall. In doing so, I hope to point out the potential flaw of our current understanding of Song diplomacy as guilelessly dictated by its inferiority complex and0xenophobic sentiments.