異族傳說的圖文流傳：「恆與鶴戰」的小人國故事

Abstract

小人神話自先秦已有流傳。晚明時，日用類書「諸夷門」與傳教士製《坤輿萬國全圖》中，皆含相似「恆與鶴戰」的小人故事，此前研究多以中西二者的影響關係討論。不過，若將跨時代、文化的相似傳說納入比較，可發現這種傳播關係複雜、長期、多次、多元。古埃及遺跡、古希臘-羅馬神話與地理記載及古阿拉伯文獻中均記有此情節，小人的「居住地」亦有非洲、印度、歐亞大陸北部甚至中國、北美等不同說法，中文古籍中的小人國故事也存在不同類型。本文通過耙梳多文化圖文中「恒與鶴戰」的小人國神話，嘗試分辨脈絡以探討異族傳說的流傳。此外，不同時代對小人傳說的定位與解讀，反映了傳說異族從古代神話地理知識進入近代自然科學考察視野，又回歸神話學範疇的認知脈絡。

The myth of pygmies has been circulated since the pre-Qin period. In the late Ming dynasty, similar legends of "pygmies and cranes" can be found in the first Chinese world map "Kunyu Wanguo Quantu" drawn by western missionary, as well as "Categories of Various Barbarians" which represents popular exotic knowledge. In previous studies, discussions are mostly focusing on the relationship between Chinese and western culture; however, the communication process is complex. Myths, travel literature, and images from multiple cultures share the same plot, such as ancient Egyptian artifacts, Greek and Roman mythical and geographical literature, and Arabic illustrations. The "habitation" of pygmies is also various, including Africa, India, northern Eurasia, China, and North America. Moreover, legend of pygmies has several branches in Chinese mythology. Instead of finding out the prototype or origin, this article aims to explore the spread of legends by collating images and texts of similar motif in multicultural context. Besides, the worldwide myth of "pygmies and cranes" may contribute to the discussion of the roles that legendary races represent in the exotic knowledge system of different eras.