Frontmatter -- Acknowledgements -- Contents -- List of maps, figures and tables -- List of abbreviations -- Chapter 1. Introduction -- Chapter 2. Directional verbs in modern Cantonese A typological perspective -- Chapter 3. Directional verbs in modern Chinese dialects. A synchronic perspective -- Chapter 4. Directional verbs in early Chinese dialects A diachronic perspective -- Chapter 5. Conclusion -- References -- Appendix 1. Major chronological divisions of Chinese history -- Appendix 2. Samples of early dialectal materials -- Language index -- Subject index