字序、字說是宋人在古代命名取字的文化傳統上所創發的新體裁，由古文家柳開、穆修等人開啟書寫風氣，具古人「丁寧訓誡之義」，可以說是北宋古文運動的文化產物。其中黃庭堅多達五十餘篇的「字序」（字說）書寫，可稱宋人之冠，其內涵以道為核心，強調心性修養，體現宋代文化的精神；至於說「名」解「字」更是別出心裁，運用數典用事、引譬連類、排比映襯及反覆設問等修辭手法，大大提昇具實用取向、議論性質的字說一體的文學性，使字說書寫充滿文化新意。

An essay on the reasons of giving the literary name was new genre in Song Dynasty, which Liu Kai, Mu Xiu created it on the ceremony of giving the literary name. To Huang Ting-jian, he wrote over fifty works, which were the first in Song Dynasty. The content takes “way” as the core, emphasizes moral cultivation, which reflect the cultural spirit of Song Dynasty. And he used much rhetoric, like factual allusion, arrange in order, trope and so on, which elevated the literiness on giving the literary name.