[2] After graduating from high school in Yueyang, Yang entered the Department of Linguistics of Sun Yat-sen University in 1951.

He studied historical Chinese phonology under advisors Luo Changpei and Lu Zhiwei, and earned his associate doctor degree in 1960.

[1][3] He subsequently worked at the Institute of Linguistics (which became part of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in 1977) for his entire career.

His research on the ʼPhags-pa script, Zhongyuan Yinyun, and the development of modern Chinese phonology is especially influential.

[1][2] His major works include Menggu Ziyun Jiaoben (蒙古字韵校本; A critical edition of the Menggu Ziyun), co-authored with Junast in 1987; Zhongyuan Yinyun Yinxi (中原音韵音系; The phonological system of Zhongyuan Yinyun); and Jindai Hanyu Yinlun (近代汉语音论; A treatise on modern Chinese phonology).