70-583: Monumenta Serica: Journal of Oriental Studies (Chin. 華裔學志, Huayi xuezhi) is an international academic journal of sinology . It was published by Monumenta Serica Institute in Sankt Augustin , and now by Routledge . The editor-in-chief was until 2012 Roman Malek and is now Zbigniew Wesołowski . The journal was founded in 1935 in the Fu Jen Catholic University in Peking by Franz Xaver Biallas . It
140-515: A Portuguese trading post on the South China Sea . At the time, Christian missionary activity in China was almost completely limited to Macau, where some of the local Chinese people had converted to Christianity. Three years before, Michele Ruggieri was invited from Portuguese India expressly to study Chinese, by Alessandro Valignano , founder of St. Paul Jesuit College (Macau) , and to prepare for
210-701: A bridge of communication between the Arab and Chinese peoples. Their interest in the history of China also increased greatly. Many books related to the history of Chinese culture and its people were published in the Arabic language. In 2020 after spending about six years as a consul in Guangzhou , Ali bin Ghanem Al-Hajri , a Qatari diplomat who is considered one of the Arabs with a lot of original Arabic academic works in sinology, published
280-580: A permanent Jesuit mission outside Macau. In 1583, Ricci and Ruggieri settled in Zhaoqing, at the invitation of the governor of Zhaoqing, Wang Pan, who had heard of Ricci's skill as a mathematician and cartographer. Ricci stayed in Zhaoqing from 1583 to 1589, when he was expelled by a new viceroy. It was in Zhaoqing, in 1584, that Ricci composed the first European-style world map in Chinese, called "Da Ying Quan Tu" ( Chinese : 大瀛全圖 ; lit. 'Complete Map of
350-543: A rich variety of approaches and disciplines, whether they be mainly empirical or more theoretically inflected." Chinese historical sources indicate that the Chinese had knowledge of the Arabs several centuries before Islam, as the history of relations between the two civilizations dates back to the pre-Islamic era. The policy of the Han Dynasty (206 BC) aimed at opening trade routes with the western regions, which are today called Central Asia, India and Western Asia, extending to
420-526: A small scale at that time. Ain Shams University opened the Chinese language specialization in 1958. However, the course was stopped for prevailing political reasons at the time. In the period between 1958 and 1963, 33 Chinese language students graduated from Egyptian universities. In 1977, Ain Shams University reintroduced the Sinology specialization course. In addition to Egypt, there were activities to teach
490-706: Is a well-known historical figure in the Arabian Peninsula, made significant contributions to Sinology. Al-Masoudi has traveled all over the world since he was a child, visiting faraway places. In the year 915, he visited India, Ceylon, Champa, and the coastal regions of China, and then visited Zabagh and Turkistan in Central Asia. He died in the year 956, and he is the author of the book "Meadows of Gold", which deals with history, geography, and other fields. He had many records about China, and these records were popular among orient scholars. Abu Zayd's book "On China and India"
560-409: Is an academic discipline that focuses on the study of the Chinese civilization primarily through Chinese language , history , culture , literature , philosophy , art , music , cinema , and science . Its origin "may be traced to the examination which Chinese scholars made of their own civilization." The academic field of sinology often refers to Western scholarship. Until the 20th century, it
630-406: Is called the "commentarial tradition" through critical annotated translation. This emphasis on translating classical texts inhibited the use of social science methodology or comparing these texts of other traditions. One scholar described this type of sinology as "philological hairsplitting" preoccupied with marginal or curious aspects. Secular scholars gradually came to outnumber missionaries, and in
700-466: Is clear from the foregoing that there had been friction between China and the Arabs from a long time ago, and that there are cultural and commercial relations existing between the Arab and Chinese civilizations, which required the visiting Arabs to learn the Chinese language and vice versa. However, there are no texts indicating that the Arabs during this period studied the Chinese language or culture beyond what their missionary or trades affairs demanded, and
770-582: Is dedicated to the study of Chinese culture and to the publication of academic contributions in the field of Chinese studies in English, German and French. The journal is published annually. Back issues of Monumenta Serica are accessible through JSTOR . This journal is indexed in SCOPUS. Sinology Sinology , also referred to as China studies , is a subfield of area studies or East Asian studies involved in social sciences and humanities research on China. It
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#1733084922585840-756: Is the completion of their faith, and explained the tenets of the Catholic faith through existing Chinese precepts and practices. He borrowed an unusual Chinese term, Tiānzhǔ ( 天主 , "Lord of Heaven") to describe the God of Abraham , despite the term's origin in traditional Chinese worship of Heaven . (He also cited many synonyms from the Confucian Classics.) Ricci took an accommodating approach on various Chinese practices, including rituals such as ancestor worship. Dominican and Franciscan missionaries considered this an unacceptable accommodation and later appealed to
910-713: The Arabic Sin —which ultimately derive from "Qin", i.e. the Qin dynasty . In the context of area studies , the European and the American usages may differ. In Europe, sinology is usually known as "Chinese studies", whereas in the United States, sinology is a subfield of Chinese studies. A China watcher is a person who monitors current events and power struggles in China . In Japan, sinology
980-824: The Confucian classics into Latin for the first time in history. Ricci was born on 6 October 1552 in Macerata , part of the Papal States and today a city in the Italian region of Marche . He studied the classics in his native hometown and studied law at Rome for two years. He entered the Society of Jesus in April 1571 at the Roman College . While there, in addition to philosophy and theology, he also studied mathematics, cosmology, and astronomy under
1050-566: The Dark Ages . Among the European literati interested in China was Voltaire , who wrote the play L'orphelin de la Chine inspired by The Orphan of Zhao , Leibniz who penned his famous Novissima Sinica (News from China) and Giambattista Vico . Because Chinese texts did not have any major connections to most important European topics (such as the Bible), they were scarcely studied by European universities until around 1860. An exception to this
1120-739: The National Central Library of Taiwan opened jointly the Matteo Ricci Pacific Studies Reading Room and the Taipei-based online magazine eRenlai , directed by Jesuit Benoît Vermander , dedicated its June 2010 issue to the commemoration of the 400th anniversary of Ricci's death. The True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven (天主實義) is a book written by Ricci, which argues that Confucianism and Christianity are not opposed and in fact are remarkably similar in key respects. It
1190-602: The University of Chicago . Tsou emphasized the importance of academic objectivity in general and in sinology in particular, stressing that intellectual and academic exchange between China and the West was the only way for both parties to come to a greater understanding of one another. In 1964 an exchange in the pages of the Journal of Asian Studies debated the continued relevance of sinology. The anthropologist G. William Skinner called for
1260-617: The Vatican on the issue. This Chinese rites controversy continued for centuries. In 1721, fallout from the controversy led the Kangxi emperor to expel the Jesuits. The Vatican's most recent statement on the Chinese rites controversy came in 1939. Some contemporary authors have praised Ricci as an exemplar of beneficial inculturation , avoiding at the same time distorting the Gospel message or neglecting
1330-623: The Zhalan Cemetery , which is today located within the campus of the Beijing Administrative College , in Xicheng District , Beijing. Ricci was succeeded as Provincial Superior of the China mission by Nicolò Longobardo in 1610. Longobardo entrusted another Jesuit, Nicolas Trigault , with expanding and editing, as well as translating into Latin, those of Ricci's papers that were found in his office after his death. This work
1400-564: The "Chinese Institute" in Naples—the first school of sinology on the European continent, and sanctioned by Pope Clement XII . The institute was first nucleus of what would become today's Università degli studi di Napoli L'Orientale . Ripa had worked as a painter and copper-engraver in the court of the Kangxi Emperor between 1711 and 1723, and returned to Naples with four young Chinese Christians, who all taught their native language and formed
1470-552: The 20th century sinology slowly gained a substantial presence in Western universities. The Paris-based type of sinology dominated learning about China until the Second World War even outside France. Paul Pelliot , Henri Maspero , and Marcel Granet both published basic studies and trained students. Pelliot's knowledge of the relevant languages, especially those of Central Asia, and control of bibliography in those languages, gave him
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#17330849225851540-514: The 20th century, projects of cooperation between China and the Arab countries led to the development of Sinology in the Arab countries nominally after expanding the scope of Chinese-Arab cooperation in the field of education, with some difference according to the level of cooperation. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Egypt in 1956, Egypt began to open the Chinese language specialization course in Egyptian universities, but on
1610-703: The 400th anniversary of Matteo Ricci's death, the Italy Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo in China commissioned Italian sculptor Dionisio Cimarelli to create a monumental bust in his honor. This sculpture was later exhibited for about two years at the Italian Embassy in Beijing. Subsequently, the Marche Regional Government purchased the work, while the original model is now permanently exhibited at
1680-747: The Arab world, although it was not published until recently. He also published "China in the Eyes of Travelers", a book that delved deep into the history of ancient China through the discoveries made by travellers and explorers. Al-hajri further wrote the book "Arts in the Ming Dynasty", in which he elaborated on the political and economic development of the Ming Dynasty and the historical development of Chinese culture. Four of his books are translated into Chinese Many books have been translated from Chinese into Arabic as part of these efforts. Where more than 700 books about
1750-610: The Arabian Peninsula and Africa. Historical studies confirmed that Muslim Arabs entered China during the early days of Islam to spread the religion, when four of Muhammad's companions namely Saad bin Abi Waqqas, Jaafar bin Abi Talib, and Jahsh bin Riab preached in China in the year 616/17. During the reign of Emperor Yongle, the first Chinese fleet arrived on the shores of the Arabian Peninsula, led by Zheng He , on his fourth voyage in 1412 AD. It
1820-635: The Chinese language and writing system. He became the first European to enter the Forbidden City of Beijing in 1601 when invited by the Wanli Emperor , who sought his services in matters such as court astronomy and calendrical science . He emphasized parallels between Catholicism and Confucianism but opposed Buddhism . He converted several prominent Chinese officials to Catholicism. He also worked with several Chinese elites, such as Xu Guangqi , in translating Euclid's Elements into Chinese as well as
1890-563: The Chinese language in Kuwait as well, but they stopped after a short period. The number of Arabs that learn the Chinese Language has increased. The Chinese Language Department at Ain Shams University is a major center for teaching the Chinese language in Egypt and one of the notable centers for teaching the Chinese language in the Arab world and Africa in terms of student size, teaching quality, and
1960-531: The Chinese people. An early Spanish Dominican mission in Manila operated a printing press; between 1593 and 1607, they produced four works on Catholic doctrine for the Chinese immigrant community, three in Literary Chinese and one in a mixture of Literary Chinese and vernacular Hokkien . Dominican accomplishments among the Chinese diaspora pale in comparison to the success of the Jesuits in mainland China, led by
2030-511: The Chinese using their own terms. During the Age of Enlightenment , sinologists started to introduce Chinese philosophy, ethics, legal system, and aesthetics into the West. Though often unscientific and incomplete, their works inspired the development of chinoiserie and a series of debates comparing Chinese and Western cultures. At that time, sinologists often described China as an enlightened kingdom, comparing it to Europe, which had just emerged from
2100-462: The Great World';). No prints of the 1584 map are known to exist, but, of the much improved and expanded Kunyu Wanguo Quantu of 1602, six recopied, rice-paper versions survive. It is thought that, during their time in Zhaoqing, Ricci and Ruggieri compiled a Portuguese-Chinese dictionary, the first in any European language, for which they developed a system for transcribing Chinese words in
2170-521: The Jesuits' mission from Macau into Mainland China . Once in Macau, Ricci studied the Chinese language and customs. It was the beginning of a long project that made him one of the first Western scholars to master Chinese script and Classical Chinese . With Ruggieri, he travelled to Guangdong 's major cities, Canton and Zhaoqing (then the residence of the Viceroy of Guangdong and Guangxi), seeking to establish
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2240-623: The Latin alphabet. The manuscript was misplaced in the Jesuit Archives in Rome, rediscovered only in 1934, and published only in 2001. There is now a memorial plaque in Zhaoqing to commemorate Ricci's six-year stay there, as well as a "Ricci Memorial Centre" in a building dating from the 1860s. Expelled from Zhaoqing in 1588, Ricci obtained permission to relocate to Shaoguan (Shaozhou, in Ricci's account) in
2310-523: The People's Republic of China in 1949, China studies developed along diverging lines. The rise of Area studies , the role of China watchers , and the growth of university graduate programs has changed the role of sinology. Funding for Chinese and Taiwanese studies comes from a variety of sources; one prominent source is the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation . The Area studies approach, especially in
2380-401: The United States, challenged the dominance of classical sinology. Scholars such as John King Fairbank promoted the "study of China within a discipline," an approach which downplayed the role of philological sinology and focused on issues in history and the social sciences. One of the earliest American scholars of Cold War China and Sino-American relations was Chinese-American Tang Tsou of
2450-661: The apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Macerata, formally closed the diocesan phase of the sainthood process on 10 May 2013. The cause moved to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints at the Vatican in 2014. Pope Francis issued a decree on 17 December 2022 that Ricci had lived a life of heroic virtue, thus conferring on him the title of Venerable . The following places and institutions are named after Matteo Ricci: In 2010, to commemorate
2520-522: The assumption that there is "some implicit hostility between 'Sinology' and the disciplines of history and social sciences." Sinology, he continued, is used in too a wide range of meanings to be so confined: During the Cold War , China Watchers centered in Hong Kong , especially American government officials or journalists. Mutual distrust between the United States and China and the prohibition of travel between
2590-414: The basic tenets of Catholicism and donating several books. Along with João Rodrigues 's gifts to the ambassador Jeong Duwon in 1631, Ricci's gifts influenced the creation of Korea's Silhak movement. The cause of his beatification, originally begun in 1984, was reopened on 24 January 2010, at the cathedral of the Italian diocese of Macerata-Tolentino-Recanati-Cingoli-Treia. Bishop Claudio Giuliodori,
2660-537: The book "Zheng He, Chinese Emperor of the Seas". The book covers the history and adventures of a Chinese commander by the name Zheng He whose fleet went round the known world in seven voyages between the years 1415 and 1432. He also wrote before that the novel "The Fleet of the Sun" inspired by the story of the Chinese commander. It was considered the first Arabic novel with a Chinese as the central character, thus it achieved some fame in
2730-873: The capital Beijing itself on 7 September 1598. However, because of a Chinese intervention against the Japanese invasion of Korea at the time, Ricci could not reach the Imperial Palace . After waiting for two months, he left Beijing; first for Nanjing and then Suzhou in Southern Zhili Province . During the winter of 1598, Ricci, with the help of his Jesuit colleague Lazzaro Cattaneo , compiled another Chinese-Portuguese dictionary, in which tones in Chinese syllables were indicated in Roman text with diacritical marks. Unlike Ricci's and Ruggieri's earlier Portuguese-Chinese dictionary, this work has not been found. In 1601, Ricci
2800-779: The chair of Chinese at the Collège de France for over 40 years, starting his studies with Rémusat and succeeding him in 1833. He was notable for his translations not only of classical texts but also works of vernacular literature, and for his knowledge of Manchu. Édouard Chavannes succeeded to the position after the death of Marquis d'Hervey-Saint-Denys in 1893. Chavannes pursued broad interests in history as well as language. The image of China as an essentially Confucian society conveyed by Jesuit scholars dominated Western thought in these times. While some in Europe learned to speak Chinese, most studied written classical Chinese. These scholars were in what
2870-533: The city. Ricci was given free access to the Forbidden City but never met the reclusive Wanli Emperor, who, however, granted him patronage, with a generous stipend and supported Ricci's completion of the Zhifang Waiji , China's first global atlas. Once established in Beijing, Ricci was able to meet important officials and leading members of the Beijing cultural scene and convert a number of them to Christianity,
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2940-445: The countries meant they did not have access to press briefings or interviews. They therefore adopted techniques from Kremlinology , such as the close parsing of official announcements for hidden meanings, movements of officials reported in newspapers, and analysis of photographs of public appearances. But in the years since the opening of China, China watchers can live in China and take advantage of normal sources of information. Towards
3010-459: The direction of Christopher Clavius . In 1577, he applied for a missionary expedition to the Far East. He sailed from Lisbon, Portugal, in March 1578 and arrived in Goa , a Portuguese colony, the following September. Ricci remained employed in teaching and the ministry there until the end of Lent 1582 when he was summoned to Macau to prepare to enter China. Ricci arrived in Macau in the early part of August. In August 1582, Ricci arrived at Macau,
3080-405: The end of the century, many of those studying China professionally called for an end to the split between sinology and the disciplines. The Australian scholar Geremie Barmé , for instance, suggests a "New Sinology", one which "emphasizes strong scholastic underpinnings in both the classical and modern Chinese language and studies, at the same time as encouraging an ecumenical attitude in relation to
3150-409: The family and ritual. The Russian school of sinology was focused mainly on learning classical Chinese texts. For example, the contribution of the Russian sinologist Julian Shchutsky was especially valuable. The best full translation of the I Ching ( Book of Changes ) was made by him in 1937. Later his translation was translated in English and other European languages. After the proclamation of
3220-437: The first important secular sinologists in these two countries were James Legge and Hans Georg Conon von der Gabelentz . In 1878, a professorship of Far Eastern languages, the first of its kind in the German-speaking world, was created at the University of Leipzig with von der Gabelentz taking the position. Scholars like Legge often relied on the work of ethnic Chinese scholars such as Wang Tao . Stanislas Julien served as
3290-414: The founding figures of the Jesuit China missions . He created the Kunyu Wanguo Quantu , a 1602 map of the world written in Chinese characters . In 2022, the Apostolic See declared its recognition of Ricci's heroic virtues , thereby bestowing upon him the honorific of Venerable . Ricci arrived at the Portuguese settlement of Macau in 1582 where he began his missionary work in China. He mastered
3360-429: The indigenous cultural media. Like developments in India, the identification of European culture with Christianity led almost to the end of Catholic missions in China, but Christianity continued to grow in Sichuan and some other locations. Xu Guangqi and Ricci became the first two to translate some of the Confucian classics into a Western language, Latin. Ricci also met a Korean emissary to China, teaching
3430-524: The institute to teach Chinese to missionaries en route to China. In 1814, a chair of Chinese and Manchu was founded at Collège de France . Jean-Pierre Abel-Rémusat , who taught himself Chinese , filled the position, becoming the first professor of Chinese in Europe. By then the first Russian sinologist, Nikita Bichurin , had been living in Beijing for ten years. Abel-Rémusat's counterparts in England and Germany were Samuel Kidd (1797–1843) and Wilhelm Schott (1807–1889) respectively, though
3500-426: The level of teachers and staff. The Bourguiba Institute for Modern Languages was also opened in Tunisia, and it specializes in the Chinese language in 1977. Cairo University also established the Chinese Language Department in September 2004 becoming a major center for Sinology is North Africa . Arab scholars sought to delve deeper into Sinology for academic, political, cultural and diplomatic purposes in order to build
3570-430: The main entrance of the Italian Consulate in Shanghai. In the run-up to the 400th anniversary of Ricci's death, the Vatican Museums hosted a major exhibit dedicated to his life. Additionally, Italian film director Gjon Kolndrekaj produced a 60-minute documentary about Ricci, released in 2009, titled Matteo Ricci: A Jesuit in the Dragon's Kingdom , filmed in Italy and China. In Taipei, the Taipei Ricci Institute and
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#17330849225853640-484: The most prominent being leading agronomist Xu Guangqi . Ricci was also the first European to learn about the Kaifeng Jews , being contacted by a member of that community who was visiting Beijing in 1605. Ricci never visited Kaifeng , Henan Province, but he sent a junior missionary there in 1608, the first of many such missions. In fact, the elderly Chief Rabbi of the Jews was ready to cede his power to Ricci, as long as he gave up eating pork, but Ricci never accepted
3710-433: The north of the province, and reestablish his mission there. Further travels saw Ricci reach Nanjing (Ming's southern capital) and Nanchang in 1595. In August 1597, Alessandro Valignano (1539–1606), his superior, appointed him Major Superior of the mission in China, with the rank and powers of a Provincial, a charge that he fulfilled until his death. He moved to Tongzhou (a port of Beijing) in 1598, and first reached
3780-443: The other hand, replied that the disciplines were too often treated as ends in themselves. Sinology had its backers. Frederick W. Mote , a specialist in traditional China, replying to Skinner, spoke up for sinology, which he saw as a field or discipline in itself. Another specialist in traditional China, Denis Twitchett , in reply to the back and forth of this debate, issued what he called "A Lone Cheer for Sinology". He did not accept
3850-418: The people of China, their culture, economy, literature and philosophy have been translated into Arabic by the (House of Wisdom) company located in the Ningxia Hui region, northwest China since its establishment in 2011. Matteo Ricci Matteo Ricci SJ ( Italian: [matˈtɛːo ˈrittʃi] ; Latin : Matthaeus Riccius ; 6 October 1552 – 11 May 1610) was an Italian Jesuit priest and one of
3920-508: The pilgrimage to Mecca, in addition to the flourishing of land and sea trade. All this led to the advancement of their studies in geography and thus, new knowledge about China found its way to the Arab world. Up to the twelfth century, the Arabs possessed exclusive knowledge about the East, and they were contributing to the transmission of knowledge to the West, which contributed to the advancement of Islamic civilization and its impact on world culture. Arabs such as Abu al-Hasan Ali al-Masoudi, who
3990-572: The position. Ricci died on 11 May 1610, in Beijing , aged 57. By the code of the Ming Dynasty, foreigners who died in China had to be buried in Macau . Diego de Pantoja made a special plea to the court, requesting a burial plot in Beijing, in the light of Ricci's contributions to China. The Wanli Emperor granted this request and designated a Buddhist temple for the purpose. In October 1610, Ricci's remains were transferred there. The graves of Ferdinand Verbiest , Johann Adam Schall von Bell , and other missionaries are also there, and it became known as
4060-410: The power to write on a range of topics and to criticize in damning detail the mistakes of other scholars. Maspero expanded the scope of sinology from Confucianism to include Daoism, Buddhism, and popular religion, as well as art, mythology, and the history of science. The contribution of Granet was to apply the concepts of Emile Durkheim , a pioneer sociologist, to the society of ancient China, especially
4130-422: The reason for this is due to the fact that the purpose of the visits was often to trade or to spread Islam. At the beginning of the seventh century until the eighth century, the power of the Arabs increased due to the expansion of Islam and its spread throughout the world, and their control expanded to the east and west. Their power was strengthened by their vast lands, their advanced network of postal stations, and
4200-427: The renowned pioneer Matteo Ricci . Ricci arrived in Guangzhou in 1583, and would spend the rest of his life in China. Unlike most of his predecessors and contemporaries, Ricci did not view the Chinese firstly as pagans or idolators, but as "like-minded literati approachable on the level of learning". Like Chinese literati, he studied the Confucian classics in order to present Catholic doctrine and European learning to
4270-484: The social sciences to make more use of China, but wrote "In recent years the cry has gone up: Sinology is dead; long live Chinese studies!" and concluded that "Sinology, a discipline unto itself, is being replaced by Chinese studies, a multidisciplinary endeavour with specific research objectives." Joseph Levenson , a historian, went further. He doubted that sinology was a tool that social scientists would still find useful, while another historian, Benjamin I. Schwartz , on
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#17330849225854340-410: The time. He also called the Chinese "barbarians" in letters back home to his friends, and opposed what he considered to be anti-Black prejudice among the populace. He noted this, however, in the context of his function as a slave catcher for the Portuguese. (Ricci himself also owned African slaves.) During his research, he discovered that in contrast to the cultures of South Asia , Chinese culture
4410-402: Was France, where Chinese studies were popularized owing to efforts from Louis XIV . In 1711, he appointed a young Chinese man named Arcadio Huang to catalog the royal collection of Chinese texts. Huang was assisted by Étienne Fourmont , who published a grammar of Chinese in 1742. In 1732, Matteo Ripa , a missionary of the Neapolitan "Sacred Congregation" ( De propaganda fide ) founded
4480-437: Was a well-known and highly regarded Arabic historical material. The book had two separate parts, the first part was "History of Indian and Chinese Affairs" by an unknown author, and the second part was "A Collection of Rumors of India and China" by Abu Zayd. The first part was a selection from Solomon's "Chinese experiences" and other anonymous sources, written and recorded in 851, together with their experiences in India. During
4550-411: Was first published in 1615 in Augsburg as De Christiana expeditione apud Sinas and soon was translated into a number of other European languages. Ricci could speak Chinese as well as read and write classical Chinese , the literary language of scholars and officials. He was known for his appreciation of Chinese culture in general but condemned the prostitution which was widespread in Beijing at
4620-407: Was historically seen as equivalent to philology concerning the Chinese classics and other literature written in the Chinese language . Since then, the scope of sinology has expanded to include Chinese history and palaeography , among other subjects. The terms sinology and sinologist were coined around 1838, derived from Late Latin Sinae , in turn from the Greek Sinae , from
4690-402: Was invited to become an adviser to the imperial court of the Wanli Emperor , the first Westerner to be invited into the Forbidden City . This honor was in recognition of Ricci's scientific abilities, chiefly his predictions of solar eclipses, which were significant events in the Chinese world. He established the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Beijing , the oldest Catholic church in
4760-665: Was known as kangaku . It was contrasted with the study of Japan ( kokugaku ) as well as with the study of the West (first rangaku , then more broadly yōgaku ). This historical field is distinguished from modern sinology. In modern China, the studies of China-related subjects is known as "national studies" ( 国学 ; 國學 ; guóxué ), and foreign sinology is translated as "Han studies" ( 汉学 ; 漢學 ; Hànxué ). The earliest Westerners known to have studied Chinese in significant numbers were 16th-century Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian missionaries. All were either Jesuits or Dominicans seeking to spread Catholic Christianity to
4830-448: Was strongly intertwined with Confucian values and therefore decided to use existing Chinese concepts to explain Christianity. With his superior Valignano's formal approval, he aligned himself with the Confucian intellectually elite literati, and even adopted their mode of dress. He did not explain the Catholic faith as entirely foreign or new; instead, he said that the Chinese culture and people always believed in God and that Christianity
4900-433: Was written in the form of a dialogue, originally in Chinese. Ricci used the treatise in his missionary effort to convert Chinese literati, men who were educated in Confucianism and the Chinese classics. In the Chinese Rites controversy , some Roman-Catholic missionaries raised the question of whether Ricci and other Jesuits had gone too far and changed Christian beliefs to win converts. Peter Phan argues that True Meaning
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