A look at Sinologists through the centuries

Gu Jun, deputy director of the International Institute of Chinese Studies in Beijing Foreign Studies University, studies the introduction of modern Chinese literature before 1949. Provided To China Daily

Matteo Ricci arrived in Beijing with other Italian missionaries in the late 16th century.

They not only preached but also studied Chinese culture and translated Confucian classics into such Western languages as Italian and Latin.

It was a milestone in the history of foreigners studying China and introducing the country's culture to the West, says Gu Jun, deputy director of the International Institute of Chinese Studies in Beijing Foreign Studies University.

The institute opened in 1996, which gradually developed into the country's first Overseas Sinology Research Center .

The institute explores the trajectories and methods of spreading Chinese culture around the world by looking at successful examples in history, Gu says.

The 43-year-old was among the first scholars to join the center.

His research mostly focuses on translation and the introduction of modern Chinese literature before the 1949 founding of the People's Republic of China.

Gu also researches the overseas reception of ancient Chinese literature, "which is a much bigger topic that requires more time and energy", he says.

Ricci died in Beijing at the beginning of the 17th century.

The translations he and his team produced are still used.

"It was in late 16th century when Westerners first had the chance to see and study ancient Chinese classics, which was the starting point of Sinology in the West - the study of ancient Chinese culture and thoughts," he says.

It was another milestone for Sinology when Le College de France created a special teaching post for Chinese studies over a century later. It offered free public lectures.

Subsequently, higher-education institutes in other countries, including Russia, Britain, Germany, the Netherlands and the United States followed suit, Gu explains.

Early Sinologists were generally erudite,according to Gu.

Many never visited China but learned to read the language using dictionaries.

They delved into such dimensions of Chinese civilization as ancient literature, history, religion, traditional medicine and philosophy.

But each subject has become increasingly specialized over the centuries. This means foreign researchers can't spare the time and energy outside their particular subfields. Consequently, we don't tend to call contemporary China researchers Sinologists.

"Those who started Chinese studies in the 1930s and '40s are the last generations of what we call Sinologists. Afterward, few people have been as rounded in their knowledge," he says.

Communication between China and the rest of the world has increased since the end of the 19th century.

More Sinologists visited the country during this period, such as Edouard Chavanne, who came to Beijing as an interpretor for the French government in 1889.

He met Chinese scholars and - with the help of Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) diplomat Xia Li, who handled relations with France - he began translating the Record of the Great Historian.

Chinese scholars were deeply impressed by their interactions with Sinologists.

One of Sinologists' greatest achievements was the translation of Chinese classics into their native languages and Latin, so that they could be read widely in the West, Gu discovered in his research.

There were also Sinologists like French Paul Pelliot, who wrote papers on the communication between China and the West.

But most Sinologists' achievements were translating or compiling dictionaries and textbooks for Chinese-language learners, says Gu.

For instance, one of the most important Sinologists in the 19th century, James Legge, translated the Four Books (The Great Learning, The Doctrine of the Mean, The Confucian Analects and The Works of Mencius) and the Five Classics (The Book of Songs, The Book of History, The Book of Changes, The Book of Rites and The Spring and Autumn Annals) into English.

His translations are still read.

As China studies have become increasingly specialized, such scholars as American John King Fairbank organized specialists to compile The Cambridge History of China, and British Joseph Needham led the compilation of Science and Civilization in China.

Currently, about 60 Chinese graduate and postgraduate students are studying in the International Institute of Chinese Studies.

The program offers a wide range of China-specific courses, such as Chinese history, literature, economics, law, foreign affairs and politics.

"With these courses, we hope to help them to better understand China with a global vision and interdisciplinary knowledge," Gu says.

yangyangs@chinadaily.com.cn