Joseph Edkins and the “Discovery” of Early Chinese: the linguistic ideas behind the first (partial) reconstruction of the sound system of Early Chinese

The ‘discovery’ of early Chinese, and its subsequent reconstruction, have allowed the modern linguist to reach a wide range of firm conclusions about the Chinese language and its position within the Tibeto-Burman family. Reverend Joseph Edkins (1823–1905) should be credited with initial work on earl...

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Veröffentlicht in:Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 2019-07, Vol.29 (3), p.519-541
1. Verfasser: ORLANDI, GIORGIO
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:The ‘discovery’ of early Chinese, and its subsequent reconstruction, have allowed the modern linguist to reach a wide range of firm conclusions about the Chinese language and its position within the Tibeto-Burman family. Reverend Joseph Edkins (1823–1905) should be credited with initial work on early Chinese as the ancestor language of the various Sinitic languages, and with its first partial reconstruction. This article is an attempt to supply at least a first historical guide for those interested in obtaining a better understanding of the implicit discovery of Sinitic and the first reconstructions of early Chinese.
ISSN:1356-1863
1474-0591
DOI:10.1017/S1356186319000154