Editions
The Three Character Classic was translated in 1796 into Manchu as ᠮᠠᠨᠵᡠᠨᡳᡴᠠᠨᡥᡝᡵᡤᡝᠨᡳᡴᠠᠮᠴᡳᠮᡝᠰᡠᡥᡝᠰᠠᠨᡯᡤᡳᠩᠪᡳᡨᡥᡝ (Wylie: Manchu nikan ghergen i kamtsime sughe San tsz' ging pitghe; Möllendorff: Manju nikan hergen-i kamcime suhe San ze ging ni bithe).
The most well-known English translation of the text was completed by Herbert Giles in 1900 and revised in 1910. [7] The translation was based on the original Song dynasty version.[ citation needed ] Giles had published an earlier translation (Shanghai 1873) but he rejected that and other early translations as inaccurate. Earlier translations into English include those by Robert Morrison, 1812; Solomon Caesar Malan and Hung Hsiu-chʻüan, 1856, and Stanislas Julien, 1864.
A Christian Three Character Classic (Chinese: 新增三字經; Pinyin: Xīnzēng Sānzì Jīng) by Walter Henry Medhurst was first published in 1823 as an aid to missionary education. The three-character rhyming format was retained but the content was completely different. [8]
Vietnam
The earliest recorded date that the Three Character Classic was introduced to Vietnam is around 1820-1830 according to primary sources at the time. [9] From there, it was circulated and modified. Different variants of the text began to emerge. [10] The texts would either have different characters used, new lines, or different ordering. The most common variant of the Three Character Classic in Vietnam has 30 lines that are different from the Chinese edition. [10] There are also two lines in the Vietnamese version that do not exist in the Chinese version.
| Line | Vietnamese | Chinese |
|---|---|---|
| 28 | 不知理 | 不知義 |
| 36 | 所當識 | 所當執 |
| 39 | 悌於長 | 弟於長 |
| 41 | 首孝悌 | 首孝弟 |
| 44 | 識某名 | 識某文 |
| 49 | 一太極 |  |
| 50 | 二陰陽 | |
| 84 | 曰哀樂 | 曰哀懼 |
| 86 | 乃七情 | 七情具 |
| 89 | 與絲竹 | 絲與竹 |
| 96 | 至曾玄 | 至元曾 |
| 103 | 君則敬 | 長幼序 |
| 104 | 臣則忠 | 友與朋 |
| 105 | 長幼序 | 君則敬 |
| 106 | 朋友公 | 臣則忠 |
| 115 | 由孝經 | 小學終 |
| 126 | 乃孔伋 | 子思筆 |
| 139 | 號五經 | 號六經 |
| 149 | 我姬公 | 我周公 |
| 151 | 著六典 | 著六官 |
| 160 | 當詠諷 | 當諷詠 |
| 188 | 稱盛治 | 稱盛世 |
| 266 | 心而推 | 心而惟 |
| 292 | 猶苦學 | 猶苦卓 |
| 303 | 對大庭 | 對大廷 |
| 305 | 彼晚成 | 彼既成 |
| 322 | 且聰明 | 且聰敏 |
| 324 | 當少成 | 當自警 |
| 334 | 亦如是 | 亦若是 |
| 350 | 垂於後 | 裕於後 |
The two lines were added to form a full sequence of numbers (Chinese version begins from three to ten). [11]
- One (nhất thái cực 一太極)
- Two (nhị âm dương 二陰陽)
- Three (tam tài 三才, tam quang 三光, tam cương 三綱)
- Four (tứ thời 四時, tứ phương 四方)
- Five (ngũ hành 五行, ngũ thường 五常)
- Six (lục cốc 六穀, lục súc 六畜)
- Seven (thất tình 七情)
- Eight (bát âm 八音)
- Nine (cửu tộc 九族)
- Ten (thập nghĩa 十義)
The text was also translated into vernacular Vietnamese, with the books such as Tam tự giải âm 三字解音, Tam tự kinh diễn âm 三字經演音, [12] Tam tự kinh giải âm diễn ca 三字經解音演歌, [13] Tam tự kinh thích nghiã 三字經釋義, [14] and Tam tự kinh lục bát diễn âm 三字經六八演音 [15] having chữ Nôm characters annotating the original text.
Differences in Chinese texts
The following stanzas do not appear in the Giles translation and originally appeared in Simplified Chinese. They list the dynasties that followed the Song dynasty up to and including the founding of Republican China. These stanzas were probably added cumulatively sometime between late 13th century and after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.
| Simplified Chinese | Traditional Chinese | Pinyin | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 辽与金 皆称帝 | 遼與金 皆稱帝 | liáoyǔjīn jiēchēngdì | The Liao and Jin (dynasties), both claimed to be emperors. |
| 太祖兴 国大明 号洪武 都金陵 | 太祖興 國大明 號洪武 都金陵 | tàizǔxīng guódàmíng hàohóngwǔ dūjīnlíng | Taizu rises, his country is the Great Ming. His regnal name is Hongwu, his capital at Jinling. |
| 迨成祖 迁燕京 十六世 至崇祯 | 迨成祖 遷燕京 十六世 至崇禎 | dàichéngzǔ qiānyànjīng shíliùshì zhìchóngzhēn | By the time Chengzu started ruling, he moved (his capital) to Yanjing. (His dynasty) lasted for sixteen successions, until the Chongzhen Emperor. |
| 阉乱後 寇内讧 闯逆变 神器终 | 閹亂後 寇內訌 闖逆變 神器終 | yānluànhòu kòunèihòng chuǎngnìbiàn shénqìzhōng | Eunuchs stir up trouble in the palace, rebels cause internal conflict. The Dashing King starts a rebellion, the Divine Utensil comes to an end. |
| 清顺治 据神京 至十传 宣统逊 | 清順治 據神京 至十傳 宣統遜 | qīngshùnzhì jùshénjīng zhìshíchuán xuāntǒngxùn | The Shunzhi Emperor of Qing, seized the Imperial Capital. After ten generations, the Xuantong Emperor abdicated. |
| 举总统 共和成 复汉土 民国兴 | 舉總統 共和成 復漢土 民國興 | jǔzǒngtǒng gònghéchéng fùhàntǔ mínguóxìng | A President is elected, the Republic is formed. Chinese soil was recovered, the Republic of China flourishes. |
| 廿二史 全在兹 载治乱 知兴衰¹ | 廿二史 全在茲 載治亂 知興衰¹ | niànèrshǐ quánzàizī zàizhìluàn zhīxīngshuāi | The Twenty-two Dynastic Histories, are all embraced in the above. They contain examples of good and bad government, whence may be learnt the principles of prosperity and decay. |
¹ this line replaces the original one in the Song version where it says "The Seventeen Dynastic Histories... 十七史...".
