Three Character Classic

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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 completed an earlier translation in the late 19th century 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 first and second page of Tam tu kinh thich nghia San Zi Jing Shi Yi . It shows the original text of the Three Character Classic San Zi Jing annotated with the Vietnamese translation. Tam tu kinh thich nghia San Zi Jing Shi Yi .png
The first and second page of Tam tự kinh thích nghiã 三字經釋義. It shows the original text of the Three Character Classic 三字經 annotated with the Vietnamese translation.
In the book, Tam tu kinh giai am dien ca, shows the original text of San Zi Jing alongside the Vietnamese translation. Tam tu kinh giai am dien ca.jpg
In the book, Tam tự kinh giải âm diễn ca, shows the original text of 三字經 alongside the Vietnamese translation.
Second and third page of Tam tu kinh luc bat dien am San Zi Jing Liu Ba Yan Yin Second page of Tam tu kinh luc bat dien am San Zi Jing Liu Ba Yan Yin .jpg
Second and third page of Tam tự kinh lục bát diễn âm 三字經六八演音

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 does not exist in the Chinese version.

Three Character Classic
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese 三字經
Simplified Chinese 三字经
Hanyu Pinyin Sānzì Jīng
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin Sānzì Jīng
Bopomofo ㄙㄢ   ㄗˋ   ㄐㄧㄥ
Gwoyeu Romatzyh Santzyh Jing
Wade–Giles San¹ Tzŭ⁴ Ching¹
Yale Romanization Sāndz̀ Jīng
IPA [sán.tsɹ̩̂ tɕíŋ]
Wu
Romanization se zy cin
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanization Sāamjih Gīng
Jyutping Saam1zi6 Ging1
IPA [sam˥.tsi˨ kɪŋ˥]
Southern Min
Hokkien POJ Sam-jī-keng
Tâi-lô Sam-jī-king
LineVietnameseChinese
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Dark Red x.svg
50二陰陽Dark Red x.svg
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梂六典梂六官
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]

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 jiēchēngdìThe 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 zhìchóngzhēnBy 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 xuāntǒngxùnThe 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 mínguóxìngA 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¹niànèrshǐ quánzàizī zàizhìluàn zhīxīngshuāiThe 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...".

Reception

The first two lines were recited at the Academy Awards 2021 by Chloé Zhao, the award winner for best director. [16] [17]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "San Zi Jing". Library of Congress . Retrieved 2010-08-15.
  2. ↑ Minjie Chen (22 January 2016). The Sino-Japanese War and Youth Literature: Friends and Foes on the Battlefield. Routledge. pp. 15–. ISBN   978-1-317-50881-6.
  3. 1 2 Scollon, Ron; Suzanne Wong Scollon; Rodney H. Jones (3 January 2012). Intercultural Communication: A Discourse Approach. Vol. 35. John Wiley & Sons. pp. 166–167. ISBN   9780470656402.
  4. ↑ Kutcher, Norman (2006). Mourning in Late Imperial China: Filial Piety and the State . Cambridge University Press. pp.  27. ISBN   9780521030182.
  5. ↑ Johnson, David; Andrew James Nathan (1987). Popular Culture in Late Imperial China. University of California Press. p. 29. ISBN   9780520061729.
  6. ↑ Rawski (1979), pp. 46–48.
  7. ↑ "Elementary Chinese ... San tzu ching". Shanghai, Kelly & Walsh. 1900.
  8. ↑ Guo, Hong (2022-11-15), "From Children's Instructional Textbook to Missionary Tool: the Publication History of the Christian Three-Character Classic from 1823 to 1880", Beyond Indigenization: Christianity and Chinese History in a Global Context, BRILL, pp. 202–224, ISBN   978-90-04-53212-0 , retrieved 2023-04-23
  9. ↑ Nguyễn, Tuấn Cường (2015). "Giáo dục Hán văn bậc tiểu học tại Việt Nam thời xưa qua trường hợp sách Tam tự kinh". p. 5.
  10. 1 2 Nguyễn, Tuấn Cường (2015). "Giáo dục Hán văn bậc tiểu học tại Việt Nam thời xưa qua trường hợp sách Tam tự kinh". p. 24.
  11. ↑ Nguyễn, Tuấn Cường (2015). "Giáo dục Hán văn bậc tiểu học tại Việt Nam thời xưa qua trường hợp sách Tam tự kinh". p. 25.
  12. ↑ "三字經演音 Tam tự kinh diễn âm". Nom Foundation. n.d.
  13. ↑ "三字經解音演歌 | Tam tự kinh giải âm diễn ca". Nom Foundation. 1888.
  14. ↑ "Tam-tự- kinh thích-nghĩa. 三字經釋義". Bibliothèque nationale de France. 1873.
  15. ↑ "三字經六八演音 Tam tự kinh lục bát diễn âm". Nom Foundation. 1905.
  16. ↑ "Chloé Zhao accepts Best Director Academy Award for 'Nomadland'". GMA . April 26, 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-12-12. Retrieved April 27, 2021. It's called the Three Character Classics. And the first phrase goes: 人之初, 性本善 - - People at birth are inherently good
  17. ↑ "This year's Oscars could have been a moment of pride for China. Then politics got in the way". cnn.com. April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 27, 2021. Zhao said she used to recite classic Chinese poems and texts with her father, and one particular line from the Three Character Classic -- "People at birth are inherently good" -- had helped her keep going when things got hard.

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References

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