Qian Xuantong
Encyclopedia
Qian Xuantong was a Chinese
linguist.
, Zhejiang
, Qian was named 錢夏錢夏 at birth, and was given the courtesy name Deqian (德潜) trained in traditional Chinese philology
. After receiving his university education in Japan
, Qian held a number of teaching positions in mainland China. He was a student of Zhang Binglin
; some of Zhang's works were copied and printed in Qian's remarkable seal script
handwriting. As a philologist, Qian was the first to reconstruct the vowel system of Old Chinese
in IPA
.
A close friend of Lu Xun
, Qian was a key figure in the May Fourth Movement
. Despite his close relationship with the Chinese classics, he promoted the abolition of classical Chinese
. He was also a strong supporter of Esperanto
, at one time even proposed the substitution of Chinese by it. He and Liu Bannong
did their best to promote vernacular Chinese
, attacking such classical Chinese stylists as Lin Shu
. His skepticism of the Chinese heritage was such that he at one time wanted to change his surname to Yi Gu (疑古 "suspecting things ancient"). He also did much important work with regards to the standardization of Simplified Chinese characters, Mandarin
, and the design of pinyin
.
His son Qian Sanqiang
was a nuclear physicist
who contributed to development of nuclear weapon
s in China.
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
linguist.
Biography
Born in HuzhouHuzhou
Huzhou is a prefecture-level city in northern Zhejiang province of Eastern China. Lying south of the Lake Tai, it borders Jiaxing to the east, Hangzhou to the south, and the provinces of Anhui and Jiangsu to the west and north respectively.-Administration:...
, Zhejiang
Zhejiang
Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...
, Qian was named 錢夏錢夏 at birth, and was given the courtesy name Deqian (德潜) trained in traditional Chinese philology
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
. After receiving his university education in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Qian held a number of teaching positions in mainland China. He was a student of Zhang Binglin
Zhang Binglin
Zhang Binglin was a Chinese philologist, textual critic and anti-Manchu revolutionary.His philological works include Wen Shi , the first systematic work of Chinese etymology...
; some of Zhang's works were copied and printed in Qian's remarkable seal script
Seal script
Seal script is an ancient style of Chinese calligraphy. It evolved organically out of the Zhōu dynasty script , arising in the Warring State of Qin...
handwriting. As a philologist, Qian was the first to reconstruct the vowel system of Old Chinese
Old Chinese
The earliest known written records of the Chinese language were found at a site near modern Anyang identified as Yin, the last capital of the Shang dynasty, and date from about 1200 BC....
in IPA
International Phonetic Alphabet
The International Phonetic Alphabet "The acronym 'IPA' strictly refers [...] to the 'International Phonetic Association'. But it is now such a common practice to use the acronym also to refer to the alphabet itself that resistance seems pedantic...
.
A close friend of Lu Xun
Lu Xun
Lu Xun or Lu Hsün , was the pen name of Zhou Shuren , one of the major Chinese writers of the 20th century. Considered by many to be the leading figure of modern Chinese literature, he wrote in baihua as well as classical Chinese...
, Qian was a key figure in the May Fourth Movement
May Fourth Movement
The May Fourth Movement was an anti-imperialist, cultural, and political movement growing out of student demonstrations in Beijing on May 4, 1919, protesting the Chinese government's weak response to the Treaty of Versailles, especially the Shandong Problem...
. Despite his close relationship with the Chinese classics, he promoted the abolition of classical Chinese
Classical Chinese
Classical Chinese or Literary Chinese is a traditional style of written Chinese based on the grammar and vocabulary of ancient Chinese, making it different from any modern spoken form of Chinese...
. He was also a strong supporter of Esperanto
Esperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
, at one time even proposed the substitution of Chinese by it. He and Liu Bannong
Liu Bannong
Liu Bannong or Liu Fu was a Chinese linguist and poet.A native of Jiangsu, he was an important contributor to the influential magazine La Jeunesse during the May Fourth Movement...
did their best to promote vernacular Chinese
Vernacular Chinese
Written Vernacular Chinese refers to forms of written Chinese based on the vernacular language, in contrast to Classical Chinese, the written standard used from the Spring and Autumn Period to the early twentieth century...
, attacking such classical Chinese stylists as Lin Shu
Lin Shu
Lin Shu , courtesy name Qinnan , was a Chinese man of letters, most famous for his introducing Western literature to a whole generation of Chinese readers, despite his ignorance of any foreign language...
. His skepticism of the Chinese heritage was such that he at one time wanted to change his surname to Yi Gu (疑古 "suspecting things ancient"). He also did much important work with regards to the standardization of Simplified Chinese characters, Mandarin
Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
, and the design of pinyin
Pinyin
Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...
.
His son Qian Sanqiang
Qian Sanqiang
Qian Sanqiang was a Chinese nuclear physicist.-Biography:A native of Huzhou, Zhejiang Province, China, Qian was born in Shaoxing, attending Peking University and Tsinghua University. His father is Qian Xuantong. Qian went to France in 1937...
was a nuclear physicist
Nuclear physics
Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interactions of atomic nuclei. The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons technology, but the research has provided application in many fields, including those...
who contributed to development of nuclear weapon
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
s in China.