Thousand Character Classic - Manchu Texts

Manchu Texts

Several different Manchu texts of the Thousand Character Classic are known today. They all use the Manchu script to transcribe Chinese characters. They are utilized in research on Chinese phonology.

The 滿漢千字文 (jyutping: mun5 hon3 cin1 zi6 man4, pinyin: mǎn hàn qiān zì wén) by 沈啓亮 (jyutping: cam4 kai2 loeng6, pinyin: chén qǐ liàng) contains Chinese text and Manchu phonetic transcription. It seems that the Man han ciyan dzi wen was published during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor.

Another text, the 清書千字文 (jyutping: cing1 syu1 cin1 zi6 man4, pinyin: qīng shū qiān zì wén) by 尤珍 (jyutping: jau4 zan1, pinyin: yóu zhēn), was published in 1685 as a supplement to the 百體清文 (jyutping: baak3 tai2 cing1 man4, pinyin: bǎi tǐ qīng wén). It provides Manchu transcription without original Chinese. It is known for being referred to by Japanese scholar Ogyū Sorai for Manchu studies as early as the 18th century.

The undated ciyan dzi wen which is owned by the Bibliothèque nationale de France is a variant of the Qingshu Qianziwen. It is believed to have been used by the translation office of the Joseon Dynasty of Korea. It contains Hangul transcription for both Manchu and Chinese. It is valuable to the study of Manchu phonology.

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