[Type98G]

China has finished the translation of China's complete histories from classical language to modern Chinese, the chief editor of the project announced on Friday.

It took more than 200 Chinese professors 13 years to translate the texts.

The "Twenty-Four Histories," 470-million-word biographical records of China up to the Ming Dynasty (1644), have been recognized as the most authoritative works of Chinese history.

The new edition, with more than 600 million Chinese characters, is the first complete translation of the "Twenty-Four Histories" into modern Chinese.

"The translation will not only help today's Chinese better understand the nation's past, it will also promote understanding of China by the whole world," said Xu Jialu, editor-in-chief of the project and vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

"More and more foreign people have shown interest in China and Chinese history," he said. "China needs to let the world know itself, including its long past, in its efforts to embrace the world."

Previously, the ancient writings were almost inaccessible to foreigners who have enough trouble tackling modern Chinese, he noted.

"Foreign scholars who understand modern Chinese language can better research Chinese history with our translation, and the new works will also pave the way for translation into foreign languages," said Xu, who is also a noted Chinese linguist.

The tremendous project involves more than 200 professors from the seven prestigious academic institutions, including the Peking University. After three rounds of translations and revisions, the new renditions were proofread 12 times, editors said.

(Xinhua News Agency November 20, 2004)

[General_Zhaoyun]

Actually, we have thought of an ambitious project to translate the 24 histories from chinese into english.. but it will take many years to complete. ..and our translation probably won't be that good.

I'm thinking of buying "24 histories".

[MengTzu]

How much is this collection?

[Tyler]

I guess it's still a long ways away from an english edition.

[Zuo Zongtang]

They've translated the Shiji into English 40 years ago. Some one has to be working on the twenty-four hisotries right now.

[Moose]

Type98G, on Nov 21 2004, 08:40 AM, said:

China has finished the translation of China's complete histories from classical language to modern Chinese, the chief editor of the project announced on Friday.

It took more than 200 Chinese professors 13 years to translate the texts.

The "Twenty-Four Histories," 470-million-word biographical records of China up to the Ming Dynasty (1644), have been recognized as the most authoritative works of Chinese history.

The new edition, with more than 600 million Chinese characters, is the first complete translation of the "Twenty-Four Histories" into modern Chinese.

"The translation will not only help today's Chinese better understand the nation's past, it will also promote understanding of China by the whole world," said Xu Jialu, editor-in-chief of the project and vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

"More and more foreign people have shown interest in China and Chinese history," he said. "China needs to let the world know itself, including its long past, in its efforts to embrace the world."

Previously, the ancient writings were almost inaccessible to foreigners who have enough trouble tackling modern Chinese, he noted.

"Foreign scholars who understand modern Chinese language can better research Chinese history with our translation, and the new works will also pave the way for translation into foreign languages," said Xu, who is also a noted Chinese linguist.

The tremendous project involves more than 200 professors from the seven prestigious academic institutions, including the Peking University. After three rounds of translations and revisions, the new renditions were proofread 12 times, editors said.

(Xinhua News Agency November 20, 2004)
<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I wonder why only up to Ming dynasty?

[Sephodwyrm]

By far there's no complete Shi Ji in English though. There are Shi Ji is Japanese, and that's how the translator worked it into English. Thus I think this English version is still not a good one (the translator made a few mistakes and the Chinese characters are expressed in non-HYPY and there's no Chinese character nearby, nor is there a reference to the modern positions of the locations etc).

[MengTzu]

Moose, on Jan 9 2005, 05:25 PM, said:

I wonder why only up to Ming dynasty?
<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Because the traditional canon of historical books have 24 books, lasting until Ming. This is of course, a canon used during Qing (official histories are usually about previous times.) After Qing fell, traditional learning was abolished, and I guess because of that the ROC and the scholars no longer followed this traditional canonization of historical books, and didn't add a 25th history. A "Draft of Qing History" was written during ROC era, but not included as a part of the traditional series.

[Yun]

Quote

After Qing fell, traditional learning was abolished, and I guess because of that the ROC and the scholars no longer followed this traditional canonization of historical books, and didn't add a 25th history. A "Draft of Qing History" was written during ROC era, but not included as a part of the traditional series.

Actually, it's sometimes included in the canon, thus increasing the number to 25 Histories.

A "New History of the Yuan" 《新元史》 was also written in the ROC period, and I've seen it included as a 26th history in a CD set of the official histories.

Quote

They've translated the Shiji into English 40 years ago. Some one has to be working on the twenty-four hisotries right now.

If the Chinese scholars were as serious about learning English as the Bible-translating missionaries are about learning local languages, we'd have an English set of the Histories by now. The close-minded attitude of the PRC before the 1980s is mainly responsible for the long delay.

[MING-LOYALIST]

Is the "book of Tang" and "new book of Tang" both in the 24 histories?
why not add the "Draft of Qing history" into it instead of 2 Tang histories and 2 Han histories.?

[Yun]

The Old Tang and New Tang are both in, and so are the Old Five Dynasties and the New Five Dynasties. The new has stuff that the old doesn't, but the old also has stuff that the new doesn't. Hence the need to include both.

The Han Shu and Hou Han Shu have different contents (the latter covers the Eastern Han, the former does not), so they should both be in.

What's most unnecessary, though, is the inclusion of the Nanshi (Southern Dynasties History) and Bei Shi (Northern Dynasties History) by Li Yanshou, which basically rehashes and compiles everything from the individual dynastic histories of the Northern and Southern Dynasties into two volumes.