Francisco Varo's Grammar of the Mandarin Language (1703): An English translation of ‘Arte de la lengua Mandarina’. With an Introduction by Sandra Breitenbach(93 Studies in the History of the Language Sciences)

Francisco Varo’s Arte de la Lengua Mandarina, completed ca. 1680, is the earliest published grammar of any spoken form of Chinese and the fullest known description of the standard language of the seventeenth century. It establishes beyond doubt that this “Language of the Mandarins” was not Pekingese or Peking-based but had instead a Jiang-Huai or Nankingese-like phonology. It also provides important information about the nature and formation of pre-modern standard forms of Chinese and will lead to revisions of currently held views on Chinese koines and their relationship with regional speech forms and the received vernacular literature. Finally, it provides a wealth ot information on stylistic speech levels, honorific usage, and social customs of the elite during the early Qing period. The book provides a full translation of the 1703 text of the Arte, an extensive introduction to the life and work of Varo, an index of Chinese characters inserted into the translation, and an index of linguistic terms and concepts. It should be of interest to a diverse readership of Chinese historical, comparative, and descriptive linguists, students of Qing history and literature, historiographers of linguistics, and specialists in early Western religious and cultural contact with China.

Table of Contents:
1. Preface & Acknowledgments; 2. Editor's Foreword; 3. Introduction by Sandra Breitenbach; 4. Francisco Varo, Arte de la Mandarina (1703) Text edition and English translation; 5. Frontispiece; 6. Prologue; 7. 1. A Few Monitions; 8. 2. On the Tones of this Language; 9. 3. On the Declension of the Noun and the Pronoun; 10. 4. On the Substantive, Adjectival, Comparative, and Superlative Nominals; 11. 5 On the Abstract Verbal Nouns, Diminutives, Frequentatives, Occupations, and Genders; 12. 6. On the Pronoun; 13. 7. On the Interjection, Conjunction, Negation, Interrogative, and Conditional; 14. 8. On the Verb and its Conjugations; 15. 9. On the Passive Verb and Passive Constructions; 16. 10. On the Prepositions and Adverbs; 17. 11. On the Way of Forming Sentences; 18. 12. On the Numbers and Numerals; 19. 13. On Various Particles; 20. 14. On the Courteous Words of the Mandarin Language; 21. 15. On How to Name the Mandarins, their Relatives, and Other People; and How to Refer to Oneself Orally and in Writing; 22. 16. On Courteous Words inter loquendum and Courtesies when Visiting and Inviting; 23. [Concluding part] Confessionarium of Basilio de Glemona; 24. Appendix I; 25. Appendix II; 26. Appendix III; 27. Chinese Character Index; 28. Index of Linguistic Terms and Concepts

Review :
[...] l'Arte, aujourd'hui à nouveau facilement accessible grâce à ce méticuleux travail de réédition, intéresse non seulement les historiens de la linguistique chinoise, mais aussi les historiens de langue chinoise. Loin de se contenter de reprende simplement les transcriptions de Varo, les deux éditeurs aident, tout au long du texte, le lecteur à se faire une idée plus claire de la langue décrite. [...] the definitive scholarly translation into English of Varo's important early Mandarin grammar.