Introduction - Chinese Text Project (original) (raw)

The goal of this site is to present accurate and accessible copies of ancient (in particular pre-Qin and Han dynasty) Chinese texts in an organized and searchable format, and to make the best possible use of modern technology to aid in the study and research of these texts, so making them accessible to the widest possible audience.

This site is available in several versions: English or Chinese interface, and traditional or simplified characters. You can change these at any time using the links at the top left-hand corner of every page.

To get the most out of the site, and to use some of the features described below, please create a free CTP account.

Ancient Text Database

The heart of the site is the ancient text database, which contains the full text of various Chinese texts of philosophical, historical, or linguistic interest from the pre-Qin era through to the Han dynasty and beyond. Texts are stored in a database format which allows for both browsing and searching. In addition, English and modern Chinese translations are provided (where copyright allows); these translations are attached to the original Chinese paragraph by paragraph, making it possible to read a translation and quickly locate the corresponding original passage, or to read the original text and consult a translation of a particular passage.
To the left of many passages of text, the system will display some of the following icons, which give immediate access to many of the unique features of the site:

Icon Function
Displays the dictionary entries of each word in this passage.
Displays parallels between this passage and other passages.
Displays a photographic representation of the page(s) containing this passage.
Displays text of Chinese commentaries corresponding to this passage.
Displays existing discussion relating to an item.
Creates a new discussion thread relating to an item (only displayed when logged in).
Displays existing metadata relating to an item.
Creates new metadata for an item (only displayed when logged in).

Integrated Dictionary

The integrated Chinese character dictionary merges data from three sources: the Unicode Consortium's "Unihan" database, the Ancient Text Database, and the CTP Dictionary which is being developed for this site. The Unihan database provides basic information, including radical and stroke information, alternate character forms, locations in standard printed dictionaries, and an English translation (though this primarily relates to modern Chinese usage). The Ancient Text Database provides actual usage data from a selection of ancient Chinese texts. Finally, the CTP dictionary aims to provide as complete as possible an analysis of character usage and semantics. While a majority of ancient Chinese characters have a relatively small range of uses, a minority (including many frequently used characters) have a range of uses with distinct meanings and/or distinct pronunciations. The CTP dictionary not only lists these different meanings and readings, but also lists exemplary usage for each, drawn from the Ancient Text Database. This is accomplished by means of "semantic linking", whereby a link is established between a particular character in a particular text, and its meaning as stored in the CTP dictionary. Where English translations of cited texts are available in the CTP, translations of the corresponding sentences are also provided.
The semantic linking process relies on an understanding of the Chinese text, and is therefore a manual and time-consuming process; hence the scope of the CTP dictionary is presently limited (though continually expanding). For examples of the CTP dictionary in action, please see the integrated dictionary entries for 與, 說, and 故.
More information: Dictionary instructions.

Word lists

By means of the integrated dictionary and the semantic linking process described above, the site can also generate word lists for arbitrary passages in the Ancient Text Database. Word lists display data from the dictionary for each character in the passage, including the specific intended meaning for words which have been semantically linked. This means that a student reading the first paragraph of the Analects of Confucius does not have to guess whether 樂 is pronounced "yue" or "le", and will immediately see that 說 is being used in a manner equivalent to 悅 (see the word list for Xue Er 1). Additionally, where an English translation of a text is available, it is displayed side by side in parallel with the Chinese text for ease of comparison.
The semantic linking process is ongoing, and not every character has been linked yet. Where a character has not been linked to its meaning in the particular context, generic information for the character is displayed, together with a link to the full dictionary entry for the character.
More information: Semantic linking instructions.

Parallel passage information

For various reasons, many early Chinese texts contain fragments or even extended passages which share identical or near-identical wording with passages in other texts, such that the two clearly bear some relation to one another and did not develop in complete isolation. This may be evidence that one author intentionally copied a passage from an existing text, or that a phrase was a well-known saying or idiom at the time both texts were written, or may have some other explanation. In many cases, although the fragments have very clear similarities such that their similarity can surely not be ascribed to coincidence, they may differ in important and interesting ways.
The parallel passage feature of the CTP matches up these similar or identical passages, and allows them to be displayed together for easy comparison. Any passage which has such information available displays the icon; clicking on this icon shows each section of the paragraph with its parallels in other texts in the database, together with links to the relevant sections of texts.
Parallel passage information is also searchable using the "Advanced search" function described below.
More information: Introduction to parallel passages.

Scanned source texts

For many early texts, there are currently in existence many different versions of the text. These may be the result of historically independent routes of transmission, the result of alterations made to correct copying errors of previous scribes, the result of character substitution for rebus characters or variant character forms, or many other factors. These factors together form a complex situation in which it is often difficult to determine whether an electronic or modern printed copy of a text is "accurate" - in fact, it may even be difficult to articulate what exactly an accurate copy might be, given that there may be no "original" version of a particular text written by a single author.
For these reasons, the site provides a growing number of texts which are tied character by character to a scanned source text, where the source text is a photographic copy of an early preserved manuscript. Every character in the electronic version should correspond to one character in the scanned text, and the site allows users to display the two side by side to confirm this. Since the manuscript itself may have been determined by subsequent scholarship to be in error, all corrections to the manuscript are annotated in the textual database, while preserving the original (mistaken) character to allow comparison with the original manuscript.
Every passage of text which has a photographic representation available displays the icon; clicking on this icon displays the relevant pages side by side, with the text corresponding to the passage highlighted.

Concordance and index data

When passages from early texts are quoted in academic works (particularly works published in English), often the Chinese text is quoted by reference to its location in a standard printed edition or concordance, such as the Harvard-Yenching Institute Sinological Index Series (哈佛燕京學社引得), or the ICS Ancient Chinese Texts Concordance Series (逐字索引叢刊). Page, chapter, and line numbers can be used to identify the location in a text, such as "Harvard-Yenching Zhuangzi: 4/2/35" - meaning page 4, chapter 2, line 35, in this case corresponding to the text "故為是舉莛與楹，厲與西施，恢恑憰怪，道通為一。其分也，成也；其成也，毀也。凡物". However, unless the academic work includes the Chinese text or a translation of it, without access to a copy of the index or concordance, it is often difficult for the reader to determine which passage of text is referred to.
For this reason, the Chinese Text Project provides the facility to locate a passage of text simply by using its concordance or index reference. For supported texts, it is possible to enter an index or concordance reference, such as the "4/2/35" in the example above, and immediately locate the corresponding passage of text. To do this, open the contents page for the text, and enter the reference in the box labelled "Find by reference", or use the corresponding box shown on the Concordance and index data page. Additionally, it is possible to determine the location of any passage of text in such a supported index or concordance. To do this, click on the metadata (metadata) icon to the left of the passage, and move the mouse cursor over the text to display the reference information.

Metadata system

Many of the features of the CTP can be described as being or relying upon a type of "meta-data" - data about data, in this case, data about early Chinese texts. The purpose of the metadata system is to allow users to add additional metadata to the texts, and so extend the database to include other kinds of information which aren't handled by any of the features described above. CTP metadata can be for your own use, or shared with everyone.
Metadata in the CTP consists of a property, such as "source of a chengyu (成語)" or "bits of text I find interesting", an area of text to which it applies, and optionally additional data - perhaps an explanation of why the particular piece of text counts as having that property. Metadata is fully searchable using the "Advanced search" function described below.
More information: Metadata system instructions.

In addition to the simple full-text search facility provided at the bottom of the left-hand pane of the textual database, a more comprehensive "Advanced search" facility is also available, which allows searching using data associated with many of the features described above. To access the advanced search page, click the "Advanced" link below the simple full-text search box.
The advanced search function allows users to search any part of the database for any combination of the following:

Published Resources Database

The resource database lists books and academic articles related to the Chinese ancient texts in the textual database, listed under the same categories as the texts themselves. By clicking on the "Related resources" link beside the title of a text or class of texts, one can immediately see a list of research relevant to the chosen topic.
If you have any questions related to a resource listed in the resources database, or are able to provide further information or write a review or summary of any resource, you can do so by clicking the icon to start a new discussion thread about it. Once you have done this, the item will display the icon to other users so they can see your question or review.

Discussion forum

Since the ultimate aim of providing all the data and features described above is to stimulate discussion, debate, learning and scholarship, it is hoped that users who make use of the site will consider sharing their questions, thoughts, and ideas with others by participating in the discussion forums provided.
The discussion forum is integrated with the site, such that it is possible to link any discussion thread (i.e. topic) with particular items in the database - such as characters, words, passages of text, or published resources. Doing this allows others who are interested in the items you discuss to immediately notice that other people are interested in the same things - and to see what others have said about them, and join in the discussion.
More information: Discussion forum instructions.

Wiki

The Wiki section of the site contains thousands of transmitted texts dating from throughout Chinese history. These texts can be edited collaboratively by users of the site to correct mistakes - please see the Wiki instructions and style and formatting guidelines for more information about how to help. Please note that texts in the Wiki section may not have been editorially reviewed and may contain errors - please help correct these by comparing the Wiki text against the specified base text.
Key features of the Textual Database such as full-text search and dictionary lookup are also available for texts in the Wiki.

The site is continually evolving and new features are regularly added. Important changes and new features are posted on the Latest updates forum - you can make sure you don't miss out on the latest news by following us on Facebook, Twitter, or other social media.

Source information for texts and their translations is displayed at the bottom of the main contents page for each book, and can also be accessed by clicking on the [?] icon beside titles displayed in the menu to the left of each page. Texts which do not display this icon in the left-hand menu have not yet been corrected against a printed edition. If you wish to quote a text or translation in an academic work, you are strongly advised to check the passage you intend to quote in a recognized printed edition. Particularly with respect to translations, this site aims to provide accessible versions rather than verbatim copies of existing works, and translations are sometimes modified, for example to fit the format of the site or use modern Romanization. Furthermore, if you wish to quote a translation in an academic work, you may find more recent translations than those used on the site more appropriate. This site in general uses copyright-expired English translations in order to protect the rights of modern translators. For suggested modern translations and reference works, please see the Resources section of the site.

Comments and constructive criticism will always be gratefully received! If you have anything to say about these pages, and especially if you have encountered any errors in the system or the texts, I would very much like to hear from you. Please feel free to contact me at: . Please check whether your questions have been answered in the FAQ first.