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Chinese Text Project |
Introduction
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.
Contents and Features
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Ancient Text Database
The heart of the site is the ancient text database, which contains the full texts 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.
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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.
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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. This 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 very limited (though continually expanding). For examples of the CTP dictionary in action, please see the integrated dictionary entries for 與, 說, and 故.
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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 characters 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).
Sources
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 ![[?]](info.gif)
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 corrections
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.