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Article published In: The History of Chinese Linguistics in East and West
Edited by Otto Zwartjes
[Historiographia Linguistica 51:1-3] 2024
► pp. 37–89

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“Este diccionario es su uso para leer libros”

The Vocabolarium Sinense–Hispanicum at the Biblioteca Universitaria di Genova

 | Independent researcher
Published online: 28 April 2025
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https://doi.org/10.1075/hl.00176.qua
Abstract
This article provides some preliminary observations on the Vocabulario de Lengua Mandarina (1702) held at the Biblioteca Universitaria di Genova, which, to my knowledge, has not been studied before. It proposes hypotheses about its arrival in Genova, its likely authorship and examines the prologue, which provides helpful information about the intended use of the dictionary. An analysis of the contents of the Vocabulario yields insights into its romanization, the languages used in its translations, and the words it selects. The article includes a brief comparison with two other dictionaries compiled in the 17th century. Throughout the article, an attempt is made to place the Vocabulario in its historical context — that is, its production in Manila at the beginning of the 18th century — and to consider critically the claim that the Vocabulario’s use was for the reading of books.
Résumé
Cet article fournit des observations préliminaires sur le Vocabulario de lengua Mandarina (1702) qui se trouve à la Biblioteca Universitaria di Genova, et qui, pour autant que je sache, n'a pas encore été étudié. Nous proposons quelques hypothèses sur l’arrivée de ce document à Gênes et l’identité de son auteur plausible, et nous examinons le prologue, lequel offre des informations utiles sur la destination du dictionnaire. Une analyse du contenu du Vocabulario nous invite à faire quelques remarques préliminaires sur son système de romanisation, les langues employées dans les traductions et les mots qui y sont listés. Pour finir, une brève comparaison est faite avec deux autres dictionnaires compilés au dix-septième siècle. Tout au long de l’article, nous nous efforçons de placer le Vocabulario dans son contexte historique — c’est-à-dire sa production à Manille au début du dix-huitième siècle — et nous tentons d’aborder d’un point de vue critique l’affirmation que le Vocabulario était destiné à la lecture de livres.
Zusammenfassung
In diesem Artikel werden die ersten, vorläufigen Ergebnisse einer Analyse des Vocabulario de lengua Mandarina (1702) vorgestellt, das in der Biblioteca Universitaria di Genova aufbewahrt wird und das bisher noch nicht gründlich analysiert wurde. Zunächst werden einige Hypothesen darüber aufgestellt, wie das Wörterbuch nach Genua gelangte und wer der Verfasser sein könnte. Das Vorwort lässt darüber hinaus Schlüsse auf den beabsichtigten Zweck des Wörterbuchs zu. Eine Analyse seines Inhalts liefert erste Erkenntnisse zu dem verwendeten Romanisierungssystem, den in den Übersetzungen gebrauchten Sprachen und den aufgelisteten Wörtern. Abschließend wird das Vocabulario kurz mit zwei weiteren Wörterbüchern verglichen, die im 17. Jahrhundert entstanden sind. Zweck des Artikels ist es, das Vocabulario nicht nur in seinen historischen Kontext, d.h. die Zeit seiner Herstellung in Manila zu Beginn des 18. Jahrhunderts, einzuordnen, sondern auch kritisch die Behauptung zu hinterfragen, dass das Wörterbuch für das Lesen von Büchern bestimmt war.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Provenance of the Vocabulario
  • 3.Preliminary observations
    • 3.1Translators in Manila at the beginning of the 18th century: Possible authorship of the Vocabulario
    • 3.2The intended use of the Vocabulario
  • 4.The “Nota al lector”
    • 4.1First sentence
    • 4.2Second sentence
    • 4.3Third sentence
    • 4.4Fourth sentence
  • 5.Analysis of the Vocabulario
    • 5.1Romanization
    • 5.2Initials
    • 5.3Finals
    • 5.4The diacritics
    • 5.5Markedness
    • 5.6Clerical mistakes and annotations
  • 6.Preliminary lexicographic observations
    • 6.1Languages used in the translation
    • 6.2Loanwords words from other languages
    • 6.3Words relating to Chinese religious beliefs
    • 6.4Sacrifices
    • 6.5Funerals and ancestor rites
    • 6.6Musical terms
    • 6.7Grammatical terms
  • 7.Comparison with the Díaz Dictionary
  • 8.Comparison with the Hokkien Dictionary
  • 9.Preliminary conclusions
  • 10.Final remarks
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
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