William Edward Soothill
Encyclopedia
William Edward Soothill was a Methodist missionary to China who later became Professor of Chinese
at Oxford University and a leading British sinologist.
Born in Halifax
, Yorkshire
in January 1861, Soothill matriculated at London University. He entered the ministry of the United Methodist Free Church arriving in China in 1882 and spent 29 years as a missionary
in Wenzhou
, China
. He founded a hospital, a training college, schools and two hundred preaching stations. In 1911 Soothill became President of the Imperial University at Shansi. Upon his return to England in 1920 he was appointed Professor of Chinese
at Oxford University. In 1926 he was a member of Lord Willingdon's delegation to China on the settlement of the Boxer
indemnities.
He is best known for his translation into English
of the Analects of Confucius
and his Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms with Sanscrit and English equivalents. He married Lucy Farrar in 1884. She wrote an account of their years in China entitled A Passport to China.
COPAC
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
at Oxford University and a leading British sinologist.
Born in Halifax
Halifax, West Yorkshire
Halifax is a minster town, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It has an urban area population of 82,056 in the 2001 Census. It is well-known as a centre of England's woollen manufacture from the 15th century onward, originally dealing through the Halifax Piece...
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
in January 1861, Soothill matriculated at London University. He entered the ministry of the United Methodist Free Church arriving in China in 1882 and spent 29 years as a missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
in Wenzhou
Wenzhou
Wenzhou is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. The area under its jurisdiction, which includes two satellite cities and six counties, had a population of 9,122,100 as of 2010....
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. He founded a hospital, a training college, schools and two hundred preaching stations. In 1911 Soothill became President of the Imperial University at Shansi. Upon his return to England in 1920 he was appointed Professor of Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
at Oxford University. In 1926 he was a member of Lord Willingdon's delegation to China on the settlement of the Boxer
Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising by some historians or the Righteous Harmony Society Movement in northern China, was a proto-nationalist movement by the "Righteous Harmony Society" , or "Righteous Fists of Harmony" or "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists" , in China between...
indemnities.
He is best known for his translation into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
of the Analects of Confucius
Analects of Confucius
The Analects, or Lunyu , also known as the Analects of Confucius, are considered a record of the words and acts of the central Chinese thinker and philosopher Confucius and his disciples, as well as the discussions they held....
and his Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms with Sanscrit and English equivalents. He married Lucy Farrar in 1884. She wrote an account of their years in China entitled A Passport to China.
Selected works
- The Student's Four Thousand and General Pocket Dictionary (1899)
- A Mission in China (1906,1907)
- The Analects of Confucius (1910)
- China and Education, with Special Reference to the University for China (1912)
- Timothy RichardTimothy RichardTimothy Richard was a British Baptist missionary to China, who influenced the modernisation of China and the rise of the Chinese Republic....
of China (1924) - China and the West: A sketch of their Intercourse (1925)
- A History of China (1927)
- China and England (1928)
- The Three Religions of China (1929)
- The Lotus of the Wonderful Law: or, The Lotus Gospel (1930)
- A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms: with Sanskrit and English Equivalents and a Sanskrit-Pali Index (1937, with Lewis HodousLewis HodousLewis Hodous was an American Board missionary to China, educator, Sinologist and Buddhologist.-Life:Lewis Hodous was born on December 31, 1872 in Vesec, Bohemia and migrated to the United States with his parents in 1882...
) - The Hall of Light: A study of Early Chinese Kingship, edited by Lady Hosie and G. F. Hudson (1951)
Source
The Methodist Archives Biographical Index: Minutes of Conference 1958 and Encyclopedia of World Methodism (1974)COPAC
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