"Chinese Proverbs and Popular Sayings is for everyday readers looking for pithy sayings, deeper understanding of the Chinese culture and a unique look at the Chinese language." - The Rapidian "Chinese Proverbs and Popular Sayings opens a diverting and useful window on Chinese language and culture." - Asian Review of Books This treasury of Chinese wisdom presents over five hundred proverbs while offering keys to culture and language. Here are both the familiar, earnest sayings of Confucius and Lao Zi ("The longest journey begins with a single step") and the homespun truths of every day ("Teachers open the door; you enter by yourself"). Designed both for inspirational browsing and for students of language and culture, the text is organized by subject (Learning, Patience, Money, Family, Food, etc.) and provides commentary plus Chinese characters and pinyin romanization for each entry. Includes an index. Qin Xue Herzberg and Larry Herzberg teach Chinese at Calvin College. They live in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
First published in 2010. 500 Common Chinese Idioms is a unique tool for learners. Presenting the 500 most commonly used Chinese idioms or ‘chengyu’, this dictionary presents: The idiom in both simplified and traditional characters The idiom in pinyin romanisation A literal English translation and English equivalents Two suitable example sentences, plus explanations and usage notes The dictionary offers a step-by-step approach to gaining greater fluency through a grasp of the most common idioms in the language, making it the ideal resource for the intermediate learner of Chinese and for Chinese language teachers. The book is also accompanied by recordings of all 500 idioms, available free through the companion website.
This Chinese-English dictionary of proverbs (yanyu) consists of approximately 4,000 Chinese proverbs alphabetically arranged by the first word(s) (ci) of the proverb according to the Hanyu Pinyin transcription and Chinese characters (standard simplified), followed by a literal (and when necessary also a figurative) English translation. Additional data such as brief usage notes, sources, parallel expressions, cross-references, and famous instances of use are provided where available. The proverbs are supplemented by an index of key words (both Chinese and English) found in all entries and of all topics addressed. The author has provided a scholarly introduction analyzing the definition, structure, usage, and history of these yanyu in traditional and contemporary China as well as a bibliography of collections and relevant scholarly studies of yanyu. This work, the first such scholarly collection to appear since the Reverend Scarborough’s 1926 collection, will be of use not only to sinologists in a wide variety of fields, including anthropology, literature, sociology, psychology, and history, but also to non-Chinese readers interested in Chinese culture or comparative ethnolinguistic and paremiological research.
This volume is the second of a series deepening the research understanding and academic study of Language Arts, as an English-language teaching paradigm. Previously used extensively in native-speaking countries, Language Arts has been taken up in the past decade in many parts of Asia. Language Arts uses intrinsically motivating materials such as literature, drama and popular culture to help students develop mastery of written and spoken language and text-types. In recent years, Language Arts has embraced media and multiliteracies, as well as critical and creative thinking, intercultural sensitivity, civics and ethics. This volume offers a breadth of topics, which embody methodologically sophisticated and contemporary language arts research. These include multimodal analysis, virtual environments, the use of comics, anime and film in second language teaching, and learners’ experiences of drama and literary tourism. The use of literature and the arts in humanist education has a long history within Europe. It was traditionally appreciated for its ability to instil ethics and finer sensibilities and teach leadership. But the traditional program was marred by its function in inculcating and preserving elitist, high-culture voices, texts and values. The post-colonial incarnation of Language Arts has been informed by critical and linguistic theory, helping it to embrace a popular scope, and include a wide array of authentic social and media texts. The movement of English-language teaching beyond native-speaker shores has given rise to a vibrant variety of World Englishes, whose literary and media works are now represented within Language Arts. The explosion of media over the past few decades has given rise to an increasing array of media to use in language teaching. These trends invite scholarly analysis, and this is clearly reflected in the chapters in this volume. Linguistics has long had a connection to, and a natural role to play in, analysing the creative verbal and visual arts. As a paradigm, Language Arts now takes an inclusive view of the continuum of spoken, written and performed languages and texts. Cutting edge Language Arts research is now also supported through the new journal Language Arts and Linguistics (Taylor and Francis).
YOU Can read Chinese! This book breaks down Chinese characters into their pictographic, phonetic, and semantic elements. Presented as digital flash cards for easy memorization! Free preview lets you see for yourself! Over 2000 different Chinese characters provides the building blocks for basic Chinese literacy. Learn to read a new language! Impress your colleagues, friends, and family! Learn the language spoken by over a billion people and the worlds fastest rising economic and political power. The worlds oldest writing system, the world's first civilization, and the world's most popular language are unlocked for YOU in this simple entertaining book which is keyed as character sequences following the Shuangfa Method for Chinese literacy pioneered in Bai Shuangfa's (白双发) "Hanzi Gong." 汉字宫.Learn more at: http: //amazon.com/author/quizmaster
The highly anticipated next book in Tuttle's Stories for Language Learners series is here! This book presents 22 classic Chinese proverbs and the traditional tales behind them. The stories are bilingual, with the Chinese and English versions presented on facing pages. Each includes an explanation of how the proverb is used today, cultural notes, vocabulary and discussion questions. Online audio recordings of the tales by native speakers give students a chance to improve their pronunciation and comprehension. Some of the proverbs featured in this collection include: "Painting the Eyes on the Dragon" Based on the story of a famous court painter in 6th century China who painted dragons, this proverb refers to the finishing touches needed to bring a work of art or literature to life. In a discussion, it refers to the final statements used to clinch the argument. "Waiting for Rabbits by a Tree Stump" Based on an ancient folktale about a foolish farmer who sees a rabbit kill itself in front of him by running into a tree stump, then gives up tilling his field to wait for more rabbits by the stump. This saying is applied to people who wait passively for luck to strike again. It also refers to impractical people who stick to one way of doing things only because it has worked for them once in the past. "Pure Water Has No Fish; Perfect People Have No Friends" Many versions of this historical tale exist. The one told here is about a 2nd century AD official sent to govern a far-flung outpost on the Silk Road who is fastidious in applying strict rules and thereby causes the local people to rebel against him. In the professional world, it is used to refer to people who do not like to work with an overly strict supervisor or colleague. Whether being used in a classroom or for self-study, Chinese Stories for Language Learners provides an educational and entertaining way for intermediate Mandarin learners to expand their vocabulary and understanding of the language.
500 Common Chinese Proverbs and Colloquial Expressions is a dictionary of key Chinese proverbs or suyu. Suyu are vivid and colourful expressions widely used in Chinese language. The smooth use of chengyu in Chinese writing and of suyu in spoken Chinese not only makes communication more effective, it is also an indicator of mastery of the language. This dictionary will provide an ideal resource for all intermediate to advanced learners of Chinese. Concise and practical, it draws upon a large corpus of authentic language data to present 500 of the most commonly used Chinese suyu. The suyu are listed and organised according to their frequency, enabling easy and convenient access for the reader. Each proverb listing: is given in both simplified and traditional characters offers an English translation, followed by English equivalents is followed by two examples, written in Chinese, Pinyin and English, plus explanations and usage notes. Examples are given in the form of dialogues reflecting typical situations, and helpful cultural annotations are provided throughout. A Pinyin index, a stroke index and a Chinese word index are presented at the back of the book and accompanying audio is also available for free download at www.routledge.com/9780415501491. Recorded by native speakers and covering the whole range of proverbs, expressions and example sentences featured in the book, this invaluable resource will help students to build up strong comprehension and communication skills. This dictionary is suitable both for class use and independent study and will be of keen interest to students and teachers of Chinese alike.
A Student's Dictionary of Classical and Medieval Chinese is the long-desired Chinese - English reference work for all those reading texts dating from the Warring States period through the Tang dynasty, and beyond. Comprising 8,000+ characters, arranged alphabetically by Pinyin, with an index by "radical" and stroke- count, and various appendices, including one with reign-eras and exact accession dates of emperors according to both Chinese and Western calendars.
