Classical Chinese refers to the written language of the classical period of Chinese literature, from the end of the Spring and Autumn period (early 5th century BC) to the end of the Han dynasty (AD 220), while … See more

Chinese characters are not alphabetic and only rarely reflect sound changes. The tentative reconstruction of Old Chinese is an endeavor only a few centuries old. As a result, Classical Chinese is not read with a reconstruction of Old Chinese pronunciation; … See more

Classical Chinese was the main form used in Chinese literary works until the May Fourth Movement (1919), and was also used extensively in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. Classical Chinese was used to write the Hunmin Jeongeum proclamation in which the modern … See more

• Classical Chinese for Everyone, Bryan Van Norden, 2004
• Chinese Notes: Introduction to Classical Chinese, Alex Amies, 2013
• Chinese Texts: A Classical Chinese course, Mark Edward Lewis, 2014 See more

Classical Chinese is distinguished from written vernacular Chinese in its style, which appears extremely concise and compact to modern Chinese speakers, and to some extent … See more

Literary Chinese was adopted in Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. The Oxford Handbook of Classical Chinese Literature argues that this adoption came mainly from diplomatic and cultural ties with China, while conquest, colonisation, and migration played … See more

• Classical Chinese grammar
• Classical Chinese lexicon
• Classical Chinese poetry
• Classical Chinese writers See more