Classical Chinese, also known as Literary Chinese (古文 gǔwén "ancient text", or 文言 wényán "text speak", meaning "literary language/speech"; modern vernacular: 文言文 wényánwén "text speak text", meaning "literary language writing"),

Strictly speaking, 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 Literary Chinese is the form of written Chinese

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

• Classical Chinese grammar
• Classical Chinese lexicon
• Classical Chinese poetry
• Classical Chinese writers

Chinese characters are not alphabetic and only rarely reflect sound changes. The tentative reconstruction of Old Chinese is an endeavor only a few

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 in the use of different lexical items (vocabulary). An essay in Classical Chinese, for

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