History of Sinology

History_of_Sinology

History of Sinology

From Jesuit Missionaries to Digital Humanities

Martin Woesler

Hunan Normal University

European University Press, 2026

Available in multiple languages / Mehrsprachig verfuegbar / 多语言版本:

• English (this page) -- Complete
• Deutsch -- Chapters 1, 2, 4 translated; remaining chapters in progress
• 中文 -- Chapters 1, 2, 4 translated; remaining chapters in progress
• Francais -- Placeholders created; translation planned

Translation status: View translation status report

Table of Contents

PART I: ORIGINS AND PRECURSORS

Chapter 1: Early Encounters — Travelers, Traders, and the First Reports on China

Chapter 2: The Jesuit Enterprise — From Missionary Linguistics to Proto-Sinology (1582–1773)

PART II: THE ESTABLISHMENT OF SINOLOGY AS AN ACADEMIC DISCIPLINE

Chapter 4: The Founding of Academic Sinology (1814–1900)

Chapter 5: The Maturation of Sinology (1900–1945)

Chapter 6: Cold War Sinology — Divided Fields, Competing Paradigms (1945–1990)

PART III: SINOLOGY BY COUNTRY AND REGION

Chapter 7: Germany — From Leibniz to Contemporary Chinawissenschaften

Chapter 8: France — The Collège de France Tradition and the Golden Age of Philological Sinology

Chapter 9: Great Britain — Diplomats, Missionaries, and the Translator-Scholar Tradition

Chapter 10: The Netherlands — From the VOC to Leiden’s Global Reach

Chapter 11: Portugal and Spain — The Iberian Roots of European Sinology

Chapter 12: Italy — From Matteo Ricci to Contemporary Italian Sinology

Chapter 14: Scandinavia — Bernhard Karlgren and the Swedish School

Chapter 15: Eastern Europe — Sinology in Poland, Czech Republic, Romania, Macedonia, and Belarus

Chapter 16: Russia — From the Ecclesiastical Mission to Contemporary Chinese Studies

Chapter 17: United States — From Friedrich Hirth to the Area Studies Model

Chapter 18: Australia and New Zealand — Sinology in the Antipodes

Chapter 19: East Asia — Sinology in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam

Chapter 20: Turkey, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Indonesia — Sinology on the Silk Road and Beyond

Chapter 21: Africa and Latin America — Emerging Chinese Studies

PART IV: THEMATIC PERSPECTIVES

Chapter 22: Translation as Sinological Method

Chapter 23: Chinese Philosophy in Western Sinology

Chapter 24: Chinese Literary Studies in the West

PART V: CONTEMPORARY DEVELOPMENTS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS

Chapter 29: “Sinology” vs. “Chinese Studies” — The Disciplinary Identity Debate

Chapter 30: Digital Humanities and the Future of Sinological Research

Chapter 31: Conclusion — Where Does Sinology Go From Here?

About This Project

This is a collaborative scholarly book project hosted on UVU Wiki. Registered authors and editors can contribute to individual chapters. See Books for more information about the book platform.

Status: ⚙ In Progress(2026)