The Yijing – The oldest book of the Chinese and its authors

By A. Terrien de la Couperie. Distributor: Lulu. $29.99. 190 pages. Paperback CQ. 2016 (1892).

Albert Terrien de la Couperie was a French orientalist, specialising in comparative philology with a particular emphasis between the Chinese characters and the early Akkadian hieroglyphics.

His works suggested that the basis of the Yijing consist of fragmentary notes, chiefly lexical in character, bearing a close resemblance to the syllabaries of Chaldea. His theories were challenged by J. Legge and G. Schlegel, especially his theories of the origins of Chinese civilization, the comparison between Chinese characters, monosyllabic and Chaldean words, polysyllabic, and the Babylonian origins of the sixty-year ganzhi cyclical calendar system.

With these cautions in mind, his work remains of interest with regard to suggested interpretations, analysis of material history and Western developments.

This reedition includes the update of 384 transliterated Chinese terms into modern pinyin. The five supplementary annexes are provided to facilitate the reading of the text, including the bibliography and list of over 100 work cited.

Contents

• Forward by Eric Serejski
• Introduction
• The Yìjīng and its Authors
  
  1. History and Method
  2. Description of the Book
  3. The Authorship of the Book
  4. Influence of the Evolution of Writing
  5. Obvious Vestiges of the Old Text
  6. The Native Interpretations
  7. The European Interpretations
  8. Comparison of the Interpretations
  9. Methods of Interpretation
  10. Translations from the Yì
  11. Contents Forgotten of the Yì
  12. Origin of the Yìjīng
  13. Material History of the Yìjīng
  14. The Yìjīng and the Western Origin of the Chinese Civilization
• Annexes
  1. List of Asian works cited
  2. List of names cited
  3. Transliteration of terms
  4. Biography
  5. Bibliography