Chinese dictionary

There are two main types of dictionaries used in the Chinese language: character dictionaries and word dictionaries. Character dictionaries, called 字典 (zìdiǎn), list single Chinese characters. Word dictionaries, called 辭典 (cídiǎn), list words and phrases. Because written Chinese has many characters, special ways have been made to arrange them for easy use.

Chinese dictionaries have been made for over 2,000 years, starting in the Han dynasty. This makes Chinese the language with the longest history of making dictionaries. Dictionaries have been created for standard Chinese and for many different types of the language.

One important Chinese dictionary is the Kangxi Dictionary, finished in 1716 during the Qing dynasty. It introduced 214 Kangxi radicals, which are still used today to help organize characters in dictionaries.

Terminology

The word cishu means "dictionary" in Chinese. The Chinese language has two words for dictionary.

Zidian is used for dictionaries that list written characters. It combines zi, meaning "character", and dian, meaning "dictionary".

Cidian is used for dictionaries that list spoken words and phrases. It uses cí, meaning "word" or "phrase".

Zidian is the older and more commonly used word than cidian.

Traditional Chinese lexicography

The earliest guides to reading Chinese characters were made for students. Some of the oldest examples are only known from old Chinese books. One early example is the Shizhoupian, made by historians in the court of King Xuan of Zhou around 827–782 BCE.

Chinese dictionaries are organized differently from those for languages that use alphabets. Because Chinese uses characters instead of letters, dictionary makers created three main ways to arrange characters: by meaning groups, by parts of the character, and by sound.

One way to organize dictionaries is by grouping words by their meanings. The Erya, from around the 3rd century BCE, is the oldest surviving Chinese dictionary. It lists words in groups such as "Plants" and "Trees." Later dictionaries, like the Xiao Erya from the Han dynasty, used fewer groups.

Another method arranges characters by parts they share, called radicals. The Shuowen Jiezi from 100–121 CE used 540 radicals to organize characters. Over time, this system was simplified. The Kangxi Dictionary from 1716 CE became the standard and used 214 radicals, a system still used today.

The third method organizes characters by sound. The Qieyun from 601 CE was the first dictionary to arrange characters by sound groups, or rimes. Later dictionaries, like the Guangyun from 1011 CE, expanded on this idea. Modern dictionaries often use a system called pinyin to help with pronunciation.

Modern Chinese lexicography

The Kangxi Dictionary has been a key reference for many years and is still used today, even online. Today, Chinese dictionaries come in two types: those that are in two languages and those that use only Chinese.

Chinese–English dictionaries

People who came to China long ago needed dictionaries to help them learn the language. They made the first books to help others learn Chinese. These early books used a special writing system to show how words sounded.

Important people helped make these dictionaries. One wrote a big book in the early 1800s, and others added more information over time. These books helped people understand Chinese better, though they had some mistakes.

Later, more detailed dictionaries were made. One famous book from 1892 had many words and ways they were said in different parts of China. New ways of writing the sounds of Chinese words were also created to make these books easier to use.

In the 1900s, more modern dictionaries were written. Some focused on how people speak Chinese today, while others looked at older ways of speaking. These books helped both learners and experts understand the language better.

Chinese–Chinese dictionaries

When a new government began in China in 1912, people wanted to update old dictionaries. They made new books that fixed mistakes and added new words. These books helped people learn the meaning and use of Chinese words.

One popular pocket dictionary from 1953 is still widely used today. Another dictionary from 1973 is also well-known and has been updated many times. Big modern dictionaries with hundreds of thousands of words were made in the late 1980s.

Today, many Chinese dictionaries can be used on computers and the internet. Free online dictionaries are available for people to use around the world.

Specialized dictionaries

Chinese publishing houses make many types of special dictionaries, called zhuanke cidian. There are over 130 different subjects, from abbreviations to zoology. Here are a few examples.

Ancient Chinese

Dictionaries for Ancient Chinese help us understand words and characters used in old books. They are organized by sound or by groups of characters. They show the oldest meanings first and include quotes from old books. Some also show special readings of words and shapes of characters from very old writing.

Dialects

Long ago, the Fangyan was the first dictionary for Chinese dialects. In Chinese, fangyan means different ways people speak in different places, including languages like Cantonese and Hakka, which are very different from Mandarin. Some dictionaries focus on these regional languages.

Idioms

Chinese has special phrases called idioms. Some modern dictionaries focus only on these idioms.

Loanwords

The Chinese language has borrowed words from other languages, especially after explorers brought back ideas from far away. Many new words came into Chinese when Western countries met China, and some came through the Japanese language. Some of these borrowed words are still used today.

Vernacular literature

In the 20th century, scholars studied the special words used in everyday stories, plays, and poems from the past. Many important books explain these old, everyday words.

Chinese learners

Dictionaries for people learning Chinese as a new language use lists of characters arranged by how often they are used. These dictionaries help learners understand the most common words and phrases.

Deficiencies

Victor H. Mair talks about eight problems with old ways of making Chinese dictionaries. These issues are sometimes still seen today. The problems include mixing up spoken words with written symbols. Old dictionaries did not study how words first came to be. They also did not have clear ways to show how words sound. There was no easy way for people to find words in dictionaries. The writing system kept changing, making it hard to keep up with all the symbols used in Chinese writing.