Character Roots

Author: Wu Yiren
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-07-01
Features: This book is richly illustrated and concise, perfectly blending academic rigor with accessibility. It enables readers to grasp the meanings of Chinese characters and their evolutionary processes across different scripts through vivid and easily understandable appreciation, achieving a harmonious combination of understanding meaning and recognizing forms.
Words are a hallmark of humanity's entry into the era of civilization. For people living in the information age, the relationship with words is ever more intimate and indispensable. In our nation, predominantly Chinese, Chinese characters are the most widely used script, deeply connected to our long history and profound cultural heritage. The origins of Chinese characters can be traced back to the Yangshao Culture era, approximately 5,500 years ago. By the Shang Dynasty, over 3,000 years ago, oracle bone script had reached a stage of basic maturity. In subsequent developments, it underwent transformations through various scripts—bronze inscriptions, small seal script, clerical script, and regular script—eventually stabilizing.
Other ancient scripts from different regions and ethnic groups, such as Egypt's hieroglyphs and Sumerian cuneiform, have long disappeared. Yet Chinese characters alone have maintained enduring vitality. Moreover, while serving as a unique medium for recording language, they have long possessed aesthetic functions, giving rise to our nation's distinctive arts of calligraphy and seal carving. This is a remarkable phenomenon in world culture.
This book is richly illustrated and concise, perfectly blending academic rigor with accessibility. It enables readers to grasp the meanings of Chinese characters and their evolutionary processes across different scripts through vivid and easily understandable appreciation, achieving a harmonious combination of understanding meaning and recognizing forms.