Yù dìng Fēn lèi zì jǐn 御定分類字錦
Imperially Established Categorically-Arranged Brocade of Phrases
by 何焯 (Hé Chuò, Qīng, 奉敕撰) and 陳鵬年 (Chén Péngnián, Qīng, 奉敕撰), as chéngzuǎn; 吳士玉 (Wú Shìyù) and 沈宗敬 (Shěn Zōngjìng) among the fēnzuǎn; commissioned by the 聖祖玄燁 Kāngxī emperor.
About the work
A 64-juǎn imperially-commissioned phraseological lèishū compiled at the Kāngxī court 1719–1722, distinct in design from the larger Pèiwén yùnfǔ (KR3k0059) and the Pián zì lèibiān (KR3k0056). Where those two works gather two-character compounds organized respectively by the final-character rhyme and the initial-character semantic category, the Fēn lèi zì jǐn is a duìǒu (matched-pair) compendium: under each category-heading, it lists pairs of two-, three-, and four-character phrases of like form drawn from the classical and historical literature, arranged for use as ready-made matched diction in poetry and parallel prose. The work has 40 mén and over 618 lèi (categories). The Kāngxī emperor’s preface (dated Kāngxī 60, eighth month — i.e., 1721, exactly one year before his death) explicitly describes the work as the product of three years of compilation at the Bìshǔ shānzhuāng 避暑山莊 (the imperial summer retreat at Chéngdé), entrusted principally to 何焯 Hé Chuò and 陳鵬年 Chén Péngnián.
Tiyao
We submit the following: the Fēn lèi zì jǐn in 64 juǎn was imperially defined by the Shèngzǔ Rénhuángdì (Kāngxī emperor) — into 40 mén with more than 600 lèi, each lèi internally arranged by character-count, with chéngduì bèiyòng (matched pairs ready for use) as the further subdivision. The work draws on the canonical and historical works, and from the bǎijiā zhùshù (the writings of the hundred schools), gathering choice essence in cǎijīng jiéhuá (plucking the seeds and extracting the flowers) — tànyuán juéwěi (probing the sources, ferreting out the conclusions). Compared with the Shì wén lèi jù, BáiKǒng liù tiè, Hébì shì lèi, and earlier works like the Biānzhū and the Jìlì, the work draws on a broader pool of source-material; the chosen phrases are more precise; and the ordering is throughout zhìrán (orderly, in clear sequence) — particularly convenient for jiǎnyuè (consultation and reading). It is truly a benefit to the yìlín (forest of letters) and a guide for those who would compose for purposes of literary self-expression.
Respectfully revised and submitted, tenth month of the forty-first year of Qiánlóng [1776].
General Compilers: Jǐ Yún 紀昀, Lù Xīxióng 陸錫熊, Sūn Shìyì 孫士毅. General Reviser: Lù Fèichí 陸費墀.
Abstract
The Fēn lèi zì jǐn is the third member of the Kāngxī-court phraseological trilogy alongside the Pèiwén yùnfǔ (KR3k0059) and the Pián zì lèibiān (KR3k0056). Where those two works are designed for individual phrase-lookup — by tail-rhyme and by head-character-category respectively — the Fēn lèi zì jǐn is designed for matched-pair retrieval: a compositor needing to pair an opening phrase in a parallel couplet would turn to this work for the answering phrase. The imperial preface (dated 1721, the last full year of the Kāngxī reign) describes the work as the product of three years of compilation in the imperial Bìshǔ shānzhuāng summer retreat, with 何焯 Hé Chuò (1661–1722) and 陳鵬年 Chén Péngnián as principal chéngzuǎn (executive compilers).
The 40 mén are: Tiānwén (天文), Jiélìng (節令), Dìlǐ (地理), Shānshuǐ (山水), Dìhòu (帝后), Fānqī (藩戚), Lúncháng (倫常), Zhītǐ (肢體), Rénwù (人物), Pèifú (佩服), Yǐnzhuàn (飲饌), Gōngshì (宮室), Qìyòng (器用), Lǐyí (禮儀), Yīnyuè (音樂), Zhíguān (職官), Zhèngjiào (政教), Wénshì (文事), Wǔbèi (武備), Jìyì (技藝), Jìngyù (境遇), Shìdào (釋道), Shūsù (菽粟), Bùbó (布帛), Zhēnbǎo (珍寶), Guǒmù (果木), Huāhuì (花卉), Niǎoshòu (鳥獸), Chóngyú (蟲魚), Shùmù (數目), Guàmíng (卦名), Cǎisè (采色), Qiǎoduì (巧對), Jièduì (借對), Shuāngshēng (雙聲), Diéyùn (叠韻), Ǒuzì (偶字), Tōngyòng (通用), Xiángruì (祥瑞), with the closing Gànzhī (干支) and reference apparatus.
Hé Chuò 何焯 (1661–1722), the principal chéngzuǎn, was one of the leading textual critics of early-Qīng — best known for his Yìmén dúshū jì 義門讀書記, the foundational private jiàokān (textual-collation) notebook of SòngYuán bǎnběn studies — and his role here brings the work the imprint of his philological standards. Chén Péngnián, the other principal, was a Wénzōngtóng (hào Bēiyá 北涯) examination official who died as zǒngdū hédào shìwù (Directing Yellow-River-Affairs); his role here was prior to that appointment.
The work was printed in 1722 (Kāngxī 61), the year of the Kāngxī emperor’s death — making it one of the last imperial-publication projects to bear his personal imprint. The Sìkù tíyào ranks it slightly behind the Pèiwén yùnfǔ and Pián zì lèibiān in scale but commends its precision and convenience for jiǎnyuè (consultation).
Translations and research
- Endymion Wilkinson, Chinese History: A New Manual (Harvard, 2018), ch. 6 — discusses the Kāngxī-court phraseological compendia.
- Hú Dào-jìng 胡道靜, Zhōngguó gǔdài de lèishū (Zhōng-huá, 1982), §Qīng.
- On Hé Chuò’s philological work see Lǐ Hóng-qí 李紅祺, Hé Chuò xué-shù yán-jiū (modern monographs in Chinese on the Yì-mén tradition).
No European-language complete translation.
Links
- Sìkù quánshū zǒngmù tíyào, Zǐbù · Lèishū lèi, Yù dìng Fēn lèi zì jǐn entry.