Comprehensive Annotated Dictionary for Jade,
Jade-like Stones
and Other Important Stones of China

By Frank Doonan

0.0 – INTRODUCTION

This work is a Chinese – English dictionary of jade and jade culture encompassing the known written history of China, but it is much more than just a dictionary. It represents an ongoing research project to sort out the Gordian knot surrounding the heart of China, ‘The Stone of Heaven’. It was nephrite jade, but not only nephrite jade but a specific white nephrite jade called mutton fat jade with a soft silky feel and a subtle hint of color giving the tone of a beautiful woman’s skin. This work will include an extensive commentary based on field research in China. It will also include the translation of many wisdom sayings, excerpts from Chinese Classics about jade, and translations of classic stories and folk tales about jade.

There are four principle sources for the research for this project. (I) The early dictionaries, primarily the First Chinese Character Dictionary《说文解字》(1) and the early writings and inscriptions on jade items that show how the words are used. (II) The early efforts to study jade terminology and jade artifacts in the nineteenth and early twentieth century beginning with the classic first study of jade made in the Qing Dynasty by 吴大澂wúdàchéng. (III) Recent research and archeological excavations that concern jade. (IV) Modern dictionaries that have compiled old and new characters and words.

This work is centered around two main references, the First Chinese Character Dictionary 《说文解字》 (1) and the three volume Comprehensive Chinese Character Dictionary 《漢語字典》(1990). Other references will be cited when important. It is organized by categories of jade characters and words in a manner similar to the First Chinese Character Dictionary 《说文解字》(1). The characters and words in each category are in alphabetical order by their Chinese pinyin pronunciation. The definitions in each category are complete and refer to the other definitions of the character or word that may be in a different category. An English index will cross-reference the dictionary for the principal English terms used in the text to define the words. A Chinese character index may be added in the future based on the number and type of stroke.

[Section 9.0 – Jade and other stones in Chinese literature] contains nearly all the wisdom sayings called 成语 chèng yǔ that contain references related to jade. Other works of literature are included with improved translations. This section focuses on the most important compilations by Confucius and his students concerning jade, which are the《詩經, 诗经》shījīng – Songs and Poems, 《論語, 论语》 lùny? – The Dialogues of Confucius, 《儀禮, 仪礼》yíl? – The Rituals,《禮記, 礼记》l?jì – Rites of the Zhou Dynasty and the 《周礼》zhōul? – The Rituals.

An important part of the research was actual field visits to locations mentioned in old references to gather information on the rocks and minerals found that correspond to character or word in the reference. Museums and important archeological sites were visited, and authorities on jade were also interviewed to gather more information on jade, other stones, and jade culture.

Chinese like all languages evolved over the years. The dictionary is divided into Classical Chinese and modern Chinese. In the twentieth century the Chinese language in the mainland underwent a transformation in the 1950’s to simplify it and make it easier to write and read. By end of century not only were the characters changed, but the meaning of most of the remnants of the jade culture characters remaining had changed. In Classical Chinese one character may have embodied a meaning that requires two to four or more characters in Modern Chinese.

This work can be used in two ways. The first is as a general reference for the general reader who may want to read the introductory part of each section and scan the definitions for points of interest. The next use is as reference for research and translation.