Jiang Xiaowan was the interpreter who accompanied

Aurel Stein Sir Marc Aurel Stein, ( hu, Stein Márk Aurél; 26 November 1862 – 26 October 1943) was a Hungarian-born British archaeologist, primarily known for his explorations and archaeological discoveries in Central Asia. He was also a professor at ...

on his expedition to

Dunhuang Dunhuang () is a county-level city in Northwestern Gansu Province, Western China. According to the 2010 Chinese census, the city has a population of 186,027, though 2019 estimates put the city's population at about 191,800. Dunhuang was a major ...

in 1907 and enabled Stein to secure the purchase of ancient manuscripts, including the Diamond Sutra, the world's oldest dated printed text.

Name

''Jiang Xiaowan'' was his given name. His

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...

according to Aurel Stein was Chiang Yin-Ma;http://dsr.nii.ac.jp/toyobunko/VIII-5-B2-8/V-2/page/0787.html.ja "Ruins of Desert Cathay", Marc Aurel Stein, Vol. 2 however the Chinese characters of this name was not recorded. Jiang was more often referred to as Chiang Ssu-Yeh (Wade–Giles) or ''Jiang Siye'' (Pinyin), which was likely the mistranscription of . ''Ssu-yeh'' was a title at the time indicating the person had learned

traditional Chinese law Traditional Chinese law refers to the laws, regulations, and rules used in China up to 1911, when the last imperial dynasty fell. It has undergone continuous development since at least the 11th century BCE. This legal tradition is distinct from ...

Name

References

See also