Joseph-Anne-Marie de Moyriac de Mailla (also Anna, and de Moyria) () (16 December 1669 – 28 June 1748) was a French
Jesuit
, image = Ihs-logo.svg
, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders ...
missionary to China.
Biography
Mailla was born at
Château Maillac on the
Isère
Isère ( , ; frp, Isera; oc, Isèra, ) is a landlocked department in the southeastern French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.[Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...]
and thence set out for
Canton where he acquired a thorough knowledge of Chinese language and writing.
He devoted himself particularly to the study of Chinese historical works. When the
Kangxi Emperor
The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 1654– 20 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, born Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1661 to 1 ...
entrusted the Jesuit missionaries with the cartographical survey of his empire, the provinces of
Henan
Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
,
Zhejiang
Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...
, and
Fujian
Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...
, and the
Island of Formosa, fell to the lot of Mailla along with
Jean-Baptiste Régis
Jean-Baptiste Régis (11 June 1663 or 29 January 1664 – 24 November 1738) was a French Jesuit missionary in imperial China.
Biography and works
He was born at Istres, in Provence, on 11 June 1663, or 29 January 1664; died in Beijing on 24 Novem ...
and
Roman Hinderer. When the work had been completed, the emperor conferred on Father Mailla the rank of
mandarin
Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to:
Language
* Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country
** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China
** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
as a mark of his satisfaction.
When Father Mailla died, in his seventy-ninth year, in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, he was buried at the expense of the
Qianlong Emperor
The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, born Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1735 t ...
, many people being present at the obsequies.
Works
When he was fifty years old he began the study of the
Manchu language
Manchu (Manchu:, ) is a critically endangered East Asian Tungusic language native to the historical region of Manchuria in Northeast China.
As the traditional native language of the Manchus, it was one of the official languages of the Qing dyn ...
, and made such progress that he was able to translate into French the "Thoung-kian-kang-mou" (),
Zhu Xi
Zhu Xi (; ; October 18, 1130 – April 23, 1200), formerly romanized Chu Hsi, was a Chinese calligrapher, historian, philosopher, poet, and politician during the Song dynasty. Zhu was influential in the development of Neo-Confucianism. He con ...
's extract from
the great Chinese annals, which on the orders of the
Kangxi Emperor
The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 1654– 20 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, born Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1661 to 1 ...
had been translated into the Manchu language. He finished the translation in several volumes in the year 1730, and in 1737 sent it to France, where it lay for thirty years in the library of the college at Lyon,
Fréret, who purposed publishing it, having died.
After the
suppression of the Jesuit order, the college authorities gave the manuscript to the
Abbé Grosier on condition that he would see to the publication of the work. Not long after, the work appeared under the title: "Histoire générale de la Chine, ou Annales de cet Empire; traduit du Tong-kien-kang-mou par de Mailla, Paris, 1777-1783",
[Mailla's spelling, Tong-kien-kang-mou, is given by numerous sources, e.g. ]Alfred Owen Aldridge Alfred Owen Aldridge (December 16, 1915 – January 29, 2005) was a professor of French and comparative literature, founder-editor of the journal ''Comparative Literature Studies'', and author of books on a wide range of literature studies.
Car ...
, "The Dragon and the Eagle: The Presence of China in the American Enlightenment", Wayne State University Press, 1993,
Partial view on Google Books
, page 18. The 1907 Catholic Encyclopedia
The ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'' (also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedia'') i ...
misspells it as ''Tong-kiere-kang-mou'' (sic). in 12 volumes, with maps and plans. In 1785 a thirteenth volume followed. Besides Grosier, the Orientalists
Deshauterayes and
Colson were mainly responsible for the publication.
Translator
Mailla is also the first European scholar to whom we owe a detained knowledge of the ''
Shujing
The ''Book of Documents'' (''Shūjīng'', earlier ''Shu King'') or ''Classic of History'', also known as the ''Shangshu'' (“Venerated Documents”), is one of the Five Classics of ancient Chinese literature. It is a collection of rhetorica ...
'', the classic historical work of the Chinese, most of its books being included in his translation. Mailla, also, in order to promote the work of the mission, compiled some edifying books in Chinese; the most important being lives of the saints, and meditations on the Gospels of the Sundays throughout the whole year.
In ''Lettres édifiantes'' there are some letters from him on the persecution of the Christians which took place in China during his time.
Significance
Being based on the Confucian orthodox text of Zhu Xi, Mailla's ''Histoire générale '' gives an idealised account of Chinese imperial history, which should also be read in context of the
Rites controversy
The Chinese Rites controversy () was a dispute among Roman Catholic missionaries over the religiosity of Confucianism and Chinese rituals during the 17th and 18th centuries. The debate discussed whether Chinese ritual practices of honoring fami ...
. For the time being it remained a sole source on Chinese history available in Europe. As a result, eighteenth-century
Enlightenment leaders discussed China as an example of an ideal secular monarchy, a biased vision supported by
Voltaire
François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his ...
and opposed by
Montesquieu
Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (; ; 18 January 168910 February 1755), generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher.
He is the principa ...
.
See also
Notes
References
;Attribution
* The entry cites:
**''Lettres edifiantes'', Series XXVII (Paris, 1758), lix-lxx;
**''Biographie universelle'', XXVI, 120;
**Richthofen, ''China'' (1877);
**
Augustin de Backer
Augustin de Backer (18 July 1809 in Antwerp, Belgium – 1 December 1873 in Liège, Belgium) was a Belgian Jesuit and renowned bibliographer.
Early years and Formation
De Backer left his country to be educated at the Jesuit schools of France ...
&
Carlos Sommervogel
Carlos Sommervogel (8 January 1834 – 4 March 1902) was a French Jesuit scholar. He was author of the monumental ''Bibliothèque de la Compagnie de Jésus'', which served as one of the major references for the editors of the Catholic Encyclope ...
, V, (1894), 330-34
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mailla, Joseph-Anne-Marie De Moyria De
1669 births
1748 deaths
17th-century French Jesuits
French Roman Catholic missionaries
French translators
French sinologists
Manchurologists
18th-century French Jesuits
French male non-fiction writers
Roman Catholic missionaries in China
Jesuit missionaries
French expatriates in China
Missionary linguists