Ma Junwu 馬君武 (1881 in

Guilin Guilin (Standard Zhuang: ''Gveilinz''; alternatively romanized as Kweilin) is a prefecture-level city in the northeast of China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. It is situated on the west bank of the Li River and borders Hunan to the nort ...

– 1940 in

) was a celebrated scientist and educator in China and first president of

Guangxi University Guangxi University (), known as Xida (), is a provincial research university located in Nanning, Guangxi and the oldest and largest university in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The university helped pioneer higher education in central an ...

Biography

Ma Junwu was born in Guilin in 1881 and enlisted in one of the new schools for higher education there. Later he went to Shanghai to study French at the

Aurora University Aurora University (AU) is a private university in Aurora, Illinois. In addition to its main campus and the Orchard Center in Aurora, AU offers programs online, at its George Williams College campus in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, and at the Wood ...

. With a friend Ma Junwu founded a publishing and translation society. The years 1902 to 1903 Ma Junwu spent in Japan, where he met

Sun Yatsen Sun Yat-sen (; also known by several other names; 12 November 1866 – 12 March 1925) Singtao daily. Saturday edition. 23 October 2010. section A18. Sun Yat-sen Xinhai revolution 100th anniversary edition . was a Chinese politician who serv ...

and later became a member of Sun's party. From 1907 onward, Ma Junwu studied in Berlin, where in 1911 he received his engineering degree in metallurgy. After holding various political offices in the Chinese Republic, Ma Junwu returned to Berlin in 1914 to study agricultural chemistry and returned to China with his doctorate degree in 1916. There he resumed leadership positions in various ministries of the government, besides taking up teaching. Ma Junwu translated Charles Darwin's ''

On the Origin of Species ''On the Origin of Species'' (or, more completely, ''On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life''),The book's full original title was ''On the Origin of Species by Me ...

'' into Chinese. He began this in 1901 and it was not finished until 1919. It was published in 1920.Vincent Shen, Tsing-song (2015). ''Evolutionism through Chinese Eyes: Yan Fu, Ma Junwu and Their translations of Darwinian Evolutionism''. ASIANetwork Exchange 22 (1): 49-60.

Translations

*On Liberty, by

John Stuart Mill John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 – 7 May 1873) was an English philosopher, political economist, Member of Parliament (MP) and civil servant. One of the most influential thinkers in the history of classical liberalism, he contributed widely to ...

*The Rights of Women, by

Olympe de Gouges Olympe de Gouges (; born Marie Gouze; 7 May 17483 November 1793) was a French playwright and political activist whose writings on women's rights and abolitionism reached a large audience in various countries. She began her career as a playwright ...

*The Isles of Greece, by

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...

*Grundriss der politischen Ökonomie *Die Welträtsel by Ernst Haeckel *

Origin of Species ''On the Origin of Species'' (or, more completely, ''On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life''),The book's full original title was ''On the Origin of Species by Me ...

and The Descent of Man, both by

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...

Literature

*Selected Works of Ma Junwu馬君武文選, Guangxi Normal University Press, Guilin 2000

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ma, Junwu 1881 births 1940 deaths Educators from Guangxi People from Guilin Republic of China politicians from Guangxi Presidents of Guangxi University Academic staff of Guangxi University Writers from Guangxi Qing dynasty translators Republic of China translators 20th-century Chinese translators 19th-century Chinese translators