Abstract
The first translation of Confucius’s Analects into a European language was a Dutch book by Pieter van Hoorn. Printed in Batavia in 1675, it predated the better-known Latin translation, Confucius Sinarum Philosophus (1687). Whereas the introduction of Confucius in the West has often been regarded as a project of the Jesuit mission, an exploration of the Netherlandish situation points out that the ‘manufacturing’ of Confucianism was a variegated and multi-confessional affair. The process of transmitting, translating, publishing, explaining, and judging Confucius presented a challenge to Europeans from different backgrounds and allegiances, integrating not only Latin and vernacular scholarship but also Asian expertise.
Keywords: Confucius, Pieter van Hoorn, Philippe Couplet, Jesuits, VOC/East India Company, philosophy

Local access dig.pdf. [Constructing Confucius Low Countries.pdf].
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Printing and publishing Chinese religion and philosophy in the Dutch Republic, 1595-1700 : the Chinese imprint / by Trude Dijkstra.

Originally presented as author's Thesis (Ph. D.--Universiteit van Amsterdam, 2019) under the title The Chinese imprint.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 269-309) and index.

Acknowledgements -- List of Figures -- Colour Illustrations -- Introduction -- 1 China's Religion and Philosophy in Dutch-Made Books, 1595-1687 -- 1 Early Contacts between China and the Dutch Republic -- 2 The Devil in Calicut -- 3 Jesuits and Calvinists on Chinese Religion and Philosophy -- 2 The Dutch Commodification of Confucius -- 1 Popular Works on China -- 2 Jacob van Meurs -- 3 Compilations of All Things China -- 3 The Vernacular and Latin Translations of Confucius -- 1 Athanasius Kircher -- 2 The First Latin Translations of Confucius -- 3 The 1675 Dutch Edition of Confucius -- 4 The 1687 Jesuit Edition of Confucius in Latin -- 5 Translating Confucius Sinarum Philosophus -- 4 Confucius in Dutch-Made Learned Journals -- 1 The Learned Journal in the European World of Print -- 2 The Erudite Press and China before 1687 -- 3 The Antiquity of China -- 4 Critiquing Confucius -- 5 China and the Chinese Rites Controversy in Dutch Newspapers -- 1 Publishing News in the Dutch Republic -- 2 News from China -- 3 Reports on China in Dutch-Made Newspapers -- 4 The Middle Kingdom in French-Language Newspapers -- 5 The Chinese Rites Controversy in the Public Eye -- Epilogue -- Bibliography -- Index.

"Trude Dijkstra discusses how Chinese religion and philosophy were represented in printed works produced in the Dutch Republic between 1595 and 1700. By focusing on books, newspapers, learned journals, and pamphlets, this study sheds new light on the cultural encounter between China and western Europe in the early modern period. Form, content, and material-technical aspects of different media in Dutch and French are analysed, providing new insights into the ways in which readers could take note of Chinese religion and philosophy. This study thereby demonstrates that there was no singular image of Chinese religion and philosophy, but rather a varied array of notions on the subject"-- Provided by publisher.

Local access dig.pdf. [Dijkstra-Printing Chinese Dutch.pdf]

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