# Yan Fu > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Yan_Fu > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Yan_Fu.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_Fu > Source revision: 1356867968 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Chinese translator and scholar (1854–1921)}} {{family name hatnote|Yan|lang=Chinese}} {{Infobox officeholder |name=Yan Fu |image=Yan fu.jpg | office = President of National Peking University | term_start = 3 May 1912 | term_end = 1 October 1912 |predecessor=[Lao Naixuan](/source/Lao_Naixuan) (as President of the Imperial University of Peking) |successor=[Zhang Shizhao](/source/Zhang_Shizhao) | office1 = President of Fudan University | term_start1 = 1906 | term_end1 = 1907 |predecessor1=[Ma Xiangbo](/source/Ma_Xiangbo) |successor1={{ill|Xia Jingguan|zh|夏敬观}} |birth_name=Yan Chuanchu ({{lang|zh|嚴傳初}}) |birth_date={{birth date|1854|1|8|df=y}} |birth_place=Yangqi Village, [Houguan County](/source/Houguan_County) (now [Fuzhou](/source/Fuzhou)), [Fujian](/source/Fujian), China |death_date={{death date and age|1921|10|27|1854|1|8|df=y}} |death_place=[Langguan Alley](/source/Langguan_Alley), Houguan County, Fujian, China |alma_mater=[Royal Naval College, Greenwich](/source/Royal_Naval_College%2C_Greenwich) |occupation = Military officer, newspaper editor, translator, writer }} '''Yan Fu''' ({{zh|t=嚴復|s=严复|p=Yán Fù|w={{tonesup|Yen2 Fu4}}}}; [courtesy name](/source/courtesy_name) '''Ji Dao''' ({{lang|zh|幾道}}); 8 January 1854 – 27 October 1921) was a Chinese military officer, newspaper editor, translator, and writer. He is most known for introducing Western ideas to China during the late 19th century.{{Cite book |last=Huang |first=Max Ko-wu |title=The Meaning of Freedom: Yan Fu and Origins of Chinese Liberalism |date=2008 |publisher=Chinese University of Hong Kong Press |doi=10.2307/j.ctv1x0kc5b |jstor=j.ctv1x0kc5b |isbn=978-962-996-278-4|s2cid=261749245 }} ==Life== On January 8, 1854, Yan Fu was born in what is modern-day [Fuzhou](/source/Fuzhou), [Fujian Province](/source/Fujian_Province) to a respectable [scholar-gentry](/source/scholar-gentry) family in the trade of [Chinese medicine](/source/Traditional_Chinese_medicine). In his early years, Yan Fu's father greatly encouraged Yan Fu to obtain a high level of education and prepare for the [Imperial examination](/source/Imperial_examination). However, the death of his father in 1866 caused an abrupt change to these plans. A year later, Yan Fu entered the [Foochow Arsenal Academy](/source/Fujian_Arsenal_Academy) in Fuzhou, a Western school where he studied a variety of subjects including English, arithmetic, geometry, algebra, trigonometry, physics, chemistry, astrology and navigation. This was a turning point in young Yan Fu's life as he was able to experience the first-hand contact with [Western science](/source/Western_science), thus inspiring the enthusiasm that carried him through the rest of his career. After graduating with high honors in 1871, Yan Fu went on to spend the next five years at sea. He first served aboard the training ship ''Jianwei'' ({{lang|zh-Hant|建威}}) and later on the battlecruiser ''Yangwu'' ({{lang|zh-Hant|揚武}}). In 1877–79 he studied at the [Royal Naval College](/source/Royal_Naval_College%2C_Greenwich), [Greenwich](/source/Greenwich), England. During his years there, he became acquainted with China's first ambassador [Guo Songtao](/source/Guo_Songtao), and despite their age difference and status gap developed a strong friendship. Benjamin Schwartz mentions in his biography that "they often spent whole days and nights discussing differences and similarities in Chinese and Western thought and political institutions".Benjamin I. Schwartz (1964). In Search of Wealth and Power: Yen Fu and the West. Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. Pg 29 His return to China, however, did not bring him the immediate success he was hoping for. Though he was unable to pass the [Imperial Civil Service Examination](/source/Imperial_Civil_Service_Examination), he was able to obtain a teaching position at the Foochow Arsenal Academy and then Beiyang Naval Officers' School ({{lang|zh-Hant|北洋水師學堂}}) at [Tianjin](/source/Tianjin). During this time, Yan Fu succumbed to [opium addiction](/source/opium_addiction) which was wide spread in China at the time.Benjamin I. Schwartz (1964). In Search of Wealth and Power: Yen Fu and the West. Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. Pg 32 It was not until after the Chinese defeat in the [First Sino-Japanese War](/source/First_Sino-Japanese_War) (1894–95, fought for control of Korea) that Yan Fu became famous. He is celebrated for his translations, including [Thomas Huxley](/source/Thomas_Huxley)'s [''Evolution and Ethics''](/source/Evolutionary_ethics), [Adam Smith](/source/Adam_Smith)'s ''[The Wealth of Nations](/source/The_Wealth_of_Nations)'', [John Stuart Mill](/source/John_Stuart_Mill)'s ''[On Liberty](/source/On_Liberty)'' and [Herbert Spencer](/source/Herbert_Spencer)'s ''Study of Sociology''.[http://global.britannica.com/biography/Yan-Fu Yan Fu]. Britannica.com. Yan critiqued the ideas of Darwin and others, offering his own interpretations. The ideas of [natural selection](/source/natural_selection) and [survival of the fittest](/source/survival_of_the_fittest) were introduced to Chinese readers through Yan's work.{{Cite journal |last=Tu |first=Hang |date=2022-02-24 |title=Long Live Chairman Mao! Death, Resurrection, and the (Un)Making of a Revolutionary Relic |url= |journal=[The Journal of Asian Studies](/source/The_Journal_of_Asian_Studies) |volume=81 |issue=3 |pages=507–522 |doi=10.1017/s0021911821002321 |issn=0021-9118}}{{Rp|page=516}} The former idea was famously rendered by Yan Fu into Chinese as ''tiānzé'' ({{lang|zh-Hant|天擇}}). Yan popularized the theory of evolution, emphasizing its ramifications for China and establishing [Social Darwinism](/source/Social_Darwinism) as the framework according to which the majority of Chinese intellectuals and politicians understood international conflicts.{{cite journal |last1=Stumm |first1=Daniel |title=Revitalizing the Nation: Vitalist Philosophy in the Chinese Nationalist Party |journal=parrhesiajournal.org |date=2022 |volume=36 |pages=201-221 |url=https://parrhesiajournal.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Revitalizing-the-Nation-Vitalist-Philosophy-in-the-Chinese-Nationalist-Party_Daniel-Stumm.pdf}} Yan Fu served as an editor of the newspaper ''[Guowen Bao](/source/Guowen_Bao)''.[Hegel, Robert E.](/source/Robert_E._Hegel) "[The Chinese Novel at the Turn of the Century](/source/The_Chinese_Novel_at_the_Turn_of_the_Century)" (book review). ''Chinese Literature: Essays, Articles, Reviews'' (CLEAR), {{ISSN|0161-9705}}, 07/1983, Volume 5, Issue 1/2, pp. 188–191 - Cited p. 189. He became politically active, and in 1895, he was involved in the [Gongche Shangshu movement](/source/Gongche_Shangshu_movement), which opposed the [Treaty of Shimonoseki](/source/Treaty_of_Shimonoseki) ending the [First Sino-Japanese War](/source/First_Sino-Japanese_War). In 1909, he was given an honorary ''[Jinshi](/source/jinshi_(degree))'' degree.{{cite book|title= Peking University: Chinese Scholarship and Intellectuals, 1898-1937|first=Xiaoqing Diana|last= Lin|page=41}} In 1912 he became the first principal of National Peking University (now [Peking University](/source/Peking_University)). Today the university holds an annual academic conference in his honor.[http://english.pku.edu.cn/News_Events/News/Focus/9046.htm First Yan FU Academic Forum held at PKU]. Peking University. He became a royalist and conservative who supported Emperor [Yuan Shikais](/source/Yuan_Shikai) and [Zhang Xun](/source/Zhang_Xun) [imperial ambitions](/source/Empire_of_China_(1915%E2%80%931916)) in his later life. He also participated in the foundation of Chouanhui ({{lang|zh-Hant|籌安會}}), an organization that supported restoring the monarchy. He laughed at "[New Literature](/source/New_Culture_Movement) Revolutionaries" such as [Hu Shih](/source/Hu_Shih). [Utilitarianism](/source/Utilitarianism) and 'Life-ism' (the continuous expansion and preservation of life) were advocated by Yan and [Liang Qichao](/source/Liang_Qichao), but drew criticism from [Wang Guowei](/source/Wang_Guowei).{{cite book |last1=Liu |first1=Joyce C H |title=The Translation of Ethics |date=2012 |publisher=Rodopi |location=Netherlands |page=88 |isbn=978-94-012-0719-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IrlV9llG94QC&dq=%22life-ism%22&pg=PA88 |access-date=13 June 2025}} On October 27, 1921, after returning to his home in Fuzhou only a year earlier to recuperate from his recurring asthma, Yan Fu died at the age of 67. ==Translation theory== [[File:StatueYanFu.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Statue of Yan Fu at [Tianjin](/source/Tianjin)]] {{further|Chinese translation theory}} Yan stated in the preface{{cite wikisource|author=嚴復 |chapter=譯例言 |title=天演論 |language=zh |wslanguage=zh}} to his translation of ''Evolution and Ethics'' ({{lang|zh-Hant|天演論}}) that "there are three difficulties in [translation](/source/translation): faithfulness, expressiveness, and elegance" ({{lang|zh-Hant|譯事三難：信達雅}}). He did not set them as general standards for translation and did not say that they were independent of each other. However, since the publication of that work, the phrase "faithfulness, expressiveness, and elegance" ("[Xin Da Ya](/source/Xin_Da_Ya)") has been attributed to Yan Fu as a standard for any good translation and has become a [cliché](/source/clich%C3%A9) in Chinese academic circles, giving rise to numerous debates and theses.{{Cite web |last=Dunbar |first=Adrian |date=2022-11-30 |title=The Outdated Xin Da Ya Chinese Translation Theory |url=https://cbltranslations.com/blog/xin-da-ya-chinese-translation-theory/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250302070924/https://cbltranslations.com/blog/xin-da-ya-chinese-translation-theory/ |archive-date=2025-03-02 |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=CBL |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Zhong |first=Weihe |title=Translation in China |url=http://www.translationjournal.net/journal/24china.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241118205159/http://www.translationjournal.net/journal/24china.htm |archive-date=2024-11-18 |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=www.translationjournal.net}} Some scholars{{Who|date=March 2025}} argue that this dictum actually derived from Scottish theoretician of translation, [Alexander Fraser Tytler](/source/Alexander_Fraser_Tytler). Though Yan Fu's classical prose did its best to meet the standards of "faithfulness, expressiveness, and elegance", there were those who criticized his works for not being accessible to the younger generations. In particular, a famous liberal from the [May Fourth Movement](/source/May_Fourth_Movement), Cai Yuanpei, stated in an article written in 1924: "...[Yan Fu's translations]...seem to be old-fashioned and his literary style is difficult to comprehend, but the standard with which he selected books and the way he translated them are very admirable even today".Huang, Ko-wu (2003). "The Reception of Yan Fu in the Twentieth-Century China." University Press of America. 25-44 Other critiques of his work arose as Chinese scholars became more aware of Western learning. ==Translated works== thumb|right|Yan Fu's translation of ''Evolution and Ethics'' [[File:Former Residence of Yan Fu.jpg|thumb|right|Former Residence of Yan Fu in [Fuzhou](/source/Fuzhou).]] Yan Fu was one of the most influential scholars of his generation as he worked to introduce Western social, economic and political ideas to China. Previous translation efforts had been focused mainly on religion and technology. Yan Fu was also one of the first scholars to have personal experiences in Western culture, whereas many prior scholars were students in Japan who then translated Western works from Japanese to Chinese. Yan Fu also played an important role in the standardization of science terminology in China during his time serving as the Head of the State Terminology Bureau. In 1895 he published ''Zhibao'' {{lang|zh-Hant|直報}}, a Chinese newspaper founded in Tianjin by the German Constantin von Hannecken (1854-1925), which contains several of his most famous essays: *''Lun shi bian zhi ji'' {{lang|zh-Hant|論世變之亟}} (On the Speed of World Change) *''Yuan qiang'' {{lang|zh-Hant|原強}} (On the Origin of Strength) *''Pi Han'' {{lang|zh-Hant|辟韓}} (In Refutation of Han Yu) *''Jiuwang jue lun'' {{lang|zh-Hant|救亡決論}} (On our Salvation) Later, from 1898 to 1909, Yan Fu went on to translate the following major works of Western liberal thought: *''Evolution and Ethics'' by [Thomas Henry Huxley](/source/Thomas_Henry_Huxley) as ''Tianyan lun'' {{lang|zh-Hant|天演論}} (On Evolution) 1896-1898 *''The Wealth of Nations'' by [Adam Smith](/source/Adam_Smith) as ''Yuan fu'' {{lang|zh-Hant|原富}} (On Wealth) 1901 *''The Study of Sociology'' by [Herbert Spencer](/source/Herbert_Spencer) as ''Qunxue yiyan'' {{lang|zh-Hant|群學肄言}} (A Study of Sociology) 1903 *''On Liberty'' by [John Stuart Mill](/source/John_Stuart_Mill) as ''Qunji quanjie lun'' {{lang|zh-Hant|群己權界論}} (On the Boundary between the Self and the Group) 1903 *''[A System of Logic](/source/A_System_of_Logic)'' by John Stuart Mill as ''Mule mingxue'' {{lang|zh-Hant|穆勒名學}} (Mill's Logic) 1903 *''A History of Politics'' by [Edward Jenks](/source/Edward_Jenks) as ''Shehui tongquan'' {{lang|zh-Hant|社會通詮}} (A Full Account of Society) 1903 *''[The Spirit of Law](/source/The_Spirit_of_Law)'' by [Montesquieu](/source/Montesquieu) as ''Fayi'' {{lang|zh-Hant|法意}} (The Meaning of the Laws) 1904-1909 *''Primer of Logic'' by [William Stanley Jevons](/source/William_Stanley_Jevons) as ''Mingxue qianshuo'' {{lang|zh-Hant|名學淺說}} (An Outline of Logic) 1909 ==References== *Benjamin I. Schwartz (1964). ''In Search of Wealth and Power: Yen Fu and the West.'' Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. *{{in lang|zh}} Shen Suru {{lang|zh-Hant|沈蘇儒}} (1998). ''Lun Xin Da Ya: Yan Fu Fanyi Lilun Yanjiu'' ({{lang|zh-Hant|論信達雅：嚴復翻譯理論硏究}} "On faithfulness, understandability and elegance: a study of Yan Fu's translation theory"). Beijing: Commercial Press. *Wang, Frederic (2009). “The Relationship between Chinese Learning and Western Learning according to Yan Fu (1845-1921).” Knowledge and Society Today (Multiple Modernity Project) Lyon, France. ==Notes== {{Reflist}} ==External links== {{wiktionarycat|category=Terms coined by Yan Fu by language}} {{commons}} {{Wikisource|zh|嚴復|Yan Fu|works=by}} *{{in lang|zh}} [http://www.guoxue.com/master/yanfu/yanfu.htm Detailed biography and with related essays] *{{in lang|zh}} [http://rwxy.tsinghua.edu.cn/rwfg/ydsm/ydsm-qw/00104/000.htm Some of his works on-line] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311065828/http://rwxy.tsinghua.edu.cn/rwfg/ydsm/ydsm-qw/00104/000.htm |date=2007-03-11 }}, including the translation of ''Evolution and Ethics'' {{s-start}} {{S-aca}} {{s-bef|before=[Ma Xiangbo](/source/Ma_Xiangbo) }} {{s-ttl|title=[President](/source/University_president) of [Fudan University](/source/Fudan_University)|years=1906–1907}} {{s-aft|after={{ill|Xia Jingguan|zh|夏敬观}} }} {{s-bef|before=[Lao Naixuan](/source/Lao_Naixuan) |as= President of the Imperial University of Peking }} {{s-ttl|title=[President](/source/University_president) of [National Peking University](/source/Peking_University)|years=3 May 1912–1 October 1912}} {{s-aft|after=[Zhang Shizhao](/source/Zhang_Shizhao) }} {{s-end}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Yan, Fu}} Category:1854 births Category:1921 deaths Category:Chinese military officers Category:Chinese monarchists Category:Chinese newspaper editors Category:Chinese scholars Category:Deaths from asthma Category:Educators from Fujian Category:English–Chinese translators Category:Academic staff of Fudan University Category:Graduates of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich Category:Academic staff of Peking University Category:Presidents of Fudan University Category:Presidents of Peking University Category:20th-century Chinese translators Category:Translation scholars Category:Writers from Fuzhou Category:19th-century Chinese translators --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Yan Fu](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_Fu) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_Fu?action=history)). 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