Recently, a Christian scholar called on people with noble aspirations to translate the English publication China’s Millions into Chinese to better serve the Chinese people.
Founded in 1875, China’s Millions was the journal of the China Inland Mission, the largest western Christian missionary organization in China. In the first half of this year, China’s Millions (1875-1911) (12 volumes) was compiled and published by Shanghai Educational Publishing House. The author’s signature was James Hudson Taylor.
China’s Millions was published monthly, and the chief editor was James Hudson Taylor. Since it was mainly aimed at English-speaking Christian readers, its seventy-seven years of editing and collection is like a grand epic, systematically recording the pioneering and development of the Church in China.
The book is an ethnography of China’s national conditions and local conditions in the 20th century, observing and recording geography, transportation, nationality, population, belief, language, education, medical treatment, epidemic diseases, customs, products, civil revolutions, social changes, and other aspects. The journal served the main window for the China Inland Mission to report back to the western society its missionary progress in China, China’s current politics, history, geography, and other information.
Although it is a missionary journal, after more than a century of accumulation, its breadth and depth have already exceeded the religious field. Therefore, it is not only a precious document to study the history of Christianity in China, but also a precious first-hand material to study the social and historical conditions of modern China.
Because the journal was mainly aimed at western readers at that time, only a few existed in mainland China and it’s little-known among Chinese churches. Although European and American libraries take this journal seriously, the collection was scattered, and it’s difficult to have a complete set.
The publication belongs to the first series of China’s Millions (1875-1911) (12 volumes), covering the period from 1875 to 1911.
- Translated by Nicolas Cao
日前，一位基督徒学者呼吁说，非常期盼有志之士把英文刊物《亿万华民》翻译成中文，更好的服务中国百姓。
在1875年创刊的《亿万华民》是西方最大的在华基督教传教团体——中国内地会的会刊。今年上半年，《亿万华民（1875-1911）》（全十二册）由上海教育出版社汇编出版，作者署名是戴德生。
《亿万华民》（China’s Millions）按月发行，每月一期，主编为戴德生。由于其主要针对英语国家的基督徒读者，其长达七十七年的编辑与采集过程，犹如一部宏伟的史诗，系统地记录了中国教会拓荒与发展的历程。
本书观察与记录的内容包含地理、交通、民族、人口、信仰、语言、教育、医疗、灾疫、习俗、物产、民变、社会变迁等方方面面，堪称一部二十世纪中国国情及各地民情的民族志。该刊是内地会向西方社会反馈其在华传教动态,中国时政、历史、地理等信息的主要窗口。
《亿万华民》虽为传教会刊，但经过一个多世纪的岁月沉淀后，其广度与深度早已超出了宗教领域。因此，它不仅是研究中国基督教史的珍贵文献，更是研究中国近代社会历史状况的珍贵一手材料。
由于该刊当时主要面向西人读者，因此中国大陆存世稀少，在华人教会中鲜为人知；欧美图书馆虽重视此刊，但所藏亦多零散，难有全套。
本次出版的《亿万华民（1875-1911）》（全十二册）为《亿万华民》第一辑，时间从创刊的1875 年到1911 年，合为十二卷。
新书速递| 戴德生内地会会刊《亿万华民》（1875-1911）第一辑汇编出版 有基督徒学者盼中文译本早日问世
Recently, a Christian scholar called on people with noble aspirations to translate the English publication China’s Millions into Chinese to better serve the Chinese people.
Founded in 1875, China’s Millions was the journal of the China Inland Mission, the largest western Christian missionary organization in China. In the first half of this year, China’s Millions (1875-1911) (12 volumes) was compiled and published by Shanghai Educational Publishing House. The author’s signature was James Hudson Taylor.
China’s Millions was published monthly, and the chief editor was James Hudson Taylor. Since it was mainly aimed at English-speaking Christian readers, its seventy-seven years of editing and collection is like a grand epic, systematically recording the pioneering and development of the Church in China.
The book is an ethnography of China’s national conditions and local conditions in the 20th century, observing and recording geography, transportation, nationality, population, belief, language, education, medical treatment, epidemic diseases, customs, products, civil revolutions, social changes, and other aspects. The journal served the main window for the China Inland Mission to report back to the western society its missionary progress in China, China’s current politics, history, geography, and other information.
Although it is a missionary journal, after more than a century of accumulation, its breadth and depth have already exceeded the religious field. Therefore, it is not only a precious document to study the history of Christianity in China, but also a precious first-hand material to study the social and historical conditions of modern China.
Because the journal was mainly aimed at western readers at that time, only a few existed in mainland China and it’s little-known among Chinese churches. Although European and American libraries take this journal seriously, the collection was scattered, and it’s difficult to have a complete set.
The publication belongs to the first series of China’s Millions (1875-1911) (12 volumes), covering the period from 1875 to 1911.
- Translated by Nicolas Cao
Christian Scholar Expects Chinese Translation of China’s Millions, Journal of China Inland Mission
