ABC Etymological Dictionary of Old Chinese (ABC Chinese Dictionary Series)

Designed for use by nonspecialists and specialists alike, the dictionary is highly accessible, being arranged in alphabetical order and possessed of numerous innovative lexicographical features. Each entry offers one or more possible etymologies as well as reconstructed pronunciations and other relevant data. Words that are morphologically related are grouped together into "word families" that attempt to make explicit the derivational or other etymological processes that relate them. The dictionary is preceded by a substantive and significant introduction that outlines the author s views on the linguistic position of Chinese within Asia and details the phonological and morphological properties, to the degree they are known, of the earliest stages of the Chinese language and its ancestor. This introduction, because it both summaries and synthesizes earlier work and makes several original contributions, functions as a useful reference work all on its own.

The ABC Etymological Dictionary of Old Chinese is a monumental achievement in the history of Chinese linguistics, offering many new hypotheses and systematically evaluating and incorporating earlier scholarship. It will be warmly welcomed by scholars in a wide variety of China- and Asia-related fields, including early Chinese language, literature, culture, and thought as well as the broader cultural-linguistic landscape of prehistorical East and Southeast Asia.