A Study On The Chinese Version Of Outlines Of Astronomy In The Late Qing Dynasty

TanTian translated by A. Wylie (1815~1887) & Li SHan Lan (1811~1882) is the Chinese version of Outlines of Astronomy in the late Qing Dynasty. Outlines of Astronomy is a famously astronomical works in England in Nineteen century.Encompassing the books of TanTian & Outlines of Astronomy, the content of this thesis includes 6 aspects:1. We review the life of John F. W. Herschel, the author of Outlines of Astronomy and introduce the background of publishment of the book, then describe its 12 different versions in England.2. By gathering 13 different editions of TanTian in China, and comparing them with different editions of Outlines of Astronomy, we find out the corresponding relation between each other.3. By comparing TanTian and its original, which published in publishing house of MoHai in 1859 , we know the rules of translation and appraise the translated quality of TanTian.4. Now we have 3 leading editions of TanTian, such as First edition,Added-edition, Recension and 2 English editions of Outlines of Astronomy which separately published in 1851,1865. By comparing these editions with each other, we sum up the content and quarry of added and revised part.5. Take the example of List Of Technical Terms Used In The Work, we analyze the terminological translation and the introduction of new western astronomical terms.6. We concluded the diffusion of TanTian in the late Qing Dynasty, then analyze its contribution to our traditional astronomy and reformation of astronomical conception.The thesis will offer a general and external opinion about the influence of TanTian on the astronomical history .