The Grand Dictionnaire Ricci
The making and heritage of the largest bilingual dictionary of the Chinese language ever compiled.
Since Matteo Ricci's first Portuguese-Chinese lexicon, drafted in Macao in 1583-1588, scholars, mainly French Jesuit priests, have continuously strived to build a bridge of understanding between the Chinese and European civilisations by way of dictionaries. This long and rich heritage led to the largest ever undertaken project, the Grand Ricci Dictionary of the Chinese Language (Chinese-French) in seven volumes. After more than five decades of compilation work, they cover more than 3,000 years of history of the Chinese language, from the origins of its script to the most contemporary usage.
The making of the Grand Ricci started in the 1940's in Macao and Hong-Kong. It is explained in the following pages of this site from the historical, lexicographical and linguistic perspectives. The process started with individual paper cards, of which several hundred thousand were made, copied and amended several times, before being assembled into a 40 volume typewritten manuscript. Later on, many folders of computers generated hardcopies were produced out of which finally a seven volume set was published in Paris in 2002, after nearly half a century of hard work.
Co-published by Desclée de Brouwer and the Ricci Institutes (Taipei–Paris), this work contains 13,500 single characters and 300,000 Chinese compound terms and expressions, spanning seven volumes and 9,000 pages. The Grand Ricci is an unparalleled publication: covering the entire history of the Chinese language, from the origins of its script (the oracle bones inscriptions) and extending up to the present colloquial usage. Specialized vocabulary is organized into some 200 fields of knowledge: Astronomy, Buddhism, Chinese Traditional Medicine, Finance, Martial Arts, Taoism, etc.
Following the publication of the Petit Ricci in 1976 (6,000 characters and 50,000 compounds) and the Dictionnaire des Caractères Chinois (13,500 single characters) at the end of 1999, the Grand Ricci is the culmination of a joint effort by the Ricci Institutes of Taipei and Paris. More than 200 specialists helped prepare and edit this work, including some of the leading names in French Sinology and Chinese lexicography. Public and private sponsors were instrumental in the preparation of this work.
Although it is a Chinese-French dictionary, we truly believe that any library, either public or private, claiming to have an interest in the Chinese language and studies, should have these unique seven volumes on its shelves. This work is intended for sinologists, linguists, translators, teachers, students, and all other people interested in the Chinese language, culture, history and thought. It provides them with information on developments in script and changes in meanings over the years.
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