A Short Course of Primary Lessons in Mandarin

by Calvin Wilson Mateer

Excerpt from A Short Course of Primary Lessons in Mandarin

Chinese characters were primarily intended to write the literary style, with is in a sense a language by itself. It is only written, and is incapable of being used as a means of oral communication, except in ready made phrases, for reasons which the student will see as he proceeds. Using these characters to write Mandarin is, to some extent, an adaptation.

130 pages, Paperback

Published August 24, 2018

About the author

Calvin Wilson Mateer (Chinese: 狄考文; pinyin: Dí Kǎowén, sometimes misspelt "Matteer") (9 January 1836 – 28 September 1908) was a missionary to China with the American Presbyterian Mission. He was of Scottish-Irish descent and a native of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Western Theological Seminary, Pittsburgh. After serving with the Presbyterian church of Delaware, Ohio, for two years, he arrived in Dengzhou (today part of Penglai City, Shandong) with his wife Julia Brown Mateer in early January 1864 and continued to work as a missionary in China for 45 years.

He was the chairman of the committee for Bible translation and presided over the translation of the widely circulated Chinese translation of the Holy Bible, The Chinese Union Version.

In 1882, Mateer founded Tengchow College as the first modern institution of higher education in China. Tengchow College became a predecessor of Cheeloo University, and finally of Shandong University.

His Course of Mandarin Lessons, based on idiom, first published in 1892, was a popular text for learners, garnering four further editions by 1922.

He died in 1908 in Qingdao, China.