Arte bre da lingoa Iapoa da Arte grande da me lingoa, pera os que começam a aprer os primeiros principios della
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Material Information

Title:
Arte bre da lingoa Iapoa da Arte grande da me lingoa, pera os que começam a aprer os primeiros principios della
Alternate Title:
Arte breve da lingoa iapoa tirada da arte grande da mesma lingoa : pera os que começam a aprender os primeiros principios della
Alternate Title:
Arte breve da lingoa Japoa
Translated Title:
Art of the japanese language
日本小文典 Nihon Shōbunten
Abbreviated Title:
Arte da lingoa de Iapam
Creator:
Rodrigues, João, 1558-1633
Donor:
Marsden, William, 1754-1836
Place of Publication:
Macao
China
Publisher:
Collegio da Madre de Deos da Companhia de Iesu
Publication Date:
Language:
Portuguese
Physical Description:
[iv], 96 leaves ; 24 cm

Notes

Content Advice:
Arte da Lingoa de Iapam (1604) is the oldest extant complete Japanese grammar. João Rodrigues published it in three volumes at Nagasaki over the five years between 1604 and 1608. Rodrigues was a prominent Jesuit missionary who became a fluent interpreter of Japanese life to the West. The 1620 edition was published by the Jesuit Company at Macao (then under Portuguese control), following the ban on Catholicism in Japan and the departure of João Rodrigues for the China missions. The "Arte Breve" reformulates the treatment of grammar in the earlier "Great Art" (Arte Grande), establishing clear and concise rules regarding the principal features of the Japanese language. It is in Portuguese, with Romanised Japanese as well as Japanese in Japanese script. The Japanese movable fonts used in the Arte Breve were carried out of Japan when the Jesuits were expelled. Pages 7r-v are the only two pages in the entire grammar to contain anything in Japanese script (rather than just romanization), namely the iroha and a '50-sound chart' 五十音図 in hiragana as well as the sinographs for basic numerals. ( English )
General Note:
The only other printed copy of the Arte breve is held at the Biblioteca da Ajuda in Lisbon under the shelfmark 50-XI-3. Its title page completes the lacunae found in the SOAS copy's title page: "Arte breve da lingoa iapoa tirada da arte grande da mesma lingoa : pera os que começam a aprender os primeiros principios della." This title was republished in 1972 under the revised title "Arte breve da lingoa iapoa da arte grande da me lingoa : pera os que começam a aprer os primeiros principios della".
General Note:
Responsibility: Pello padre Ioam Rodriguez da Companhia de Iesu Portugues do Bispado de Lamego. Divida em tres livros. [Sacred monogram.]. Com licenca do ordinario, & superiores.
General Note:
VIAF (name authority) : Rodrigues, João, 1558-1633 : URI http://viaf.org/viaf/89384787
General Note:
Abridgment of Arte grande da lingoa Iapoam, pub. 1604-1608 (Nagasaki)
Language:
Text language: Portuguese, with Romanised Japanese
General Note:
Élémens de la grammaire japonaise (1825), tr. et collationnés par C. Landresse, is a further abridgement.
General Note:
Republished in 1993, in Japan, under the title "ロドリゲス日本語小文典"
General Note:
Provenance: From the William Marsden collection originally donated to Kings College, London, subsequently transferred to SOAS University of London. This copy also contains the ex libris of Alexander Dalrymple (1737-1808), Scottish cartographer and hydrographer to the Board of Admiralty, and employee of the East India Company in Madras. Between 1759 and 1762, Dalrymple was appointed to the Secret Service of the Company, working under Captain Baker on the schooner Cuddalore to explore the passages along the China coast, up to the Eastern Seas Islands. The Cuddalore brought Dalrymple to Macao, where he might have been able to procure the book there or via somebody else around that time. Dalrymple's collection was auctioned in 1809-1810, and Marsden might have bought it on that occasion.

Record Information

Source Institution:
SOAS University of London
Holding Location:
SOAS University of London
Rights Management:
This item is licensed with the Creative Commons Attribution, Non-Commercial License. This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon this work non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms.
Resource Identifier:
475725 ( ALEPH )
EB 62.11 /11961 ( SOAS classmark )