<p>For the sake of having this available for people who stumble upon this resource question:</p>
<p>A book has been recently published (Feb 2019) that assumes no prior knowledge of Modern Chinese: <a href="https://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/com/B07YQHKXGL" rel="nofollow noreferrer" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Classical Chinese for Everyone: A Guide for Absolute Beginners </a></p>
<p>I find it an interesting and gentle introduction. I do already know some Modern Chinese, so completely new learners may not find it as gentle, but it is very geared towards new learners and includes very basic information (such as what Chinese characters even are) in the introductory chapter. The book quickly enters reading actual classical texts after this, but does so in a gentle manner, explaining the characters and grammar along the way, with some philosophical commentary at the same time (relevant to the text, of course).</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-08-24T21:53:03.680Z
2020-08-24T21:53:03.680Z
2ndQuantized
<p>I recommend you one teaching material "古代汉语".
<a href="https://i.sstatic.net/eHKBP.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/eHKBP.jpg" alt="enter image description here"></a></p>

<p>This is the basic and common classical Chinese book. It introduced the history of classical Chinese and provided so many useful materials to learn classical Chinese. 
Chinese Poetry, like classical Chinese, also deeply embodies the basic spirit of Chinese culture. Poetry is the art of language and is China’s national spirit. If you also interested in Chinese poetry, I can recommend <a href="http://www.hanbridgemandarin.com/article/chinese-learning-tips/top-5-chinese-poems/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">top 5 Chinese poems</a> to you.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-12-03T11:13:30.667Z
Isn’t this book from 1960s? You’d think views on Classical Chinese have moved on since then.
Vitaly Osipov
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-12-05T11:24:17.470Z
This book is even harder for Chinese people. I did not think it is useful for beginners.
zhaofeng-shu33
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-09T12:40:16.187Z
This is a series of books. I found them extremely helpful, but indeed also pretty hard. They may be best to use if you first study another beginner's course to get a bit of a basic vocabulary and background. Also require at least mid-level to advanced mastery of modern Chinese.
mudskipper
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-25T08:33:37.000Z
2016-07-25T08:33:37.000Z
greglow
<p>I like this book:&lt;&lt;文言津逮>> written by <a href="https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh/%E5%BC%A0%E4%B8%AD%E8%A1%8C" rel="nofollow noreferrer">张中行</a>, reviewed by <a href="https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%90%95%E5%8F%94%E6%B9%98" rel="nofollow noreferrer">吕叔湘</a>, It is easy to read as a pocket guide, but very magnificent.</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/vQgVr.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/vQgVr.jpg" alt="enter image description here"></a>
The characters in title written by <a href="https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%90%AF%E5%8A%9F" rel="nofollow noreferrer">启功</a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-25T11:10:53.203Z
2016-07-25T11:10:53.203Z
sfy
<p>the internet archive has several old books for learning 文言文, or wenli (文理):</p>

<p><a href="https://archive.org/details/elementschinese00confgoog" rel="nofollow">elements of chinese grammar　中國言法</a>﹒by marshman j d d; printed in 1814</p>

<p>this one talked about phonology,  and grammar; a good start.</p>

<p><a href="https://archive.org/details/introductiontoli00branuoft" rel="nofollow">introduction to literary chinese</a>﹒by j brandt</p>

<p>i guess this one was printed in ~1927, articles in literary &amp; colloquial chinese, with english translation and explanation.</p>

<p><a href="https://archive.org/details/chinesischegram00gabegoog" rel="nofollow">chinesische grammatik　漢文經緯</a>﹒by georg von der gabelentz; printed in 1881, in leipzig</p>

<p>this one was in german. judging from the chinese characters displayed, 2/3 of it was about 虛字; an important aspect of 文言文.</p>

<p><a href="https://archive.org/details/guidetowenlistyl00morg" rel="nofollow">a guide to wenli styles and chinese ideals</a>﹒by evan morgan; printed in 1912, in shanghai</p>

<p>this one is full of short literary chinese articles, with english translation, occasionally explained some critical mots in text.</p>

<p><a href="https://archive.org/details/lessonsinelement00balliala" rel="nofollow">lessons in elementary wenli　華文釋義</a>﹒by f w baller; printed in 1912, in shanghai</p>

<p>again, articles in "literary chinese" (imo, not pure enough) with english translation.</p>

<p>these're resources as far as i found, one may download the files "freely"; errrr. . . provided you're not in ***** </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-27T12:53:43.743Z
2016-07-27T12:53:43.743Z
水巷孑蠻
<p>One book that has been extremely helpful to me is</p>
<ul>
<li>Edwin G. Pulleyblank, Outline of Classical Chinese Grammar (1995, 2003)
(ISBN 0-7748-0541-2)</li>
</ul>
<p>This book gives a concise but complete overview of the classical grammar with clear sample sentences. The time period for Classical Chinese is roughly the age of Confucius (6th century BCE) until the Qin unification (221 BCE). Many samples are taken from the book of Mengzi which is known for its simple, elegant and clear style.</p>
<p>The book gives a high-level description of the grammar. But it also gives exhaustive listings of -- for instance -- all the different question particles or the different ways of negation, the different coverbs, different ways to express time, aspect and mood, and a lot more. It pays special attention to syntactical features that are unknown or not as well known in other languages (such as coverbs or pivot constructions).</p>
<p>Note: The price of even a second hand paperback copy on Amazon is ridiculously high ($80). But if you look around on other sites, you may find copies with a much more reasonable price.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-09-09T13:13:26.310Z
2024-09-10T23:14:33.973Z
2024-09-10T23:14:33.973Z
mudskipper
<p>These two books have been recommended from another site (I haven't read these myself):</p>

<p><a href="http://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/0674017269">An Introduction to Literary Chinese: Revised Edition (Harvard East Asian Monographs) by Michael Anthony Fuller (2004)</a></p>

<p><a href="http://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/067402270X">A New Practical Primer of Literary Chinese (Harvard East Asian Monographs) by Paul F. Rouzer (2007)</a></p>

<p>Aside from learning yourself, another option is to find a Chinese person who did well in this subject to teach you or do language exchange.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2011-12-19T01:08:05.330Z
2011-12-19T01:08:05.330Z
going
<p>I have a very strong interest in classical Chinese (文言文), but I am unable to find any ressources for learning it that don't assume Chinese is your mother language. Can anybody give me some pointers?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2011-12-17T15:14:18.390Z
I've heard people saying the Confucius Institute in some countries has classical Chinese classes for people who's mother language is not Chinese. Maybe you could contact one of the institutes for more information. I don't think there are any good online learning resources.
Bruce Li
CC BY-SA 3.0
2011-12-16T21:27:22.620Z
Searched a bit and also did not find anything valuable. As I can recall, classical Chinese is generally taught in high school using case-study. That is, to learn from famous articles, and teachers will do the explanation. While learning it, there are really A LOT exceptions to remember as I can recall.
Flake
<reference-materials><classical-chinese>
Resources for learning classical Chinese
# Resources for learning classical Chinese

(Asked by: username_0 on 2011-12-16)

I have a very strong interest in classical Chinese (文言文), but I am unable to find any ressources for learning it that don't assume Chinese is your mother language. Can anybody give me some pointers?

**Tags:** reference-materials, classical-chinese

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: Searched a bit and also did not find anything valuable. As I can recall, classical Chinese is generally taught in high school using case-study. That is, to learn from famous articles, and teachers will do the explanation. While learning it, there are really A LOT exceptions to remember as I can recall.  
> **username_1**: I've heard people saying the Confucius Institute in some countries has classical Chinese classes for people who's mother language is not Chinese. Maybe you could contact one of the institutes for more information. I don't think there are any good online learning resources.  

---

## 6 answers

### Answer by username_10 on 2011-12-19. Score: 6 | Accepted answer

These two books have been recommended from another site (I haven't read these myself):

[An Introduction to Literary Chinese: Revised Edition (Harvard East Asian Monographs) by Michael Anthony Fuller (2004)](http://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/0674017269)

[A New Practical Primer of Literary Chinese (Harvard East Asian Monographs) by Paul F. Rouzer (2007)](http://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/067402270X)

Aside from learning yourself, another option is to find a Chinese person who did well in this subject to teach you or do language exchange.


---

### Answer by username_3 on 2020-08-24. Score: 3

For the sake of having this available for people who stumble upon this resource question:

A book has been recently published (Feb 2019) that assumes no prior knowledge of Modern Chinese: [Classical Chinese for Everyone: A Guide for Absolute Beginners](https://rads.stackoverflow.com/amzn/click/com/B07YQHKXGL)

I find it an interesting and gentle introduction. I do already know some Modern Chinese, so completely new learners may not find it as gentle, but it is very geared towards new learners and includes very basic information (such as what Chinese characters even are) in the introductory chapter. The book quickly enters reading actual classical texts after this, but does so in a gentle manner, explaining the characters and grammar along the way, with some philosophical commentary at the same time (relevant to the text, of course).


---

### Answer by username_4 on 2016-07-25. Score: 2

I recommend you one teaching material "古代汉语".
[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/eHKBP.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/eHKBP.jpg)

This is the basic and common classical Chinese book. It introduced the history of classical Chinese and provided so many useful materials to learn classical Chinese.
Chinese Poetry, like classical Chinese, also deeply embodies the basic spirit of Chinese culture. Poetry is the art of language and is China’s national spirit. If you also interested in Chinese poetry, I can recommend [top 5 Chinese poems](http://www.hanbridgemandarin.com/article/chinese-learning-tips/top-5-chinese-poems/) to you.

> **Comments:**
> **username_5**: Isn’t this book from 1960s? You’d think views on Classical Chinese have moved on since then.  
> **username_6**: This book is even harder for Chinese people. I did not think it is useful for beginners.  
> **username_7**: This is a series of books. I found them extremely helpful, but indeed also pretty hard. They may be best to use if you first study another beginner's course to get a bit of a basic vocabulary and background. Also require at least mid-level to advanced mastery of modern Chinese.  

---

### Answer by username_8 on 2016-07-25. Score: 1

I like this book:<<文言津逮>> written by [张中行](https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh/%E5%BC%A0%E4%B8%AD%E8%A1%8C), reviewed by [吕叔湘](https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%90%95%E5%8F%94%E6%B9%98), It is easy to read as a pocket guide, but very magnificent.

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/vQgVr.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/vQgVr.jpg)
The characters in title written by [启功](https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%90%AF%E5%8A%9F)


---

### Answer by username_9 on 2016-07-27. Score: 1

the internet archive has several old books for learning 文言文, or wenli (文理):

[elements of chinese grammar　中國言法](https://archive.org/details/elementschinese00confgoog)﹒by marshman j d d; printed in 1814

this one talked about phonology, and grammar; a good start.

[introduction to literary chinese](https://archive.org/details/introductiontoli00branuoft)﹒by j brandt

i guess this one was printed in ~1927, articles in literary & colloquial chinese, with english translation and explanation.

[chinesische grammatik　漢文經緯](https://archive.org/details/chinesischegram00gabegoog)﹒by georg von der gabelentz; printed in 1881, in leipzig

this one was in german. judging from the chinese characters displayed, 2/3 of it was about 虛字; an important aspect of 文言文.

[a guide to wenli styles and chinese ideals](https://archive.org/details/guidetowenlistyl00morg)﹒by evan morgan; printed in 1912, in shanghai

this one is full of short literary chinese articles, with english translation, occasionally explained some critical mots in text.

[lessons in elementary wenli　華文釋義](https://archive.org/details/lessonsinelement00balliala)﹒by f w baller; printed in 1912, in shanghai

again, articles in "literary chinese" (imo, not pure enough) with english translation.

these're resources as far as i found, one may download the files "freely"; errrr. . . provided you're not in \*\*\*\*\*


---

### Answer by username_7 on 2024-09-09. Score: 1

One book that has been extremely helpful to me is

* Edwin G. Pulleyblank, Outline of Classical Chinese Grammar (1995, 2003)
  (ISBN 0-7748-0541-2)

This book gives a concise but complete overview of the classical grammar with clear sample sentences. The time period for Classical Chinese is roughly the age of Confucius (6th century BCE) until the Qin unification (221 BCE). Many samples are taken from the book of Mengzi which is known for its simple, elegant and clear style.

The book gives a high-level description of the grammar. But it also gives exhaustive listings of -- for instance -- all the different question particles or the different ways of negation, the different coverbs, different ways to express time, aspect and mood, and a lot more. It pays special attention to syntactical features that are unknown or not as well known in other languages (such as coverbs or pivot constructions).

Note: The price of even a second hand paperback copy on Amazon is ridiculously high ($80). But if you look around on other sites, you may find copies with a much more reasonable price.


---

