This one-volume Encyclopedia covers both the conceptual framework and history of the Chinese language. Featuring the research on the changing landscape of the Chinese language by 66 eminent academics in the field, the encyclopedia explores a range of topics: from research on oracle bone and bronze inscriptions, to Chinese language acquisition, to the language of the mass media. This reference offers a guide to shifts over time in thinking about the Chinese language as well as providing an overview of contemporary themes, debates and research interests.

List of Consultant Editors List of Contributors The Chinese Language: The Global, Historical, Lexicographical, and Linguistic Aspects - In Lieu of a Preface Chan Sin-wai Acknowledgement 1. Ancient Chinese Alain Peyraubce 2. Cantonese Cheng Siu-Pong and Tang Sze-Wing 3. Cantonese Romanization Cheng Siu-Pong and Tang Sze-Wing 4. Chinese Characters John Yin Jinghua 5. Corpus-based Study of Chinese Tony McEnery and Richard Xiao 6. Chinese Language and National Identity Andrew Simpson 7. Chinese Language Education: Teacher Training Jane Orton 8. Chinese Language in a Global Context Tao Hongyin and Liu Jin 9. Chinese Language Pedagogy Wu Weiping 10. Chinese Linguistics William S.Y. Wang 11. Classical Chinese Chris Li Wen-chao 12. Colour Terms Chan Sin-wai 13. Computational Linguistics Zhang Xiaoheng 14. Chinese Xiehouyu Grace Zhang 15. Elastic Words in Chinese Duanmu San and Dong Yang 16. The Hakka Dialect Lau Chun Fat 17. Hanyu Pinyin Lilly Chen Lee 18. Chinese Idioms Jiao Liwei 19. Lexicography Cheung Kam Siu 20. Lexicography in the Contemporary Period Huang Chu-ren, Li Lan, and Su Xinchun 21. Loanwords Miao Ruiqin 22. Mandarin Shi Dingxu 23. Mandarin and Other Sinitic Languages Hilary Chappell 24. Metaphor in Chinese: Mapping from the Mechanical to the Sociopolitical Zhuo Jing-Schmidt 25. Modern Chinese: Written Chinese Feng Shengli 26. Chinese Morphology Jerome L. Packard 27. Chinese Neologisms: Word-formation Strategies in Chinese Antonella Ceccagno 28. Onomatopoeic Word Chan Sin-wai 29. Chinese: Parts of Speech Candice Cheung Chi Hang 30. Poetic Prosody Feng Shengli 31. Pragmatics Jiang Yan 32. Chinese Proverbs and Popular Sayings Lawrence Herzberg 33. Chinese Psycholinguistics Jerome L. Packard 34. Psycholinguistics: Reading Chinese Liang Tao and Alice F. Healy 35. Chinese Rhetoric Any Kirkpatrick 36. Semantic Change in Chinese Janet Xing Zhiqun 37. Chinese Linguistics: Semantics Hsieh Shu-Kai 38. Hong Kong Sign Language Gladys Tang, Felix Sze, Kenny Chu, and Connie Lo 39. Chinese Slang Robert Moore 40. Standard Chinese Shi Dingxu 41. Syntax Li Yafei 42. Chinese Syntax Walter Bisang 43. Taboo Amy He Yun 44. The Wade-Giles Romanization System Karen Steffen Chung