Classical Chinese moocs

[Luxi]

(sorry, another mooc post) I bring this up here because there are very few moocs on Classical Chinese and I think this is an exceptionally good one...maybe I'm biased.  It is a 17 lessons mooc from Wuhan University:

古汉语 (Ancient Chinese)
Teacher: 王统尚 (Wang Tongshang)
https://www.icourse163.org/course/WHU-1002922024

 

It's not entirely on classical Chinese, but he syllabus is very interesting, includes a fair amount of readings, and the topics presentation is clear and very unusual (I'm at the end of Lesson 5 and still haven't heard 5,000 年的历史 even once!). The teacher is excellent, he explains 文言文 very well and has a fantastic sense of humour (his selection of readings is proof). The videos are subtitled (in simplified Chinese) and the subtitles are responsive to mouseover dictionaries like Zhongwen so one gets instant word lookup. 

 

There's a slight snag (depending on how one sees it), the teacher speaks some sort of Wu dialect (吴语). I had no close experience of it when the course started, but the subtitles allowed me to understand the lectures. Now, at the end of Week 5, it seems that the teacher's accent has become a lot weaker and I'm not so glued to the subtitles. Another snag is, some of the 文言文, like this week's texts (from the Mencius) is quite difficult. It's not an easy course but sticking with it can be very rewarding.  A third snag: it's a very popular course, which means there are bandwidth / buffering problems at certain times (Sundays during term time are almost impossible) - but all is running smoothly now and I can even set the video player to HD.

 

Registration is about to close for this semester. The lessons remain available for registered students to study at their own pace. If you can't sign up now, the mooc will run again next semester and interested students can sign up when registration re-opens.

To sign up, one has to be registered with 中国大学MOOC. Registration is easy but needs a legitimate mobile phone number, you can register directly or using Weibo / Wechat / QQ.

There's an iOS app for iPad/iPhone (where you can legally download video lessons to watch offline). 

More information on 中国大学MOOC here:
https://www.chinese-forums.com/forums/topic/53786-chinese-universities-moocs-中国大学-moocs/
 

[fabiothebest]

Don't feel sorry, please keep them coming  Maybe the last 2 MOOCS could be too advanced for me, but I do appreciate that you write about them here. I'll make sure to check them out. I'm still at an intermediate level, but I'll do my best to improve and I think MOOCS are very good..there are MOOCS about anything, so not just about the Chinese language itself, about also about medicine, biology, computer science that are some of my favourite subjects. Almost every MOOC should have subtitles, so that's good because I think I'll encounter a lot of new words.

[Luxi]

Thank you @fabiothebest !

I never know how far to spam the Forum with Chinese mooc posts, it really is good to know there is an audience for those posts. Most moocs are repeated at least twice a year (often improved in later issues). Even if they seem too advanced or you have no time now,  you can register when ready. Quality and interest are variable, you only find out when you register and start the video lectures, so I hope these previews help.

 

I always forget to mention that there are many other mooc subjects, including lots of science and technology, thanks for reminding me! Back to Classical Chinese,  moocs for Chinese students assume that there already is a basic knowledge, at best they offer guided readings which are quite hard for most of us. I haven't tried any of those yet, but the catalogue has several of those guided readings, and now a much wider choice. 

[Luxi]

2020 Update 

 

One or two new 古汉语 / Ancient Chinese moocs have appeared since 2018, so here's an updated list in the 中国大学MOOCs platform. 

 

BLCU 古代汉语入门 Introduction to Ancient Chinese 
https://www.icourse163.org/course/BLCU-1450193180

Don't be put off by the awful introduction in the general pages!

This is a rare one, because it is designed for foreign students and doesn't assume any previous knowledge of classical Chinese. It is very well presented and very clear (at least the first few lectures that I have seen), has Chinese subtitles and enough handouts to be able to follow the videos without much trouble.

It is very basic, but I think a nice introduction for beginners in Classical  Ancient Chinese.

 

Quote

Introduction to Ancient Chinese is designed mainly for foreign Chinese learners who have a Chinese foundation of HSK level 5 and above. Through guiding students to read classical works, translating and explaining words and sentences, and teaching basic grammar, the course aims to develop learners’ reading ability, which includes reading basic classics independently and other passages with the help of reference books.

 

 

More advanced:

 

BLCU 古代汉语 Ancient Chinese
https://www.icourse163.org/course/BLCU-1206312837?tid=1206618259

No subtitles, no handouts either. Probably not very appealing for western students. I gave up after the first 2-3 videos.

Fujian Normal University 古代汉语 (上)（下）
https://www.icourse163.org/course/FJNU-1205698810
Much easier to follow than BLCU's, Chinese subtitles and plenty of handouts. Looks quite well organised, some very interesting insights relating Min language to  ancient Chinese. I enjoyed the first few videos and will get back to do more at a slow pace.

Wuhan University 古代汉语 
https://www.icourse163.org/course/WHU-1002922024?tid=1450286449

Still there and still my favourite but get my brain done in by the teacher's dialect, can only take a bit at a time, tough it is very interesting and funny. Worth the effort.

Thankfully  the videos have clear Chinese subtitles and the ppts are available for download. 

 

 

[mungouk]

7 hours ago, Luxi said:

a nice introduction for beginners in Classical  Ancient Chinese.

 

OK, I'll bite... what's the difference?   (A quick google didn't help.)

 

Is it that "Classical" Chinese is one particular type of "Ancient" Chinese, but specifically that which is used in classical literature, or in a literary style?

 

 

 

[Luxi]

11 hours ago, mungouk said:

I'll bite... what's the difference? 

 

Ancient Chinese (古汉语) encompasses all spoken and written Han Nationality language from antiquity to the May 4th movement (1919) . Classical Chinese / Wenyanwen, 文言文, refers to the written language, 文. Obviously, all this is a bit redundant since all the study material that we have is written text, though it's nice to think that this was, at least in part, the spoken language in the Zhou Dynasty. 

 

If you search for  文言文 moocs in Chinese platforms, you won´t find much (I still have to find a single one), all classical Chinese language moocs seem to be called 古汉语. Funnily, the 'classical Chinese' taught in Chinese Primary and Middle schools (up to Gaokao language questions), seems to be still 文言文 and not 古汉语.

 

 

[Shandongkid]

Thanks for the recommendations Luxi!! Am about halfway through 古代汉语 (Wuhan University) and second your comments, it's a well organised and interesting course! Especially loved the lessons which go through a few Oracle Bone Inscriptions and Western Zhou Bronze inscriptions, it's a really good intro to those topics. For the 文言文 selections, agree that there's some basic knowledge of Classical/Literary Chinese assumed, as the teacher explains what is being said, but not exactly how it is said - the specifics of grammar, particles, word order etc - so having worked through Rouzer or similar would be useful background.

[Luxi]

8 hours ago, Shandongkid said:

basic knowledge of Classical/Literary Chinese assumed

 

That's because Chinese students have already gone through the basics and more in Primary and High School.  Most moocs are for University level learners, so most of what is listed  are advanced guided readings and analyses. Same goes for poetry.  The table on the right on this page will give you an idea of how far behind we are - incidentally. this is a great site for anything classical.

https://www.gushiwen.cn/

 

For the real basic grammar etc. one would have to go to the online school sites, though Rouzer, Fuller and co. seem much more suitable for us. Beginners classes assume you're about 7 years old.

 

 

 

 

[jannesan]

On 6/27/2020 at 5:03 PM, Luxi said:

BLCU 古代汉语入门 Introduction to Ancient Chinese 

 

Really liking this one!

I have watched the first three stories and it is indeed very well presented and suitable for not so advanced learners.

The exercises are too easy, but that's not really the main point for me,

even if I forget most of this stuff soon, it's good listening practice and very interesting at the same time:)

 

Thanks for posting!