- Ma Jianzhong
Ma Jianzhong (zh-cpw|c=馬建忠|p=Mǎ Jiànzhōng|w=Ma Chien-chung; style name: 眉叔 Méishū; also known as Ma Kié-Tchong in French) (1845 - 1900) was a Chinese official and scholar during the
Qing dynasty.Ma was born in Dantu (丹徒),
Jiangsu province to a prominent Chinese Catholic family. After studies at a French Catholic school inShanghai , Ma went toFrance in 1876 to study international law. He became the first Chinese to obtain abaccalauréat and in 1879 he obtained a diploma in law ("licence de droit") fromÉcole Libre des Sciences Politiques inParis .Following his return to China in 1880, Ma became a member of Li Hongzhang's secretariat, where Ma's knowledge of international law became a useful asset. Among other things, Ma helped to carry out Qing policy in
Korea in 1880-82 and he took part in the arrest of Taewŏn'gun. The same year, Ma reportedly suggested the design of the Korean national flagTaeguk , [See [http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/kr_hist.html "History of the South Korean flag"] atFOTW ] which is still in use. In 1884, he also became involved in theChina Merchants' Steam Navigation Company , where he worked closely withTong King-sing .Ma is the author of "Mashi Wentong" (馬氏文通 "Basic principles for writing clearly and coherently by Mister Ma"), the first textbook of
Chinese grammar written by a Chinese (there were already several grammars written by Westerners), published in 1898. Today most scholars believe that Ma's older brotherMa Xiangbo , a famous educator and co-founder ofFudan University , also contributed to the work. [See [http://www.yaoxiaoping.org/news/news_detail.asp?id=84 "Who's the author of "Mashi Wentong"?"] (in Chinese)]References
*Ma Jianzhong. "Strengthen the Country and Enrich the People: The Reform Writings of Ma Jianzhong." Edited and translated by Paul John Bailey. Richmond, Surrey: Curzon, 1995.
Footnotes
External links
* [http://www.historychina.net/cns/QSYJ/WXWD/WXZL/01/04/2005/14110.html# About Ma's study in France] (in Chinese)
* [http://post.baidu.com/f?kz=106392102# "A Journal to the East" (東行錄)] , Ma's record on Korea (in Chinese)
*Alain Peyraube, [http://staff.feweb.vu.nl/ppeverelli/peyraube.pdf "Some Reflections on the Sources of the "Mashi Wentong"]
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