Why is the English name of Tsinghua University “Tsinghua” instead of “Qinghua”? Not only Tsinghua University, but also another top university in China, Peking University, its English name is "Peking University" instead of "Beijing".
Why is the English language of Tsinghua University called Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
To explain the reasons for this translation, we must first introduce a concept - "Postal Pinyin".
The Chinese Pinyin we use daily is the Latinization plan for Chinese phonetic notation promulgated by the state from 1955 to 1957. It is mainly used to mark the pronunciation of Mandarin Chinese. The English pinyin is a "phonetic notation" type of existence.
Why is the English language of Tsinghua University called Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
Under normal circumstances, Chinese place names, names of people or special titles can be introduced to foreign friends directly in Chinese Pinyin. Postal Pinyin is a pinyin system based on Waituma Pinyin that uses Latin letters to specifically spell Chinese place names.
It began in the late Qing Dynasty and continued to be used after the founding of the Republic of China in 1912. Therefore, it was very common and commonly used during this period. Because place names are the most common on postmarks, the "postal pinyin" is called this.
Why is the English language of Tsinghua University called Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
It is said to be based on the Weituma pinyin, but the two are slightly different in form. Here are a few summarized for comparison:
Beijing: Peking (Post Office) , Pei-ching (Watoma)
Tianjin: Tientsin (Post), T'ien-chin (Watoma)
Shantou: Swatow (Post), Shan-t 'ou (Waitoma)
Kinmen: Quemoy (Postal Service), Chin-men (Waitoma)
Why is the English name of Tsinghua University Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
Although the country promulgated a new pinyin plan after the founding of the People's Republic of China, the postal pinyin and Wetoma pinyin have not completely disappeared. This is why universities like Tsinghua University and Peking University still use this pinyin. There is also a saying that the postal pinyin has a sense of history at first glance. Then these old and famous schools still use this English name, and the sense of age and style are immediately apparent.
This "Peking" of Peking University is also worthy of a careful discussion. It is derived from the French word Pékin. When Beijing was established as the capital in the early years of the Ming Dynasty, the pronunciation of "Beijing" in northern Mandarin was actually close to Běigīng in Chinese Pinyin. At this time, the pronunciation of Pékin in French is still [pe.kin].
If you read it a few times, you will find that the pronunciation at this time is a relatively accurate reproduction of the pronunciation in Chinese.
Why is the English language of Tsinghua University called Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
During the Qing Dynasty, Beijing dialect underwent "palatalization", and the pronunciation of the initial consonant of "京" changed from g to j; in addition, the Great Vowel Shift occurred in English from the 15th to the 18th century. Shift), "Pe" changes from the original [pe] sound to [pi:].
In short, under the premise that both Chinese and English are changing, Peking's current pronunciation /'pi:'ki?/ has been formed together.
Why is the English language of Tsinghua University called Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
In addition to Peking University and the Peking Opera in the picture above, the most common ones are Peking duck - yes, Peking roast duck; the name for Beijingers is the same as other words of the same type in English One usage - pekingese.
Why is the English language of Tsinghua University called Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
Similar place name spellings include: Nanking in Nanjing, Shalow in Shangrao, Szechuan in Sichuan...
In addition to Tsinghua University and Peking University, Suzhou University also uses this name - Soochow University, its predecessor was Soochow University, which produced celebrities such as Fei Xiaotong, Yang Jiang, and Zhao Puchu.
Why is the English language of Tsinghua University called Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
The same is true for the Weituma pinyin that the postal pinyin borrows from. Why is it called "Witoma Pinyin"? ——This is still based on the name of the founder Thomas Francis Wade. Of course, if we were to translate this name now, it would definitely be Thomas Francis Wade.
——The pinyin of Wetoma, and its translation, which is now a bit difficult to pronounce, are all products of that era.
Why is the English language of Tsinghua University called Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
Kungfu and tofu like the picture above, as well as Taichi, I Ching, Chingming Festival, and Kungpao Chicken, all come from the pinyin of Weituma. And because these proper nouns have been absorbed into English, they have become fixed usage in English.
In addition to these proper nouns, the nouns of some historical celebrities also follow the translation method of Waitoma Pinyin. Such as: Sun Yat-sen, Chiang Kai-shek, Chiang Kai-shek, Soong Ching-ling, Soong May-ling...
Why is the English name of Tsinghua University Tsinghua instead of Qinghua?
Whether it is Postal Pinyin or Waituma Pinyin, or English or Chinese, it can be seen that they are constantly changing and improving. The emergence of postal pinyin and Waituma pinyin has its own particularity of the times, but it did play a key role in the language and cultural exchanges between China and the West at that time.
Just like these place names that use postal pinyin to refer to them, they are both place names, and to some extent they transcend place names. I think this is the purpose of their existence.