Ricerc@Sapienza

Classifiers have represented one of the main focuses of analyses carried out by missionaries and scholars in grammars and teaching materials composed for studying Chinese; foreign compilers of such texts have each proposed observations on their origin and role. In this article, the author analyses the lexicographical contribution to the history of Chinese language provided by different late Qing China scholars. The author analyses their works by referring to the most recent linguistic interpretations of classifiers; the texts presented frequently show discrepancies and uncertainties, but at the same time they often reveal enlightening ideas ahead of their time.