was a Japanese glossary of academic terminology first published and compiled by Inoue Tetsujirō in 1881. Revised and expanded editions were later published under the titles and .
The work is regarded as an important historical source not only for the history of Japanese philosophy, but also for the broader history of modern Japanese and Sino-Japanese translated terminology. The book contributed to the widespread adoption of such terms as , , , , , , , and . Its influence extended beyond Japanese to other languages, including Chinese.
History Tetsugaku Jii was compiled in order to standardize the various Sino-Japanese translated terms that had proliferated during the early Meiji period. The editors of Tetsugaku Jii insclude Inoue Tetsujirō, Wadagaki Kenzō, Kōdera Shinsaku, and Nagao Ariga, along with several unnamed collaborators. The central figure in the project was Inoue. The foundation of the work was the list of headwords in Vocabulary of Philosophy, Mental, Moral, and Metaphysical by the 19th-century British philosopher William Fleming. The first edition of Fleming’s work was published in 1857, although the specific edition used as the basis for Tetsugaku Jii is unknown. Additional headwords not found in Fleming’s dictionary were also included. The first edition of Tetsugaku Jii was published in 1881 by University of Tokyo. After the remaining copies of the first edition were exhausted, a revised and expanded edition, Kaitei Zōho Tetsugaku Jii, was published in 1884 by the Tokyo National Museum. In January 1912, Ei-Doku-Futsu-Wa Tetsugaku Jii was published by Maruzen, edited by Inoue together with Nakashima Rikizō and Motora Yūjirō. This edition was reprinted in 1921.
Contents For each headword, one or more translated terms are listed. Definitions are not provided.
The headwords are not limited to philosophy, but encompass terminology from the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences as a whole. The total number of entries reached 1,952 in the first edition and 2,723 in the English-German-French-Japanese edition. The headwords are primarily in English, although Latin phrases and terms from other languages occasionally appear. As its title indicates, the English-German-French-Japanese Philosophical Vocabulary edition also includes equivalents in German and French. Some translated terms had already been coined by earlier scholars, while others were newly created in the work itself. In the latter case, the source or rationale for the translation was usually indicated in a note introduced by the phrase ango (“editorial note”), following the style of the classical Chinese expression “按…”. In some cases, the field of study was also indicated in parentheses after the translation.
The first edition and the revised and expanded edition included as an appendix Seikoku Onpu (“Qing Chinese Phonetic Glosses”), based on J. G. Bridgman’s Chinese Chrestomathy in the Canton Dialect. It is presumed that this appendix was used in the Meiji period to decipher transliterated proper names rendered according to Chinese pronunciation.
The revised and expanded edition also included as an appendix Bonkan Taiyaku Buppōgosū, based on E. J. Eitel’s A Sanskrit-Chinese Dictionary.
Notable Translations from the First Edition + Headword Translation(s) in Tetsugaku Jii Current Main Translation(s) Notes / References Aesthetics 美妙学 美学 Absolute 絶対、純全、専制 絶対 An editorial note is attached to 「絶対」. Abstract 抽象、虚形、形而上 抽象 An editorial note is attached to 「形而上」. A priori 先天 アプリオリ Includes an editorial note. A posteriori 後天 アポステリオリ Includes an editorial note. Atom 微分子 原子 Category 範疇 範疇、カテゴリー Includes an editorial note. Cognition 認識 認識 Common sense 常識 常識、コモン・センス Concept 概念 概念 Constitution 憲法 憲法 Contract 契約 契約 Contradiction 乖角、背戻、矛盾、背馳、忤逆、枘鑿、反言対 矛盾 Cosmos 世界 コスモス、宇宙 Criticism 批評 批評 Deduction 演繹法 演繹法 Includes an editorial note. Definition 定義 定義 Economic 家政、理財学 経済学 Epistemology 致知学 認識論 Ethics 倫理学 倫理学 Includes an editorial note. Fallacy 虚偽 虚偽、誤謬 Hallucination 幻想 幻覚 Human nature 性、本性 人間の本性 An editorial note is attached to 「性」. Idea 観念 観念 Ideal 理想 理想 Idealism 唯心論 唯心論 Includes an editorial note. Identity 同一 同一性 Induction 帰納法 帰納法 Includes an editorial note. Jurisprudence 法理学 法学 Logic 論法 論法、論理, etc. Materialism 唯物論 唯物論 Includes an editorial note. Metaphysics 形而上学 形而上学 Includes an editorial note. Miracle 霊恠、神跡 奇跡 「奇跡」 first appeared in English-German-French-Japanese Philosophical Dictionary. Nature 本性、資質、天理、造化、宇宙、洪鈞、万有 本性、自然, etc. Natural philosophy 物理学 自然哲学 Nirvana 涅槃 涅槃 Sanskrit term. Objective 客観的 客観的 Paradox 逆説 逆説、パラドックス Petitio principii 匿証佯争 論点先取 Phenomenon 現象 現象 Philosophy 哲学 哲学 In other headwords, it is also translated as 「理学」. Physics 物理学 物理学 Political philosophy 政理学 政治哲学 Political science 政理学 政治学 Premise 前提 前提 Proposition 命題 命題 Religion 宗教 宗教 Reason 道理、理性 道理、理性, etc. Reasoning 推論 推論 Revolution 革命、顚覆 革命 Includes an editorial note. Rhetoric 修辞 修辞 Science 理学、科学 科学 Society 社会 社会 Sociology 世態学 社会学 Subjective 主観的 主観的 Substance 本質、太極 実体 An editorial note is attached to 「太極」. 「実体」 was also assigned to several other headwords. Trinity 三位一体 三位一体 Includes an editorial note. Truth 真理、真実 真理、真実、真 Universal 一統、普遍、全称 普遍、全称 Universe 宇宙 宇宙 Utilitarianism 功利学 功利主義 Vernunft 理性 理性 German term. Verstand 悟性 悟性 German term. Virtue 徳 徳 Will 意志 意志 World 世界、人間、寰宇、乾坤 世界
See Also Zihui Eiwa taiyaku shūchin jisho Wasei-kango
References
Works Referenced Books
Articles
Bibliography Tetsugaku Jii: With Qing Chinese Phonetic Glosses (). Published by the Three Faculties of University of Tokyo, 1881 (Meiji 14). Tetsugaku Jii. Meicho Fukyūkai, 1980. Tetsugaku Jii. Heibonsha, “Reprint Series of Modern Japanese Literature (On-Demand Edition),” vol. 241, 2015.
Revised and Expanded Tetsugaku Jii (). Published by Tōyōkan, 1884 (Meiji 17). Revised and Expanded Tetsugaku Jii. Meicho Fukyūkai, 1980. Revised and Expanded Tetsugaku Jii. Heibonsha, “Reprint Series of Modern Japanese Literature (On-Demand Edition),” vol. 242, 2015. English-German-French-Japanese Philosophical Vocabulary (). Published by Maruzen, 1912 (Meiji 45). English-German-French-Japanese Philosophical Vocabulary. Meicho Fukyūkai, 1980. English-German-French-Japanese Philosophical Vocabulary. Heibonsha, “Reprint Series of Modern Japanese Literature (On-Demand Edition),” vol. 243, 2015. Tobita Yoshifumi, Comprehensive Index of Translated Terms in Tetsugaku Jii. Kasama Shoin, “Kasama Index Series,” 1979. Tobita Yoshifumi and Kotoya Sayaka, Comprehensive Index of Translated Terms in the Revised and Expanded Tetsugaku Jii. Minato no Hito, 2005.