This is a highly incomplete metanode devoted to listing nodes related to well-known Chinese philosophers, and also some philosophical schools and texts. At the moment there are relatively few of them noded on E2; if you see or add others, please msg me and I'll include them here.

Because many Chinese terms are redundantly noded in different spellings, I have listed all names more than once: in Wade-Giles, Pinyin, and in other spellings sometimes seen. What I judge to be the mostly commonly used English name is boldfaced.

There is a separate node elsewhere in E2 to explain why there are so many different romanization systems for Chinese. But I should point out that the names "Confucius" etc. are not corruptions, as is sometimes alleged. The several philosophers whose names end in -cius got those spellings in the early period of Western-Chinese contact, in the 16th and 17th centuries, when Latin-speaking Jesuit Fathers were actively studying Chinese language and culture and sending reports back to an eager European audience. "Confucius" is a Latin rendering of Kongfuzi, with the Latin ending -us tacked on to make it function grammatically. Unlike Chinese, Western languages use alphabetic writing, which is able to maintain differences is spelling that come about though the borrowing of foreign words or the preservation of older pronunciations. Chinese characters are not really able to do that.


Warring States period philosophers

  1. Confucius.
  2. Lao Tzu
  3. Mo Tzu
    • W-G: Mozi (Mo Tzu)|Mo Tzu
    • PY: Mozi
    • &c: Moh Tzu; Mocius, Mecius (rare)
    • related terms: Mohism
  4. Mencius
    • W-G: Meng Tzu
    • PY: Mengzi
    • &c: Mencius
    • related terms: —
  5. Chuang Tzu
    • W-G: Chuang Tzu
    • PY: Zhuangzi
    • &c: —
    • related terms: Taoism (noded under Lao Tzu, above)
  6. Sun Tzu
  7. Lord Shang
  8. Hsün Tzu
    • W-G: Hsün Tzu
    • PY: Xunzi
    • &c: —
    • related terms: —
  9. Han-fei Tzu
    • W-G: Han-fei Tzu
    • PY: Hanfeizi
    • &c: —
    • related terms: Legalism
  10. Lieh Tzu
    • W-G: Lieh Tzu
    • PY: Liezi
    • &c: —
    • related terms: —
  11. Kao Tzu
    • W-G: Kao Tzu
    • PY: Gaozi
    • &c: —
    • related terms: —

Han dynasty philosophers

  1. Tung Chung-shu
    • W-G: Tung Chung-shu
    • PY: Dong Zhongshu
    • &c: —
    • related terms: —
  2. Yang Hsiung
    • W-G: Yang Hsiung
    • PY: Yang Xiong
    • &c: —
    • related terms: —

Song dynasty philosophers

  1. Chu Hsi
    • W-G: Chu Hsi, Chu Tzu
    • PY: Zhu Xi, Zhuzi
    • &c: —
    • related terms: Neo-Confucianism; School of Principle
  2. Wang Yang-Ming
    • W-G: Wang Yang-Ming
    • PY: Wang Yangming
    • &c: —
    • related terms: Neo-Confucianism; School of Principle

Chinese philosophical texts

  1. I Ching
  2. The Analects of Confucius
    • W-G: Lun-yü
    • PY: Lunyu
    • &c: The Analects of Confucius
    • related terms: Confucianism
  3. Tao Te Ching
    • W-G: Tao Te Ching (Dao De Jing)|Tao Te Ching
    • PY: Dao De Ching
    • &c: —
    • related terms: Taoism
  4. Taoist Canon
    • W-G: Tao-tsang
    • PY: Daozang
    • &c: Taoist Canon
    • related terms: Taoism

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