古文

gǔwén

noun #36,608

Meanings

1 classical Chinese
2 ancient writing
3 Classical Chinese as a school subject or literary model

Characters

writing, text, language

Examples

高中语文考试经常考古文翻译。

Gāozhōng yǔwén kǎoshì jīngcháng kǎo gǔwén fānyì.

High school Chinese exams often test translation of classical Chinese.

他从小就喜欢读古文，尤其是《论语》。

Tā cóngxiǎo jiù xǐhuān dú gǔwén, yóuqí shì «Lúnyǔ».

He has loved reading classical Chinese since childhood, especially the Analects.

这篇古文太难了，我看不懂。

Zhè piān gǔwén tài nán le, wǒ kàn bù dǒng.

This classical Chinese text is too hard; I can't understand it.

Tips

usage

古文 and 文言文 (wényánwén) overlap heavily. 文言文 stresses the grammatical register (Classical Chinese grammar, as opposed to 白话 modern vernacular), while 古文 emphasizes the historical/literary dimension, writings from antiquity through Tang-Song prose.

history

The Tang-dynasty 古文运动 (Classical Prose Movement), led by Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan, rejected the ornate parallel prose (骈文) of the Six Dynasties in favor of plainer pre-Qin style, which is why 古文 today often connotes Tang-Song prose specifically.

Stroke Order

古 gǔ

文 wén