RIP John DeFrancis

[mikelove]

It's my sad duty to report that Professor John DeFrancis, author of Beginning Chinese Reader, Chinese Language: Fact and Fantasy, and many other titles, passed away last Friday at the age of 97:

http://johndefrancis.wordpress.com/

While I never had the pleasure of meeting him, it's been a joy and a privilege to help bring his ABC dictionary to a wider audience through Pleco; his influence in the world of Chinese teaching is incalculable and all of us in this field owe him a very great debt.

[chalimac]

RIP.

His readers are an extraordinary textbook, so intentional and planned they constitute a milestone in language teaching. His dictionary is also awesome. My thoughts are with his family and collaborators.

[Lu]

I'm sorry to hear that :-( I learned my first Chinese from his Beginning Chinese.

DeFrancis contributed a lot to the learning of Chinese, and I'm sure his work will live on for a long time to come.

[Shadowdh]

RIP John DeFrancis.

One of the greats in Chinese and perhaps one of the most important contributors...

[roddy]

Sad news. I'm sure I'm not the only one who uses the ABC in some form or other on virtually a daily basis.

[anonymoose]

Seems like I'm the only one never to have used any DeFrancis material then?

[gato]

Seems like I'm the only one never to have used any DeFrancis material then?

You haven't used the ABC Dictionary (which is used by Wenlin and Pleco)?

[ABCinChina]

I have never used the ABC dictionary as well. I hear is it better than the most current version of CEDICT. Maybe one day I'll get a Windows Mobile device and jump on the Plecodict train.

Edit: RIP John, thank you for your contributions to Chinese learning.

Edited January 8, 2009 at 06:11 AM by ABCinChina

[roddy]

Folks, could we perhaps keep this for reactions to the man's passing rather than pointing out you never used his work.

[Hofmann]

Prof. DeFrancis, thanks for everything. RIP.

[889]

Excerpts from a talk by John DeFrancis:

http://hk.youtube.com/watch?v=afaVjLlnUtQ

[sukitc]

Prof. DeFrancis's Chinese Language: Fact and Fantasy was a monumental achievement. The book helped raise my passion for the Chinese language--particularly, its linquistic aspects. RIP, Professor.

[renzhe]

Prof. DeFrancis's Chinese Language: Fact and Fantasy was a monumental achievement.

I've only read one chapter of it (The Ideographic Myth) and that alone changed the way I thought about Chinese. I think I'll order the whole book.

EDIT: I've just ordered it.

Edited January 9, 2009 at 02:33 PM by renzhe

[anonymoose]

You haven't used the ABC Dictionary (which is used by Wenlin and Pleco)?

Right. But RIP anyway.

[Lugubert]

I have read Fact and Fantasy. It's about time to get a copy of my own.

I use the Pleco and Wenlin.

I'm more into simplified, but I have found four of his textbooks, and they almost made me switch to traditional. Some day, I'm going to wade through them anyway.

Not the least because I'm a Swede, Bernhard Karlgren is at the summit of my list of scholars of Chinese, but JDF is not very far behind.

RIP.

[msittig]

Did everybody read the biography on the Wordpress site? I don't think I've used his dictionary, but gosh what a life! Amazing fellow.

[querido]

Link to wordpress memorial:

http://johndefrancis.wordpress.com/

[joshuawbb]

RIP, Prof. DeFrancis; such an amazing life, and like has been mentioned before, a monumental contribution to Chinese learning.

[889]

The New York Times ran a long obituary today:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/15/us/15defrancis.html?ref=world

[Long Zhiren]

I owe Mr DeFrancis any skills that I have with the Chinese language.

Years before Purdue University had any Chinese language courses, DeFrancis' textbooks got me going well into language programs for foreigners in Taiwan.