Herbert Giles

Lore & Background

Herbert Allen Giles was the fourth son of an Anglican clergyman and was educated at Charterhouse School before becoming a British diplomat to Qing China, serving from 1867 to 1892. He spent several years (1885–1888) at Fort Santo Domingo in Tamsui, northern Taiwan, as Her Britannic Majesty's Consul. He married Catherine Maria Fenn in 1870 and had six children, including Lionel Giles, who also became a sinologist. In 1897, Giles became the second professor of Chinese at the University of Cambridge, succeeding Thomas Wade. He was free to spend most of his time among ancient Chinese texts donated by Wade, publishing translations from his eclectic reading. Giles published over sixty books, lectures, and articles, including the first history of Chinese literature and art. He was known for being outspoken and controversial, criticizing fellow sinologists such as E. H. Parker, Sir Walter Hillier, and Sir Thomas Wade, as well as Christian missionaries and British traders. Despite his abrasiveness, he was remembered as a man of great personal charm. Giles was an ardent agnostic and enthusiastic freemason, and he never became a Fellow at a Cambridge college despite being a university professor for 35 years. He married twice; his second wife, Elise Williamina Edersheim, was an author who wrote under the pseudonym Lise Boehm. Giles retired in 1932 and died at Cambridge on 13 February 1935, aged 89.

Reader's Guide

Herbert Giles's legacy is defined by his contributions to Chinese studies and the Wade–Giles romanization system, which became a standard for transliterating Mandarin Chinese for much of the 20th century. His Chinese-English Dictionary, though criticized by modern academics such as Endymion Wilkinson for inaccuracies in dates and selection, remains a significant repository of late Qing documentary Chinese and is noted as the authoritative source for the Wade-Giles system. Giles also received the Prix Julien from the French Academy in 1897 for his Chinese Biographical Dictionary, though this work was deemed unreliable by later scholars. He funded the Prix Giles award, administered by the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, given every two years for works on China, Japan, or East Asia. His translations of Chinese classics have stood the test of time, and his friend L. C. Hopkins remarked that Giles 'humanized Chinese studies' by making more readers understand Chinese intellect and achievements. Despite controversies and criticisms, Giles's work laid a foundation for Western sinology.

Did You Know?

• Giles modified Thomas Wade's romanization system, creating the widely known Wade–Giles system.
• He served as British Consul at Tamsui, Fort Santo Domingo, from 1885 to 1891.
• His second wife, Elise Williamina Edersheim, wrote China Coast Tales under the pseudonym Lise Boehm.
• Giles funded the Prix Giles award, given every two years by the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres.