Introduction
Proverbs are an important element in Chinese language and literature. Often proverbs and common sayings are quoted in daily conversation and the former are incorporated frequently in Chinese poetry and essays. Thus the study of Chinese proverbs and ballads is a good starting point for understanding not only the mind of the Chinese people but also the philosophical background of their culture.
GuYaoYan is a collection of Chinese ballads and proverbs dating from ShangGu (perhaps as early as seventeenth century BC) to the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). The collection was
compiled and annotated by 杜文瀾 Du WenLan (1815-1881) who lived in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Du selected over three thousand proverbs and ballads from over eight hundred titles
with historical and literary significance, including ShangShu (the Book of Documents), ChunQiu (the Annals of Spring & Autumn), LunYu (the
Analects), ShiJi (the Records of History).
The anthology contains one hundred chapters arranged in the traditional Chinese subject classifications : Jing (Classics), Shi (History), Zi (Humanities, Social Sciences, Sciences), and Ji (Anthology). The final chapter is devoted to interpretations of Yao (Ballad) and Yan (Proverb) by various writers.
