The Concept Of "Philosophy" And The Understanding Of Philosophy By Scholars In The Late Qing Dynasty And Early Republic Of China

At the time of the Ming and qing dynasties,missionaries came to China with the concept of philosophia,which was translated into Feiluxue or Yilixue.In the late 19 th century,the word philosophy was translated into Zhexue by Japanese scholar Xizhou which was gradually accepted in Japan.As a philosophical term,Zhexue was introduced into China with Western Learning during the late Qing period.From then on,Zhexue was used as the concept of philosophy.It is clear to see the evolution of the concept behind the vicissitudes of the words and concepts.As a result,the theory of Xingdao in China and western philosophy have consistency from substantial aspect.After Wstern Learning during the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China,a confluence was formed that the connotation of philosophy and Xingdao were merged into one concept Zhexue,which means Zhexue contained both Chinese and western philosophy.With the establishment of philosophy in modern Chinese universities and the formation of the research paradigm of philosophy,traditional Chinese philosophy began to gain a modern form,as a discipline,was gradually established.From the perspective of history,this paper investigates the process of the emergence,evolution and establishment of the concept of philosophy and Zhexue in China.