The orientating of Song Confucianism and Ming XinXue incubated Psychology in Taiwan during the Japanese colonization: Investigating that how the word ＂psychology＂ translated into Chinese

Abstract

日治時期日人將心理學這門學科引進臺灣並於大學層級教授之，從明治28 年(1895)臺灣有心理學這門學科至今，吾人便以心理學一詞喚之而鮮問其源。若要討論心理學一詞之最初翻譯問題，應討論明治時代臺灣及日本學術界重要改革人士與清末中國知識份子之交流問題。心理學一詞雖是漢文，但其完整譯名之肇基卻不必然要出自於中國。日人西周(1829-1897)之學問有其精緻與浩大，比起同時代仍未放棄以科舉試考四書五經以招募人才之清末中國，西周所處時代背景更適合將許多西方學問翻譯成漢文，漢語「心理學」延用至今，此功當歸諸於宋代理學家、明代陽明心學者、日人荻生徂徠、清末康有為與梁啟超、及日人西周等多代思想啟蒙者之共同努力而成就此業。

Since 1895, Psychology began as a formal study in Taiwan university level during the Japanese colonization over a century. The purposes of the study were to reveal the first one translating the word into Chinese, and to investigate how and what the contemporary scholars in Taiwan, Japan, China, and the western countries communicated with each other in the academic world. The first person translating the word psychology into Chinese was not necessary to be the Chinese people. It was found that the Japanese Nishi Amane (1829-1897) was the first person translating the word psychology into Chinese. However, many important scholars in Song dynasty, Ming dynasty, Qing dynasty, and Japan all attributed in the process of the word`s translation.