Abstract:

Huang Di Nei Jing (Yellow Emperor’s Internal Classic) is the fundamental classic of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), from which the Western academic circle begins to understand the theory of TCM. Prioritized as the primary TCM work by Western sinologists, Huang Di Nei Jing had been translated into Latin, French, German and other languages before the 20^th century. This paper investigates its two early English translations that have scarcely been emphasized or even noticed. Through figuring out the brief history of these two translations, examining the misunderstandings especially on terms by comparing them with the source text, and analyzing what motivated the translators to translate it and how they had first established their knowledge on TCM, this paper explores the special aspects during the transmission of TCM knowledge in the West.

Key words: Su Wen in Huang Di Nei Jing, early English versions, Percy Dawson, Alfred Forke