Listen to this articleshūyuàn 书院
Classical Academy
唐宋至明清时期出现的一种文化教育机构，是私人或官府所设的聚徒传授、研究学问的场所，兼具教学、研究、藏书等多种功能。它渊源于佛教禅林和私人藏书楼，萌生于唐，兴盛于宋。南宋初年，朱熹、张栻、吕祖谦、陆九渊等学者兴办书院，使之成为讲学及学派活动的基地。书院独立于官学之外，多设于环境宁静优美之地，由名师硕儒主持，追求学术自由与创新，注重言传身教、人格塑造，不图科举功名。南宋末年，书院逐步趋于官学，并与科举制度贯通。书院的兴衰与宋明理学的兴衰互为表里。1901年清政府下令书院全部改为学堂。书院前后存在一千多年，对中国古代教育和文化发展、推动中国文化走向海外产生过重大影响。
Classical academies were cultural and educational institutions that existed in China from the Tang and Song dynasties through the Ming and Qing dynasties. They were established either by the public or the government to serve the multiple purposes of education, research, and library service. Their origins were Buddhist monasteries and private libraries in the Tang Dynasty. Classical academies flourished in the Song Dynasty. In the early years of the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhu Xi, Zhang Shi, Lü Zuqian, Lu Jiuyuan, and some other scholars established academies that served as teaching and research centers of their respective schools of thought. The academies were independent of government schools and were located mostly in tranquil and scenic places. Under the supervision of learned Confucian scholars, the academies pursued academic freedom and innovation. Teachers taught by both precept and example, and laid stress on shaping their students’ moral character, rather than encouraging them to win degrees in the imperial civil examination system. By the end of the Southern Song Dynasty, however, the academies became increasingly government-oriented and were linked with the imperial civil examination system. The rise and decline of the academies was in harmony with the rise and decline of the School of Principle during the Song and Ming dynasties.
In 1901 the Qing government ordered all the academies be changed to schools in modern sense. Having existed for more than 1,000 years, the academies greatly helped develop traditional Chinese culture and education, and convey Chinese culture abroad.
引例 Citation:
◎其他先儒过化之地，名贤经行之所，与好事之家出钱粟赡学者，并立为书院。（《元史·选举志一》）
（其他先世儒者曾经教化百姓、著名贤士生活并留下事迹的地方，以及那些乐意出钱粮供养学者的富裕人家，都可成为创设书院的缘由。）
Places where earlier Confucian scholars taught, or where distinguished men of virtue lived and left behind stories and legacies, or wealthy families who were willing to support scholars with money and food, could all contribute to the establishment of classical academies. (The History of the Yuan Dynasty)
