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Chinese characters in the Spanish court: The Manila petition of 1598 to Philip II

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 November 2019

JOHN N. CROSSLEY  and
ANTHONY WAH-CHEUNG LUN
JOHN N. CROSSLEY
Affiliation:
Monash University, Australia, john.crossley@monash.edu
ANTHONY WAH-CHEUNG LUN
Affiliation:
Monash University, Australia, john.crossley@monash.edu
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Abstract

Most information concerning relations between Spain and China in the context of the early colonial Philippines comes from Spanish sources. In this paper we present a contribution from the Chinese. Soon after the Spaniards started settling Manila, the number of Chinese there started increasing rapidly. Relations between Chinese and Spanish were always fraught and the only protectors the Chinese had were the Dominican priests who ministered to them. In desperation they wrote a letter in Chinese to King Philip II, which was “translated” into Spanish. We do not know of any other letter document conceived in Chinese being sent to a king in this period. We present the powerful letter in English translation.

Keywords

Chinese in ManilaSpanish PhilippinesMiguel BenavidesSangleys
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society , Volume 29 , Issue 4 , October 2019 , pp. 727 - 744
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal Asiatic Society 2019

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