“Engels on China”: Three Important Texts and Their Theoretical Value

General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out that “Marx and Engels highly affirmed the contributions of Chinese civilization to the progress of human civilization.” [1]1 Xi Jinping, “ Marx and Engels’ discussions of Chinese figures, objects, and issues are extremely broad, mentioning, for example, Genghis Khan and the Himalayas. At the same time, the various language editions of the thematic compilation “Marx and Engels on China” published to date are in fact selected works rather than complete records, yet much related research relies on them. Therefore, to carry out foundational and innovative research on “Marx and Engels on China,” it is necessary to clarify the “family assets” of the texts. From March 1839 to November 1894, Engels’ works on China (including works co-authored with Marx but excluding works solely by Marx or edited by Engels) number at least 80 pieces. Here, taking into account temporal distribution, genre type, documentary value, and contemporary significance, I will list and analyze only three articles that have not been included in *Marx and Engels on China* (2015 edition) and for which no related research has been found, articles that possess the significance of a “text cluster,” in order to enrich the study of Engels’ life and career, his textual thought, and the relationship between Marx and Engels.

习近平总书记指出，“马克思、恩格斯高度肯定中华文明对人类文明进步的贡献”。马克思恩格斯对中国相关人物、事物和问题的论述十分广泛，如提到成吉思汗、喜马拉雅山等。同时，至今刊行的各种语言文字版本的“马克思恩格斯论中国”专题汇编，实为选编而非全录，而相关研究却多依赖于此。因此，开展对“马恩论中国”的基础性与创新性研究，应厘清文献“家底”。从1839年3月至1894年11月，“恩格斯论中国”的作品（包括恩格斯与马克思合著但不含马克思著、恩格斯编的著作）至少有80件。在此，综合时间分布、体裁类型、文献价值和时代意涵，仅列举分析未收入《马克思恩格斯论中国》（2015年版）且未见相关研究的三篇具有文本群”意义的文章，以便丰富恩格斯生平事业、文本思想及马恩关系的研究。

The political essay “Letters from Wuppertal” (1839) first mentions “Chinese” in the context of religious critique. The academic community traces Engels’ earliest attention to Chinese issues back to his 1845 “Speech in Elberfeld.” In fact, Engels wrote three articles on religious critique in 1839, 1840, and 1842, which exhibit his revolutionary democratic views and all implicitly contain attention to “China.”

政论《伍珀河谷来信》（1839）在宗教批判时首提“中文”。学界将恩格斯对中国问题的关注，最早溯至1845年的《在埃尔伯费尔德的演说》。事实上，恩格斯在1839年、1840年、1842年就有三篇关于宗教批判的文章，展现着其革命民主主义的观点，均隐含对“中国”的关注。

“Letters from Wuppertal” is Engels’ first article on China and also the first political news essay he published. Engels spent his childhood and middle school years in the Wuppertal valley, went to Bremen in 1838 for a commercial internship, and established ties with the radical literary group Young Germany. In early 1839, Engels wrote his first substantial political essay, “Letters from Wuppertal,” for the group’s progressive literary journal *Telegraph für Deutschland*, which was published anonymously in installments from March to April of that year. In issue No. 51 of March, Engels, while criticizing the missionaries of the Elberfeld Religious Reform Association, pointed out that they “do not even know in which language—Chinese, Hebrew, or Greek—the Bible is written,” yet they always judge everything arbitrarily based on the words of so-called orthodox missionaries. The “Chinese” here is clearly used as a symbol of a unique civilization.

《伍珀河谷来信》是恩格斯首篇论中国的文章，也是他发表的第一篇政论新闻作品。恩格斯在伍珀河谷度过了童年和中学时代，1838年到不来梅实习经商，并同激进文学团体青年德意志建立了联系。1839年初，恩格斯为该派的进步文学期刊《德意志电讯》撰写了第一篇篇幅较大的政论文章《伍珀河谷来信》，未署名连载于当年3—4月。3月的第51号上，恩格斯批判埃尔伯费尔德宗教改革协会的传教士时指出，“他们连圣经是用哪种文字——中文、犹太文还是希腊文——写的”，都未必知道，却总以所谓正教传教士的话来胡乱判断一切。此处的“中文”显然被作为一种独特文明的象征。

In January 1840, in a letter to his school friend Friedrich Graeber, Engels argued that modern pantheism could be found among “the Chinese” and “the Zoroastrians.” This was a conclusion Engels drew after reading Hegel’s *Lectures on the Philosophy of History*. In early 1842, in *Schelling and Revelation*, written to refute Schelling’s religious mystical philosophy, Engels juxtaposed “the Chinese religion” with the “religion of Otahiti” in the South Pacific, in effect indicating that both places were distant, exotic lands in the Western imagination. Additionally, the German original and English translation of Engels’ 1839 work “Retrogression in the Times” respectively used the terms “chinesischen Stillstandshelden” and “Chinese stagnation,” also mentioning “China.”

1840年1月，恩格斯在给他的同学弗里德里希·格雷培的信中认为，现代泛神论，在“中国人”和“祆教徒”那里可以找到。这是恩格斯阅读黑格尔的《历史哲学》后得出的结论。1842年初，恩格斯在为批驳谢林的宗教神秘主义哲学而写的《谢林和启示》中，将“中国宗教”与南太平洋的“奥塔希提宗教”并提，实则表明两地都是西方人想象中的遥远异域。另外，1839年的《时代的倒退征兆》德文原文和英文译文分别用了“chinesischen Stillstandshelden”和“Chinese stagnation”，也提及“中国”。

However, the Chinese translation rendered this as “裹足不前的” (literally “wrapped feet, not moving forward”). It is evident that “Chinese-style stagnation” was widely used as a metaphor in Europe. The encyclopedia entry “Burma” (1858) discusses Sino-foreign cultural and commercial exchange. The years 1857 and 1858 were the two in which Engels wrote most about China. While political essays such as “The New Chinese Expedition,” “Persia and China,” and “Russia’s Successes in the Far East” focus specifically on China, some encyclopedia entries also possess unique value. From July 1857 to November 1860, Marx and Engels collaborated to write approximately 70 entries for the scientific reference work *The New American Cyclopaedia: A Popular Dictionary of General Knowledge*. Among these, Engels’ entries “Afghanistan,” “Shell,” “Artillery,” and “Navy” all discuss “China.” Engels’ “Burma,” written from February to early March 1858, mentions “China” 15 times and “Tibet” once, while Marx had already written “The Burmese War.—The Russian Question.—Interesting Diplomatic Correspondence” in 1853. These are all enlightening for understanding the history and prospects of the Southwest Silk Road.

不过，中文版将其译为“裹足不前的”。可见，“中国式停滞”在欧洲被广泛用作隐喻。辞典条目文章《缅甸》（1858）谈中外文化商贸交流。1857年、1858年是恩格斯论中国最多的两个年份。《英人对华的新远征》《波斯和中国》《俄国在远东的成功》等政论文章专论中国，一些条目文章也别具价值。1857年7月至1860年11月，马恩合作为科学参考辞书《美国新百科全书：常用知识辞典》撰写了70条左右的条目文章。其中，恩格斯的《阿富汗》《爆炸弹》《炮兵》《海军》等都谈到了“中国”。恩格斯1858年2月至3月初所写的《缅甸》有15处提及“中国”、1处谈及“西藏”，而马克思1853年就写了《缅甸战争。——俄国问题。——外交官的有趣信件》，这些都对认识西南丝绸之路的历史与愿景具有启示。

First, the article “Burma” introduces the geographical proximity of China and Burma: to the north of Burma lies (Chinese) Tibet, and to the east lies China (Yunnan); on the northern slopes, large quantities of genuine Chinese tea plants are cultivated; Chinese tea is generally drunk as an infusion, but the local inhabitants do not drink it as tea; instead, they eat the tea leaves, mixing them with vegetable oil and garlic; silver mines are worked at Bawdwin near the Chinese border; the inhabitants of the provinces bordering China live under the jurisdiction of both the Chinese and Burmese governments. Second, the article “Burma” elaborates on the close commercial exchanges between China and Burma: “The trade of Burma with China is very extensive”; large quantities of turpentine produced in various regions are exported to China; porcelain is imported from China; Burma produces silk fabrics but uses Chinese raw silk; Burma exports to China raw cotton, ornamental feathers (mainly those of the blue jay), edible bird’s nests, ivory, deer antlers, rhinoceros horn, and certain rarer precious stones; in exchange, Burma imports from China worked copper, yellow arsenic, mercury, vermilion, metal utensils, copper wire, tin, lead, alum, silver, gold (including gold leaf), pottery, pigments, carpets, rhubarb, tea, honey, raw silk, velvet, Chinese liquor, musk, verdigris, dried fruits, paper, fans, umbrellas, shoes, and clothing. Finally, the article “Burma” compares the ethnic and religious differences between China and Burma: the Burmese are a race inhabiting the region between Hindustan and China, and in physical appearance they more closely resemble the Mongolian type; the Burmese profess Buddhism, and the religious rites they maintain are less influenced by other religions than in any part of India or China; the Buddhists of Burma do not worship images to the same extent as the Buddhists of China.

首先，《缅甸》一文介绍了中缅两国在地理上相邻：缅甸北面是（中国）西藏、东面是中国（云南）；北方山坡上种植着大量地道的中国茶树，中国茶一般都是泡着喝的，当地居民却不泡茶喝，而是吃茶叶，还在茶叶里拌上植物油和蒜；靠近中国边界处的博敦开采银矿；同中国接壤省份的居民在中缅两国政府的管辖下生活。其次，《缅甸》一文阐述了中缅密切的商贸往来：“缅甸同中国的贸易极为广泛”，各地盛产的松节油大量输往中国；瓷器从中国输入；缅甸生产丝织品，用的却是中国生丝；缅甸向中国输出原棉、装饰用的羽毛（主要是蓝松鸦的羽毛）、食用燕窝、象牙、鹿茸、犀牛角和某些比较稀贵的宝石；缅甸以此从中国交换的输入品有加工过的铜、黄砷、水银、硃砂、金属器皿、铜丝、锡、铅、矾、银、金（包括金叶）、陶器、颜料、地毯、大黄、茶叶、蜂蜜、生丝、丝绒、中国烧酒、麝香、铜绿、干果、纸张、扇子、伞、鞋和衣服。最后，《缅甸》一文比较了中缅在种族、宗教等方面的差异：缅甸人是住在印度斯坦和中国之间一带的种族，从体形外貌看更像属于蒙古人的类型；缅甸人信仰佛教，所保持的宗教仪式不像在印度和中国任何地方那样受到其他宗教的影响；缅甸的佛教徒在某些方面不像中国的佛教徒那样膜拜神像。

Although the requirements of encyclopedia writing and the genre form of the entries determined the documentary, concise, and popular nature of the articles, Engels and Marx, in their collection of materials, presentation of facts, and analysis and evaluation, all embodied a scientific attitude and rigorous spirit.

虽然辞书的编写要求和条目的体裁形式决定了文章的资料性、简洁性和通俗性，但恩格斯、马克思在搜集资料、阐述事实、分析评价等方面无不体现着科学态度、严谨精神。

On February 11, 1858, Engels wrote to Marx, saying, “The ‘Burma’ piece is very troublesome; after reading several large books, I still cannot produce anything coherent, because the article must be written concisely.” On February 18, he mentioned to Marx again, “‘Burma’ is a very laborious article.” As the expert from the Moscow Institute of Marxism-Leninism, Ina Osipova, stated, “If Engels did not have enough time to collect materials and books, and enough time to study the subject seriously and without any constraints, he would rather not write the entry.”

1858年2月11日，恩格斯在给马克思的信中说到，“《缅甸》这篇东西非常讨厌，读了几大本书，仍然弄不出有条理的东西来，因为文章必须写得简短”。2月18日，他再次跟马克思提到，“《缅甸》是篇很费力的文章”。正如莫斯科马列主义研究院专家伊娜·奥索波娃所说，“如果恩格斯没有足够的时间搜集资料和书籍，没有足够的时间去严肃认真地、不受任何约束地研究题目，他宁愿不写这个条目”。

“A Newly Discovered Case of Group Marriage” (1892) translates and discusses a “Sinicization” in the anthropological sense. In his later years, Engels studied the history of primitive society, enriching historical materialism. In his 1884 work *The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State* and in the preface to the fourth German edition of that book in 1891, he respectively discussed “polyandry in Tibet” and “polyandry in Tibet.” “A Newly Discovered Case of Group Marriage” is a collection and translation by Engels of historical materials on the study of primitive society, along with his explanatory notes, which confirm and supplement the views he expressed in *The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State*.

《新发现的一个群婚实例》（1892）译述人类学意义上的“中国化”。晚年的恩格斯研究了原始社会史，丰富了唯物史观。他在1884年的《家庭、私有制和国家的起源》和1891年该书德文第四版序言中分别论及“西藏的多夫制”和“西藏的一妻多夫制”。《新发现的一个群婚实例》则是恩格斯搜集并翻译的有关原始社会史研究的史料以及他所做的说明，证实和补充了他在《家庭、私有制和国家的起源》中的观点。

From late November to early December 1892, in his translated and annotated text “A Newly Discovered Case of Group Marriage,” Engels included, aside from three explanatory paragraphs, a German translation of a Russian report published on October 14, 1892, in *Russkiye Vedomosti* [Russian Gazette]. The report was a study by a Russian ethnologist on the life and social system of the Gilyaks (Nivkhs) on Sakhalin Island, using the expression “China-ised” or “sinicized” (China-ised), i.e., that the Gilyaks “had long been subordinate to the China-ised Manchus” but preserved the virtues of a primitive tribe, unaffected by the inhabitants of the Amur region. The Amur, originally belonging to the Qing dynasty, was ceded to Russia in the 1858 Treaty of Aigun. [2]2 The Treaty of Aigun (1858) was an unequal treaty between the Russian Empire and the Qing dynasty of China, under which China ceded to Russia the territory north of the Am The term “China-ised” thus became directly linked, in Engels’s anthropological and ethnological sense, to the thought of Marx and Engels, providing a guide and even a signpost for tracing the concept of “adapting Marxism to the Chinese context.”

1892年11月底至12月初，恩格斯在译述写成的《新发现的一个群婚实例》中，除了有3段说明性文字外，主要是对1892年10月14日《俄罗斯新闻报》上发表的一篇俄语报道的德译文。该报道是一篇俄国民族学家对库页岛的吉里亚克人（尼夫赫人）的生活和社会制度的研究成果，用了“中国化的”或“汉化了的”（China-ised）的表述，即吉里亚克人“长期隶属于中国化的满族人”，但保存着原始部落的美德，并未受阿穆尔边区居民的影响。本归清朝的阿穆尔在1858年的《瑷珲条约》中被割让给俄国。“中国化”一词就在恩格斯那里以人类学、民族学的含义直接与马克思、恩格斯的思想联系到了一起，这为溯源“马克思主义中国化”概念提供了导引乃至路标。

In his translation, Engels made over a dozen alterations to the original text, replacing the original report’s terminology with that from *The Origin of the Family, Private Property and the State*, making the expression clearer and easier for German readers to understand. From this, one can also glimpse how outstanding linguistic cultivation, rich translation practice, a rigorous and creative translation style, and a commitment to serving readers shaped Engels’s image as a “translator.”

恩格斯在翻译时，对原文有10余处改动，以《家庭、私有制和国家的起源》中的用语替换了原报道的用语，使表述更清楚而易于为德国读者理解。由此还可窥见，卓越的语言修养、丰富的翻译实践、严谨且富有创造性的译风和尽量服务读者的宗旨，塑造出恩格斯的“翻译家”形象。

Online editor: Paul

网络编辑：保罗