Chinese Paleographer
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As a Chinese Paleographer, you’ll decipher ancient Chinese characters to aid historians and other researchers in understanding ancient civilizations and artefacts. You may specialize in a particular time period or geographical region to thoroughly understand all the texts and writings from that place and time. Moreover, you may publish and present findings of your research at conferences and in scholarly journals to further help the understanding of the field.
Skills Required
To be a successful Chinese Paleographer, you’ll need a strong command of the Chinese language, including the ability to read and write in both ancient and modern Chinese. You must have a background in Chinese Philology, which encompasses many disciplines such as history, linguistics, literature, archaeology, and philosophy. It is helpful to know other languages, such as Japanese and Korean, because of their similar writing systems.
Similarly, a strong knowledge of ancient Chinese history, archaeology, and the history of Chinese writing systems is necessary to understand the context and decipher the meaning of ancient texts. You must be capable of working independently and as part of a research team, as well as an enthusiastic learner, because you'll need to keep updated with the latest discoveries and developments.
Educational Background
The most common educational path to becoming a Chinese Paleographer is to earn a bachelor's degree in Chinese language and literature and follow up with a postgraduate degree specializing in Chinese Paleography.
