Chapter 23 Section 5 Contributions of Western missionaries such as Matteo Ricci to Chinese map surveying and mapping

Matteo Ricci (Matteo Ricci, 1552-1610 AD), born in Macerata, Italy, joined the Society of Jesus in 1571, studied at the Academy of Rome, and went to India as a missionary.He set off from Rome in 1577 via Genoa, passed through Portugal and India, and arrived in Macau in August 1582 (the tenth year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty). He has been in China since then, traveling all over the north and south. He died in Beijing in May.During his 28 years in China, Matteo Ricci drew more than 10 kinds of world maps (see table on page 119): The main purpose of Matteo Ricci's world maps was, of course, as a means of missionary work, in order to increase the appeal to Chinese officials and intellectuals, but these world maps brought new geographical knowledge to the Chinese, and produced big impact.

First of all, Matteo Ricci measured the latitude and longitude in order to draw the map with the Western map projection method, and at the same time introduced the map projection method to China. 》is drawn using this projection method.Prior to this, although Guo Shoujing of the Yuan Dynasty organized latitude measurement, the purpose was to compile the calendar, and he did not measure longitude. It is impossible to determine the exact geographical coordinates of a place with only latitude, and it is also impossible to use the plane projection method to draw maps. Explanation: If the age or location cannot be determined or the name is translated from Western, add a question mark; if the Chinese name of the map has not been tested, it is called a map of the world; if the map is completed but not engraved, add brackets.

In "The Complete Diagram of Mountains, Seas and Lands", Matteo Ricci introduced the functions of latitude and longitude and the method of division.He proposed that the lines of longitude and latitude should be drawn every degree, so that it is possible to locate the positions of countries or regions on the corresponding positions on the map.The east-west latitude line represents the length of the earth. Taking the equator as the starting line of latitude, counting up to the North Pole is the north latitude, a total of 90 degrees; counting down to the south pole is a total of 90 degrees.The north-south meridian represents the width of the earth. Counting from Fukushima (now known as the Canary Islands), it is 360 degrees around the earth.

Matteo Ricci personally measured the latitudes of some cities, and the result is: He also measured the latitude and longitude of Beijing, Nanjing, Datong, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Xi'an, Taiyuan, Jinan and other places, and the results are almost the same as those measured today, which shows that his measurements have achieved high precision. In these world maps, some geographic proper names and place names translated by Matteo Ricci are still in use today, such as: Asia, Europa, Mediterranean Sea, Nile River, Romania, Rome, Cuba, Atlantic Ocean, Canada, Antarctic, Arctic, Earth, longitude and latitude, The equator, the Arctic Circle, etc., which also proves that his translation has high accuracy and rationality.

Matteo Ricci's world map has absorbed the results of the discovery of the New World by the European geography community in the 15th and 16th centuries. The map shows the positions and shapes of South and North America, the southern half of Africa and some island countries in the sea.In "The Complete Map of Kunyu All Nations", he divided the world into five continents: Europa, Levia, Asia, North and South America, and Mowawala; In the description of each continent, the name of the country and the names of rivers, lakes, seas, and islands are also marked.On these maps, he introduced the territories, cultural relics, and customs of various countries in the world at that time, which greatly enriched the Chinese people's knowledge of world geography at that time and made up for China's long-term lack of understanding of world geography.

Although before Matteo Ricci, at the end of the 16th century, theories about the circle of the earth and the division of cold and temperate zones had been introduced to my country through Chinese translations, they did not have much impact.During his stay in China, Matteo Ricci introduced the theory of the circle of the earth and the theory of zones many times, which attracted the attention of some scholars, so people often think that he was the first person to spread these theories.For example, Liu Xianting's "Guangyang Miscellaneous Records" said: "The theory of the round earth was not known until the Li family came to the east."

Under the influence of the new geographical knowledge disseminated by Matteo Ricci, Xu Guangqi decided to introduce advanced western surveying technology for longitude and latitude measurement.In the second year of Chongzhen (1629 A.D.), Xu Guangqi presided over the latitude measurement of Beijing and Nanjing, and later measured Nanchang and Guangzhou, and calculated the locations of the remaining 11 chief ministers (provincial capitals) on the map. The results are as follows : Although China's map surveying and mapping was interrupted for a long time due to the war and turmoil that started soon, the spread of Western geographical knowledge undoubtedly laid the foundation for the arrival of a new stage of Chinese map surveying and mapping.

Later than Matteo Ricci came to China, Western missionaries who were active in the Ming and Qing Dynasties included D. de Perdinand (AD 1571-1618), Ai Julius (Juluis Aleni, AD 1582-1649), Nan Huairen (Ferdinand Verbiest, 1623-1688 AD), Wei Kuangguo (Martini, 1614-1661 AD) and others.Like Matteo Ricci, they also drew world maps as a means of opening up the missionary situation in China, but the world maps they drew also brought new knowledge of world geography to the Chinese, and expanded new concepts such as projection method and longitude and latitude measurement , The impact of new technologies.

On the other hand, missionaries also introduced Chinese geographical knowledge to the West in the form of maps or books, and the most influential one was Wei Kuangguo's "New Maps of China".This book was completed in 1653 (the tenth year of Shunzhi in the Qing Dynasty) during Wei Kuangguo's journey back to Europe. It was published in Amsterdam, the Netherlands soon after, and was later translated into French, German, Dutch and other languages.There are 17 maps in the book, including a general map of the whole country, 15 maps by provinces, and a map of Japan.The general map of the country shows the latitude and longitude lines, and the south is drawn more accurately than the north. The water system in the picture is relatively complete, and the position of the river is basically correct.The map of provinces is also marked with latitude and longitude, and the representation of water systems is more distinctive.The administrative divisions on the general map and the provincial map are clearly defined, and the administrative divisions are displayed in different levels. The legends are eye-catching and easy to interpret.The map also shows the mine pit, soil type and so on.In terms of the size of the pages, the completeness of the information, the accuracy of the drawing and the excellence of the printing, it was considered first-class in the world at that time.This book has always been valued by Western scholars, and it has been prosperous for a long time, and it plays an important role in the communication between East and West.