Transkrypcja znaków chińskich. Dzieło Polaków osiadłych w Harbinie w latach 1898–1948 .......... 281

TRANSCRIPTION OF CHINESE CHARACTERS – ACCOMPLISHMENT OF POLES LIVING IN HARBIN BETWEEN 1898 AND 1948

This article presents the attempts to create a transcription of the Chinese language made by Poles living in Harbin between 1898 and 1948. The publication enriches the existing literature on the methods of romanisation of this language with the achievements of Polish Harbiners. This achievement has been preserved in the Harbin-based journal “Tygodnik Polski” (Polish Weekly), which is a valuable documentary source and at the same time the material that formed the research basis of the article. The aim of the paper is to analyse the transcription model proposed by the Polish Harbiners, and to show against this background the evolution of their approach to the Chinese language: from the initial negative attitudes, through the introduction of Mandarin Chinese language instruction into Polish schools in Harbin, to the creation of an individual transcription model, taking into account the characters of the Polish alphabet. The method of document analysis with a particular focus on the Harbin press was used to conduct the research. The results indicate that Polish Harbiners developed their own transcription system for Chinese and formulated rules for writing Chinese characters. The achievement of the Polish Harbinians constitutes a valuable contribution to the study of the romanisation of the Chinese language in a cultural and historical context.