PAUTHIER, Jean-Pierre-Guillaume. Mamirolle (Doubs) 4.10.1801 — Passy (Paris) 11.3.1873. French Sinologist and Indologist. Began his career as an infantry officer, in army he met Alfred de Vigny and started himself writing romantic poetry. After two and a half years left army in 1826 and pursuing studies of Sinology (Abel-Rémusat) and Indology (Chézy) in Paris adopted literary and scholarly career.
In his own way Pauthier was not bad scholar, but he tried to contain too much, at the same time attempting to be both Sinologist and Indologist, and somewhat failing in both. Therefore he did not come out well in Sinological controversies with Klaproth and Julien. On the other hand he tried to defend the late Abel-Remusat against Julien’s excessive criticism. In his first study (1831) he tried to show Upaniṣadic influences in Laotse. His Sinological magnum opus is the Description, in collaboration with Bazin. His Marco Polo edition laid the foundation for a critical study of the text and remained long time the standard edition.
In a small note (ZDMG 41, 1887, 746) B. Liebich points out that Stenzler’s copy of Pauthier’s Sāvitrī contains a hand-written note by Stenzler’s hand indicating that this is in fact Stenzler’s own translation, which ended up with Pauthier when he returned to Germany. It was then published by Pauthier as his own.
Publications: Helléniennes, élégies. 165 p. P. 1825; and other collections of poetry and poetic translations; the epic La Comète ou l’Éclipse de 1832. P. 1832.
– Mémoire sur l’origine et la propagation de la doctrine du Taò. 8+79 p. P. 1831 (with Sanskrit and Persian texts and transl. of Īśa- and Kena Upaniṣads, p. 53-79).
– “Coup de l’oeil sur la langue et la littérature sanscrites”, Revue encyclop. 1832.
– Translated: “Le Déluge ou l’Épisode du Poisson, tiré du Mahâbhârata”, Revue de Paris 4:6, 1832, 237-244; “L’enlevenement de Draupadī”, Europe littéraire 19. & 26.4.1833; Savitry, épisode extrait du grand poëme épique intitulé Mahâbhârata. 48 p. 1831, 2nd ed. 1841.
– Essais sur la philosophie des Hindous, par H. T. Colebrooke, traduits et augmentés de textes sanskrites et de notes nombreuses. 8+322 p. P. 1833-34 (with texts of the Sānkhyakārikā and Ātmabodha).
– With Bazin: Description historique et géographique de la Chine. 1-2. P. 1837-53.
– Le Ta-Hio ou la Grande Étude, ouvrage de Confucius. 104 p. P. 1837 (text, Latin tr. by Gaubil, French tr.); Táo-Té-King. 80 p. P. 1838 (text, Latin and French tr., comm.); Vindiciae Sinicae. 110 p. P. 1842; Sinico-Ægyptiaca. Essai sur l’origine et la formation similaire des écritures figuratives chinoise et égyptienne. 8+151 p. P. 1842.
– Examen méthodique des faits qui concernent l’Inde, d’après les ouvrages chinois. 3+144 p. P. 1840 (from JA 1839-40?), rejoinders to St. Julien’s critic, JA 3:11, 1841, 6-86 & 3:12, 1842, 97-148 & 350-385.
– Livres sacrés de l’Orient. 30+764 p. P. 1840 (Qur’an by Kazimirski, Manu by Loiseleur-Deslongchamps, the four Confucian classics).
– L’inscription syro-chinoise de Si-ngan-Fou. 18+96 p. P. 1858; Histoire des relations politiques de la Chine avec les puissances occidentales. 20+239 p. P. 1859; “Mémoires sur l’antiquité de l’histoire et de la civilisation chinoises”, JA 1867-68, 277 p.; further articles and reviews mainly on Sinology.
– “De l’alphabet de Pa-sse-pa”, JA 5:19, 1862, 5-47; “Relation du voyage de Khiéou, surnommé Tchang-Tchun (long printemps) à l’ouest de la Chine, en commencement du XIIIe siècle”, JA 1867:1, 88 p.
– Le livre de Marco Polo. Avec introduction et notes. 1-2. 156+831 p. P. 1865.
– Dictionnaire étymologique chinois-annamite-français. Livr. 1. 19+111 p. P. 1867.
Sources: R. Bhattacharya, “G.P.: French Orientalist and the first translator of Rammohun”, JASB 39, 1997, 1-10; G. Dugat, Hist. de orientalistes. 2. P. 1870, 213-258; J.C.F. Hoefer, N.B.G. 46, 1852; briefly in French Wikipédia.
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