On the differences between five etymologies of A, B, P, D and E during the Republic of China

In October, 1915, Ci Yuan was officially published in the expectation of the world, just like a full-term baby, and finally it was born.

Business people also cast an expectant eye on it, with huge investment, eight years' time and efforts of dozens of people. Now it's time to get a return.

(1) Selling books for people

-five versions of marketing strategies

Just like red flowers need green leaves to help them, good book products need good distribution methods and means, so as to attract readers' attention and win their favor. Although "good wine is not afraid of deep alleys", if we do not consider the needs of readers at different levels and do not make effective marketing, the results will not be the same. What kind of countermeasures will business take for the marketing of Ci Yuan?

In the same year of business, after a textbook named "The Origin of Chinese" was published, a slogan advertisement was published: "Old and new names, Chinese and foreign allusions, everything is prepared. There are dozens of editors, which lasted for seven or eight years. Four million words, more than 3, pages, this book is better than his ten thousand volumes. " There is also a pricing table:

abbreviated number

number of books

fixed price

postage for ship and train

postage for ship and train

A-type large book

twelve books

twenty yuan

eighty cents

eight cents

B-type large book

two books. > 2 yuan

2 copies of the first-class

7 yuan

4 corners

4 corners

5 yuan

3 corners

foreign postage is counted separately.

At that time, some newspapers and periodicals also published articles to explain the characteristics of Ci Yuan in the form of comments. The following are the contents published in Chinese School Magazine:

The source of Ci Yuan is also the source of the famous words. In 1915, the book was published in Shanghai Commercial Press. There are five kinds of plate making, which are distinguished by the fineness of paper and the size of paper. The price of each part of A is 2 yuan, B is 2 yuan, C is 14 yuan, D is 7 yuan and E is 5 yuan. A kind of China binding twelve volumes, the rest are two thick volumes of dress. Every 3,94 pages.

the content of the book. First, 214 radicals are listed, and the words that are difficult to check are listed as one table. After the table, the source of words is different. There are four main points. (A) China's method of syncopation, note the sound of every word. Its method is to take two words, with the first word as the servant sound and the second word as the main sound, and read them together. If the nine-character note is cut, remember that the two-character joint reading is also pronounced as nine. (2) What rhyme does this word belong to? (3) each word has its own meaning, which is quoted from the classics to be translated clearly, and its source is noted, but it is a pity that it does not specify the chapter or page of the original book. It is said that people in China can recite countless volumes of books silently, so if there are any quotations, you can see them at a glance, and there is no need to re-examine the original books. However, it is not convenient for me to be European. (4) Under the single word, the compound words are listed, ranging from two words to six or seven words, in order of the number of words and strokes. Every word refers to its source, explains its meaning, tells its story, and comes out in concise words. Anyone who knows a little about books can understand.

the etymology ends with an appendix, which is extremely precious. (1) List of World Events. * * * Fifty-two pages, which began in 2697 BC. Finally, in 1915. (2) List of existing administrative regions. According to the changes made in 1914, the county governments were given their original names. (3) List of China's commercial ports. Attached is the location of consuls in Europe, America and Japan. (4) Comparison table of weights and measures between China, France, Britain, America, Russia and Japan. (5) List of chemical precursors. Pay attention to metals. The time and inventor of the atomic price of the specific gravity melting point of English Latin symbols in Chinese.

This is the countermeasure of business marketing "Ci Yuan". A dictionary with more than 3, pages and more than 4 million words is printed in five versions: A, B, C, D and E, and the book price ranges from 2 yuan, 14 yuan, 7 yuan to 5 yuan, and different postage standards are formulated according to different traffic conditions. Although readers have different needs (or collections, or practical, or portable) and different financial strength (or affluent, or average, or embarrassed), as long as they need the Dictionary, they should strive to make it affordable and available. In a word, it is necessary to cover as many readers as possible, even overseas readers are considering it.

The first edition of Ci Yuan is bound in the form of traditional thread-bound books, and the large edition is packed in 12 volumes by twelve branches, such as Zi Chou Yin Mao, which looks antique and elegant. Although the price in 2 yuan is high, it can meet the needs of readers with relatively affluent family and nostalgic complex, and can also be collected by major libraries. This is the version of Ci Yuan collected by the famous Japanese "oriental library".

The second edition of Ci Yuan is bound in the form of a new-style dress book, with a large edition and two volumes of hardcover. It looks luxurious and extraordinary, and it is also the price of 2 yuan, but it is in line with the wishes of new readers with better family and pursuing fashion, and can also be collected by major libraries. Now most libraries with a long history in China have this version of Ci Yuan.

The C edition of Ci Yuan is also bound in the form of a new-style dress book. The big edition is divided into two hardcover volumes. Although the binding is not as exquisite as the A and B versions, it looks more plain and simple, and the paper texture is slightly inferior. The price in 14 yuan seems to be more in line with the family, only paying attention to practicality, and paying less attention to the tastes of readers of the book. Generally, libraries in primary and secondary schools also buy this version.

The second edition and the fifth edition of Ci Yuan are smaller than the above three editions, namely, the original edition and the small edition (that is, pocket edition). They are also divided into two hardcover volumes, with poor paper quality and low cost. The book price is only 7 yuan or 5 yuan, but it is more popular with readers at the lower level of society. E-books are small in format and easy to carry, and there are readers at all levels of society, especially students.

It is rare, if not unique, for a dictionary to be printed and distributed in five versions at the same time in the history of books in China. Business people are good at management, the strategy of opening up channels, the spirit of caring for readers and daring to act, which can be seen. From 1915 to 1949, Ci Yuan, including its sequel, sold more than 4 million copies and achieved remarkable results.

(2) Condensation is also the essence

-The New Dictionary

In addition, considering the needs of readers, the Commercial Press extracted the prefix of Ciyuan before it was published, and published it in the name of the New Dictionary in September 1912. The New Dictionary is divided into hardcover and thread-bound formats, and the content is exactly the same. Hardcover for small 32 kai, a book. The thread binding is divided into six volumes, and the folio is roughly 32. The first four volumes are the original edition, which is divided into 12 episodes according to the twelve geographical branches, and the last two volumes are the dictionary, appendix and supplement. In February, 1914, the Commercial Press published another 64 compact copies.

New Dictionary is the first new dictionary published by China after Kangxi Dictionary in Qing Dynasty. It has changed the compilation mode of traditional dictionaries, and made some innovations in terms of word collection, interpretation, meaning sorting, illustration, retrieval and appendix. Especially in terms of word collection, it is of great practical value not only to screen out the words that were still popular in society at that time, but also to deliberately include the newly generated modern scientific and technological new words and some commonly used vulgar words that were not collected in Kangxi Dictionary. Therefore, after the publication of the New Dictionary, it met the needs of the society in time, so it was well received by readers and reprinted many times. At that time, some famous scholars spoke highly of the New Dictionary. For example, Cai Yuanpei pointed out in the preface to the New Dictionary: "All the shortcomings of the Kangxi Dictionary mentioned before me have been corrected, but at the beginning of the founding of the Republic of China, the New Dictionary, which was suitable for this, had an innovative influence on the language and thought of the people."

Because the content in the New Dictionary is the prefix of Ci Yuan, what is in the New Dictionary and Ci Yuan have been included. Therefore, after the publication of Ci Yuan, the influence of New Dictionary has been gradually reduced, so that few people know it now. However, in order to meet the urgent needs of society, it is worth mentioning that business should take the operation mode of "Ci Yuan" by first taking the prefix and separating it into a dictionary, and then publishing the whole book.

In January p>27, on the occasion of its 11th anniversary, the Commercial Press photocopied and published the New Dictionary as a collection of business dictionaries, with exquisite solid wood book boxes as a souvenir. It is a rare treasure for collectors and researchers.

The five versions of Ci Yuan and the New Dictionary published before Ci Yuan should not be forgotten by future generations, and can bring many inspirations.