Juan Cobo facts for kids
Juan Cobo (around 1546–1592) was a Spanish priest from the Dominican Order. He was a very important person who traveled a lot. He was a missionary, which means he helped spread Christianity. He was also a diplomat, working with different countries, and an astronomer, studying stars. Plus, he was a sinologist, meaning he studied Chinese language and culture.
Contents
Juan Cobo: A Pioneer in Asia
Early Life and Journeys
Juan Cobo was born in a place called Alcázar de San Juan in Spain. He became a priest in the Dominican Order. In 1586, he traveled all the way to Mexico. Two years later, in 1588, he moved to Manila in the Philippines.
Spreading Knowledge and Faith
King Philip II of Spain asked Juan Cobo and Miguel de Benavides to bring Christianity to China. Juan Cobo was very good at languages. He translated several books by a famous Roman writer named Seneca the Younger into Chinese. He also translated a Catechism, which is a book of Christian teachings, into Chinese.
Around 1590, he did something amazing. He translated a Chinese book called Mingxin baojian (明心寶鑑) into Spanish. This book was about how to have a good and clear heart. He called his translation Espejo rico del claro corázón (Rich Mirror of the Clear Heart). This was a huge step because it was one of the very first times a Chinese book was translated into a European language.
Important Books and Ideas
Besides the Rich Mirror of the Good Heart, Juan Cobo worked on other important books. He helped write the Doctrina Christiana (Christian Doctrine) in Chinese. This book was published around 1592-1593.
He also wrote a scientific and religious book called Bian zhengjiao zhenchuan shilu (辯正教真傳實錄). This means Testimony of the True Religion. It was published in 1593 in Parian, which was a Chinese neighborhood in Manila. This book explained Christianity in classical Chinese. It also included a whole section about European geography. This means Juan Cobo was one of the first people to introduce European ideas about philosophy and science to China through a printed book.
A Diplomat's Mission and Sad End
The governor of Manila sent Juan Cobo on an important mission to Japan. There, he met a powerful leader named Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Sadly, Juan Cobo died in 1592. His boat sank near Taiwan while he was returning from Japan.
See also
In Spanish: Juan Cobo para niños
- Juan González de Mendoza (c. 1540–1617), a Spanish bishop in Mexico, whose 1585 book summarizes what the Spanish in the Philippines knew about China as of a few years before Juan Cobo's arrival to the islands.
- First book of the Spanish Philippines
Works
- Carta de Juan Cobo del 13 de junio de 1589 a otros religiosos.
- Libro chino intitulado Beng Sim Po Cam, que quiere decir Espejo rico del claro corazón o Riquezas y espejo con que se enriquezca y donde se mire el claro y límpido corazón. Traducido en lengua castellana por fray Juan Cobo, de la orden de Santo Domingo. Dirigido al príncipe Don Felipe nuestro Señor (Manila, c. 1590).
- Bian zhengjiao zhenchuan shilu 辯正教真傳實錄 (Testimony of the True Religion), published in Manila, 1593.
- The catechism Doctrina Christiana en letra y lengua china (Christian Doctrine) (1593), facsimile published by Jesús Gayo Aragón, O.P., in Doctrina Christiana: primer libro impreso en Filipinas, facsímile del ejemplar existente en la Biblioteca Vaticana. Manila: Real y Pontificia Universidad de Santo Tomás de Manila, 1951.
- Sententiae plures et graves philosophorum etiam gentilium ut Senecae et smilium ex eorum libris excertae et Sinicae reditae.
- Lingua sinica ad certam revocata methodum quatuor distinctis caracterum ordinibus generalibus, specificis et individualis; seu vocabularium sinensis.
