Chinese language indexing: the whys and hows

This article provides an overview of Chinese indexing for a Western audience, including its evolutionary history and the challenges faced by modern-day indexers. The relationship between the Chinese language and how indexing works is explained, with a focus on book indexing. A bilingual glossary of technical terms in Chinese and English is included as an appendix. (Abstract traditional script) 本文旨在向西方讀者剖析及解讀有關中文索引的種種细节, 包括其發展歷史以及當代索引工作者所面對的挑戰及問題. 文章集中討論中國語文的特質與索引滙編工作之間的關係, 並著重於闡述圖書索引. 文末的附錄包含中英雙語專業術語表. (Abstract simplified script) 本文旨在向西方读者剖析及解讀有关中文索引的种种細節, 包括其发展历史以及 当代索引工作者所面对的挑战及问题. 文章集中讨论中国语文的特质与索引汇编 工作之间的关系, 并着重于阐述图书索引. 文末的附录包含中英双语专业术语表. In this article, all Chinese names are given according to Chinese convention, with family names first and with family name in capitals on first appearance. All Chinese characters are rendered in traditional script unless otherwise specified.