Bernhard Karlgren

Bernhard Karlgren
An elderly man with parted white hair, small round glasses, dressed in a tweed suit and tie
Born(1889-10-15)15 October 1889
Died20 October 1978(1978-10-20) (aged 89)
Stockholm, Sweden
Alma materUppsala University
Known forPioneering reconstructions of Middle Chinese and Old Chinese
Scientific career
FieldsAncient Chinese linguistics, literature
InstitutionsMuseum of Far Eastern Antiquities
University of Gothenburg
Academic advisorsJohan August Lundell
Notable studentsHans Bielenstein
Göran Malmqvist
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese
Simplified Chinese
Hanyu PinyinGāo Běnhàn
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinGāo Běnhàn
Bopomofoㄍㄠ   ㄅㄣˇ   ㄏㄢˋ
Gwoyeu RomatzyhGau Beenhann
Wade–GilesKao1 Pên3-han4
Tongyong PinyinGao Běnhàn
Yale RomanizationGāu Běnhàn
MPS2Gāu Běn-hàn
IPA[káʊ pə̀n.xân]

Klas Bernhard Johannes Karlgren (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈbæ̌ːɳaɖ ˈkɑ̂ːɭɡreːn]; 15 October 1889 – 20 October 1978) was a Swedish sinologist and linguist who pioneered the study of Chinese historical phonology using modern comparative methods. In the early 20th century, Karlgren conducted large surveys of the varieties of Chinese and studied historical information on rhyming in ancient Chinese poetry, then used them to create the first ever complete reconstructions of what are now called Middle Chinese and Old Chinese.