Buwei Yang Chao
Encyclopedia
Buwei Yang Chao (1889–1981) was an American
Chinese
physician, writer of recipes, and wife of the eminent linguist
Yuen Ren Chao
. She is credited with coining the English term "stir-fry".
She was born in Nanjing
into the Yang
family but was looked after by her aunt and uncle. She was sent to Japan
to attend the Tokyo Women's Medical College. After graduating as a medical doctor, she returned to China where she met her future husband. They married on June 1, 1921. They had four daughters; the eldest, Rulan Chao (趙如蘭), helped in the writing of her book of recipes.
Buwei Yang Chao wrote two notable books: How to Cook and Eat in Chinese and An Autobiography of a Chinese Woman.
In How to Cook and Eat in Chinese, she collected over two hundred and thirty recipes. Some came from her travels with her husband. He collected dialect data from across China and often they stayed with their language informants. At these times, Buwei would enquire about the dishes that their informants cooked. She wrote that though the recipes were not written down, she often recreated them from memory of their taste. Her "author's note" illustrated her family life with good humour and candour, also shedding some light on the great linguist himself, from his closest companion.
Buwei and Yuen Ren lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts
, when she was writing her recipes. As her husband was also involved intimately with the Harvard-Yenching Institute
, she wrote of contributions to her life from the wives of other prominent academics because of social interaction with her prominent husband.
In her second book, An Autobiography of a Chinese Woman, she detailed the eventful life she led prior to her meeting her husband, and afterwards in their travels together. Both books were first published by The John Day Company, New York.
She also wrote a third book: How to Order and Eat in Chinese to Get the Best Meal in a Chinese Restaurant (1974).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
physician, writer of recipes, and wife of the eminent linguist
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
Yuen Ren Chao
Yuen Ren Chao
Chao Yuen Ren was a Chinese American linguist and amateur composer. He made important contributions to the modern study of Chinese phonology and grammar....
. She is credited with coining the English term "stir-fry".
She was born in Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
into the Yang
Yang (surname)
Yang is the transcription of the Chinese family name 楊 / 杨. It is the sixth most common surname in Mainland China.- Characters :Yang is most often the transliteration of the character 楊 . The same character can also mean a type of poplar...
family but was looked after by her aunt and uncle. She was sent to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
to attend the Tokyo Women's Medical College. After graduating as a medical doctor, she returned to China where she met her future husband. They married on June 1, 1921. They had four daughters; the eldest, Rulan Chao (趙如蘭), helped in the writing of her book of recipes.
Buwei Yang Chao wrote two notable books: How to Cook and Eat in Chinese and An Autobiography of a Chinese Woman.
In How to Cook and Eat in Chinese, she collected over two hundred and thirty recipes. Some came from her travels with her husband. He collected dialect data from across China and often they stayed with their language informants. At these times, Buwei would enquire about the dishes that their informants cooked. She wrote that though the recipes were not written down, she often recreated them from memory of their taste. Her "author's note" illustrated her family life with good humour and candour, also shedding some light on the great linguist himself, from his closest companion.
Buwei and Yuen Ren lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, when she was writing her recipes. As her husband was also involved intimately with the Harvard-Yenching Institute
Harvard-Yenching Institute
Harvard-Yenching Institute is an independent foundation dedicated to advancing higher education in Asia in the humanities and social sciences, with special attention to the study of Asian culture...
, she wrote of contributions to her life from the wives of other prominent academics because of social interaction with her prominent husband.
In her second book, An Autobiography of a Chinese Woman, she detailed the eventful life she led prior to her meeting her husband, and afterwards in their travels together. Both books were first published by The John Day Company, New York.
She also wrote a third book: How to Order and Eat in Chinese to Get the Best Meal in a Chinese Restaurant (1974).