author
L. (Launcelot) Cranmer-Byng
1872–1945
An English writer and early popularizer of Asian literature, he helped introduce many readers to Chinese poetry and philosophy in graceful, accessible translations. His work moved between symbolism, scholarship, and literary adaptation, giving classics from China and Persia a wide new audience.
1 Audiobook
A Lute of Jade : Selections from the Classical Poets of China
by L. (Launcelot) Cranmer-Byng
About the author
Born on November 23, 1872, Launcelot Alfred Cranmer-Byng was an English author, poet, and sinologist. Educated at Wellington College and Trinity College, Cambridge, he became known for bringing Asian texts to English-language readers at a time when such literature was still unfamiliar to many in Britain.
He is especially remembered for books such as The Odes of Confucius, A Lute of Jade, and other volumes in the Wisdom of the East series. His versions of Chinese poetry and philosophy were written for general readers rather than specialists, and they helped shape early twentieth-century English interest in classical Chinese writing.
Recent scholarship has also highlighted how wide-ranging his literary interests were. Alongside his work with Chinese materials, he translated and adapted writing from other traditions and has been described as a cosmopolitan figure within the Symbolist movement. He died on January 15, 1945.