dictionary
Buy soft cover book, deluxe size US$56.00 plus shipping, from Lulu printers.
Buy soft cover book, compact size, small print US$40.00 plus shipping.
Buy Dictionary hard cover book US$80 plus shipping, from Lulu printers.
Buy Dictionary PDF edition US$15, direct download.
Buy Falk’s Dictionary deluxe soft cover edition from Plum Publications

This Chinese-English dictionary is massive, with countless words and phrases (I gave up counting) used by the internal and external martial arts of Chinese to describe training, techniques, theory, forms, sparring, methods, wrestling, and Qinna. And words that always show up when you are reading about martial arts, like TCM terms, anatomical terms, historical and literary names, dynasties - the list is endless. Most martial techniques and names cannot be found in a regular dictionary - and if the characters are there, they have a different meaning from that used in the martial arts. With three indices, ordered by the pinyin transliteration, radical index, and stroke order index, and a fair bit of cross referencing, you should be able to find what you need. It is a fun book to just flip through and look around, as well. I use mine all the time, as I have a really bad memory, and I wish that I had had such a resource at the beginning of my martial arts translation career. Although the transliteration is in pinyin (the mainland official way), the characters are in both simplified and traditional. There are a lot fo classical writings in wushu, so of course the traditional characters are first and foremost. The ‘deluxe’ edition is intended as the standard, as it is easy to read, and feels good to hold. The hard cover, of course, is traditional for a dictionary, as they do tend to get used a lot. The ‘compact’ has what I consider to be small print, and I have having to squint a a dictionary, but it is fine if you want to save money. The PDF edition, I keep on my computer desktop, for when my paperback is out of reach. Also, if you are having trouble finding something, you can do a search in the PDF file.

Comments from readers

“Andrea is an old and close friend who has been trained in China under the best masters and she has graduated from one of the best universities for Chinese Wushu. She speaks Chinese like a native Chinese. A dictionary of Chinese Martial Arts compiled by here would be one of the best and authorities resources for both sides of the world. Those who are confused by the Chinese will find explanations in clear and correct English. On the other hand, those who teach without the level of mastery in English can consult the dictionary and learn the English terms. Thank you Andrea for such a great contribution!” Jack Yan, Markham ON, Canada

“I’m very excited that Andrea Falk’s comprehensive dictionary of Chinese martial arts is finally available! Andrea, a master martial arts teacher and also a professional translator, has worked for years to perfect this exceptional work. It doesn’t simply translate terms, it provides clear, accurate and insightful background and context. I consider this to be a must-have for anyone who does Chinese martial arts.” Michael B., Vancouver BC, Canada

“Talk about a time saver. If you have ANY interest in a place to look up martial arts terms in Chinese (pinyin) to see the English meaning, this is that place. I estimate that Sifu Falk has translated more than 3500 terms from the Chinese. If you envision yourself decoding some neat old manual and getting up just once to look up each word here (and I guarantee you that you will get up a lot more than once a word) you will see what a bargain this is in time saved and hair left unpulled.” Plum Publictions, CA, USA