With the help of this long-awaited comprehensive grammar of Manchu, the official language in China during the Qing dynasty, access can be gained to the numerous official documents of more than 250 years of Chinese history immediately preceding the Republic.

Taking into full account the scholarship on the subject from both China and Russia, the volume provides full coverage of the Manchu writing system, morphology and phonology. Special attention is given to syntax, until recently a conspicuous hiatus in Manchu linguistic studies. Also dealt with is Sibe, which the author convincingly argues to be a direct successor of Manchu vernacular, and its relation with classical Manchu. Many grammatical problems of Manchu are considered in a wider framework of the Manchu-Tungusic languages - the group to which Manchu belongs.

Dr. Gorelova's grammar is a true reference work, indispensable for students of (Qing) China and Oriental languages.