Book of Changes
/ˌbʊk əv ˈtʃeɪndʒɪz/noun
An English name for the ancient Chinese divination and philosophical classic known as the Yijing or I Ching.
Did you know?The Yijing’s 64 hexagrams were traditionally interpreted through divination, including yarrow-stalk casting, and later became foundational to Chinese philosophy and cosmology.
Etymological Timeline
1st Millennium BCE
Chinese
易經 (Yìjīng)
“Classic or canon of change; the foundational Chinese title”
Han Dynasty, 2nd Century BCE–2nd Century CE
Chinese
周易 (Zhōuyì)
“Changes of Zhou, an earlier title associating the text with the Zhou dynasty”
Old English, before 1100
Old English
bōc
“Book, writing, or written document; from a Germanic word associated with beech wood, traditionally used for writing tablets”
Middle English, 12th–14th Century
English
book
“A written work or collection of pages”
Middle English, 13th–15th Century
English
chaungen
“To become different or make different, borrowed through Anglo-French from Latin cambīre, “to exchange””
19th Century
English
Book of Changes
“An established English translation of Yijing, also commonly rendered I Ching”