Diego de Pantoja

Diego de Pantoja or Diego Pantoja, Chinese: 龐迪我, or Pang Diwo 龐迪我 , (born 1571 in Valdemoro, near Toledo, Spain, died January 1618 in Macao, China) was a Spanish Jesuit and missionary to China who is best known for having accompanied Matteo Ricci in Beijing.

He came to Macao on 20 July 1597. There he received his final instructions for his work in China at São Paulo Jesuit University.^[1] He was then sent to the Ming dynasty's southern capital, Nanjing, where he stayed from March 1600. He worked together with Matteo Ricci. Together, they left Nanjing on 19th May 1600 and arrived at the Ming dynasty's Northern and overall capital, Beijing, on 24th January 1601.

He worked in Beijing for many years, among others, as a musician, astronomer (with calendar corrections) and geographer (working with latitude).

On 18th March 1617 he was tried as an enemy of the Chinese astronomers, and was expelled from China, along with his colleague, Sabbatino de Ursis, and settled down in Macao, where he stayed for the short time before his death.

[edit] References

1. ^ Huang Qichen: "The First University in Macau: The Colégio de São Paulo", in John W. Witek (ed.): Religion and Culture: An International Symposium Commemorating The Fourth Centenary of the University College of St. Paul - Macau, 28 November to 1 December 1994, Macau: Instituto Cultural de Macau, 1999, s. 257-260

[edit] Literature

• L. Carrington Goodrich & Chao-Ying Fang (ed.): Dictionary of Ming Biography, 2 ed., New York/London: Columbia University Press 1976
• Gianni Criveller: Preaching Christ in Late Ming China: The Jesuits' Presentation of Christ from Matteo Ricci to Giulio Aleni, Taipei:Taipei Ricci Institute 1997 ISBN 2-910969-02-9

[edit] See also

List of Jesuit missionaries to China