This is a more detailed introduction of the language of Chinese Buddhism
based on our latest research of Buddhist Chinese, which is a modern
Chinese historical linguistic category applied to a form of written Chinese
originated for and used in Buddhist texts, including the translations into
Chinese of Indian Buddhist scriptures and all Chinese works of Buddhism
composed by Chinese monks and lay Buddhists in the past. We attempt to
answer in this paper the following questions: What is Buddhist Chinese?
What is the main difference between Buddhist Chinese and non-Buddhist
Chinese? What role did this language play in the history of Chinese
language development? And what is the value of this language for the
Chinese Historical Linguistics?