Account of a Voyage of Discovery to the West Coast of Corea, and the Great Loo-Choo Island
With an Appendix, Containing Charts, and Various Hydrographical and Scientific Notices and a Vocabulary of the Loo-Choo Language
Cambridge Library Collection - Travel and Exploration in Asia Series

A naval officer and man of science, Basil Hall (1788?1844) commanded the brig HMS Lyra as part of Lord Amherst's 1816 embassy to the Qing court in China. While Amherst was engaged on his ultimately abortive venture, the mission's ships visited the west coast of Korea, and then travelled to the island of Okinawa (then known as the Great Loo-Choo Island), where they stayed for several weeks. Little was known about these regions in Britain, and this illustrated account of the journey offered many insights. As well as providing nautical data, such as surveys, soundings and meteorological observations, Hall also comments on geography and culture. A substantial vocabulary and primer on the Okinawan language, compiled by fellow naval officer H. J. Clifford, is included in the appendix. Hall's narratives of his later travels to both North and South America are also reissued in the Cambridge Library Collection.

Preface; 1. A voyage of discovery; 2. Enter the Japan Sea; 3. The island of Loo-Choo; Appendix 1. Charts; Appendix 2. Table of observations; Appendix 3. Meteorological journal; Appendix 4. Abstract of the Lyra's voyage; Appendix 5. Geological memorandum; Vocabulary of the language spoken at the great Loo-Choo island; Sentences in English and Loo-Choo; Comparison between the Japanese and Loo-Choo languages.