Originally published in 1879 in St Petersburg, this important work has never been reprinted and remains a bibliographical rarity. Ivan Il'ich Zakharov originally entered the Russian diplomatic service and was responsible for redrawing the western Russian-Chinese border which resulted in the significant transfer of Chinese territory to Russia. Zakharov ended his career as Professor of Manchu at St Petersburg Imperial University; his research into the Manchu language gaining him a Doctoral degree in Manchu Philology in 1875. Although he based his approach to the grammar on the conventions of Latin grammars of his day, the work contains a mine of valuable information.