This course introduces students to Chinese exegesis (xungu xue 訓詁學), a practical and integrative branch of Chinese philology focused on analyzing the meanings of words in ancient Chinese texts through the linguistic analysis of sounds, scripts, and grammar. Along the way, students will learn basic concepts in paleography (wenzi xue 文字學) and historical phonology (yinyun xue 音韻學), while gaining hands-on experience with digital tools and online resources for philological research. By the end of the course, students will have strengthened their ability to read and research ancient Chinese texts and will be well-prepared to apply philological methods to the study of premodern Chinese literature, history, and culture.