近代英国著名汉学家，曾任香港英华书院校长，伦敦布道会传教士。他是第一个系统研究、翻译中国古代经典的人，从1861年到1886年的25年间，将《四书》、《五经》等中国主要典籍全部译出，共计28卷。当他离开中国时，已是著作等身。理雅格的多卷本《中国经典》、《法显行传》、《中国的宗教：儒教、道教与基督教的对比》和《中国编年史》等著作在西方汉学界占有重要地位。他与法国学者顾赛芬、德国学者卫礼贤并称汉籍欧译三大师，也是儒莲翻译奖的第一个获得者。

《尚书》，儒家“五经”之一，约成书于战国时期，距今已有三千余年，是现存的一部中国古代历史文献汇编，上起传说的尧虞舜时代，下至春秋中期，历时约1500年，按朝代编排，分《虞书》、《夏书》、《商书》、《周书》，记录历代帝王文告及君臣谈话。其中《周书》保存完整，内容详尽，也是本书主要研译对象。
理雅各的耐心与决心，单看《周书》注释便可见一斑。《周书》注释之多，令人瞠目，除了解词释义、分析语法，理雅各自觉肩负起科普上古历史的重任。

NAME OF THE PART.—周書, 'The Books of

Chow.' Chow is the dynastic designation under which

Woo and his descendants possessed the empire from

B.C.1121—255, a period of 867 years. They traced

their lineage up to K'e (棄), the minister of Agriculture

(后稷) under Shun. K'e is said to have been a son of

the emperor K'uh (B.C.2432). The marvels of his birth

and infancy are pleasantly described in the second Part

of the She King, and are duly chronicled by Sze-ma

Ts'een (周本紀). He was invested with the principality

of T'ae (邰), the pres. dis. of Foo-fung (扶風), dep. of

Fung-ts'ëang (鳳翔), in Shen-se. In the time of Këĕ,

B.C. 1796, the fortunes of the family, which had for

some time been waning, revived under Kung-lew (公

劉), who established himself in Pin (豳), the pres. small

department of邠. There his descendants remained till

B.C.1826, when Tan-foo, afterwards styled king T'ae

in the sacrificial ritual of the dynasty, removed to the

foot of mount K'e in the pres. dis. of K'e-san (岐山),

dep. of Fung-ts'ëang;—see Men.,I.,Pt.,II.,xiv., and xv.

The state which he established there was called Chow.

King T'ae was succeeded by his son Ke-leih, or king

Ke, and he again by his son Ch'ang, or king Wăn,

who transmitted his hereditary dominions, greatly

increased, and his authority to his son Fă or king Woo.

Woo then adopted Chow as the designation of the

dynasty which he founded.