AMIOT, JEAN JOSEPH MARIE French Jesuit missionary, was born at Toulon in Feb. 1718. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1737 and was sent in 175o as a missionary to China. He soon won the confidence of the Emperor Kien-lung, and spent the remainder of his life at Peking, where he died Oct. 9 Amiot provided a key to the thought and life of the Far East, by his Dictionnaire tartare-mantchou-francais (Paris, 1789). His other writings are to be found chiefly in the M emoires concernant l'histoire, les sciences et les arts de Chinois (Paris, 1776-91). The Vie de Confucius, the 12th vol. of that collection, is complete and accurate.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.-For full bibliography see De Backer and C. SomBibliography.-For full bibliography see De Backer and C. Som- mervogel, Bibliotheque de la Cie. de Jesus, i. ; for his works on Chinese music see F. J. Fetis, Biog. univers. des musiciens (Brussels,