This paper aims to explore the European universal language thought in the seventeenth century, whereby the German scholar Leibniz's concept of general characters as well as his research on Chinese logography is to be dealt with. Concerning the cultural development of Europe, the most significant achievement which features the history of the seventeenth century is the discovering of China. The Jesuit missionaries not only brought Western science and ideas into China, but also spread the Chinese academics and culture to the West. At the same time, philosophical debates brought on a universal language movement in the continental mainland. As Chinese characters in time caught the European's sight through missionary letters and works, China study, accompanied by the philosophical interest in establishing a universal language, was booming. This resulted in the development of a special type of Sinology, particularly with regard to the Chinese language and characters, which were researched and explained in the framework of Western academic tradition. Leibniz, the great thinker, just grew up in this era, so that his passion for research as well as for the Chinese study was naturally linked with the cultural and academic trends of this era. The present paper is divided into six parts. The first chapter is introduction. The second chapter gives an outline of Leibniz's life and academic background. The third chapter quotes several well-known works of Sinology to elaborate seventeenth-century European scholars', including Leibniz's general knowledge of Chinese characters. The fourth chapter discusses the cause of the universal language movement, and then introduces several representative universal language projects. The fifth chapter tackles, in chronological order, the development of Leibniz's concept for general characters and the life-long study on Chinese characters. The last chapter is the conclusion.
