Chen Yinke
Encyclopedia
Chen Yinke was a sinologist and a fellow of Academia Sinica
. His representative works are The Origins of Sui
and Tang
Institutions: A Brief Account 《隋唐制度淵源略論稿》, On the Political History of the Tang Dynasty
《唐代政治史述論稿》, and An Alternative Biography of Liu Rushi
《柳如是別傳》.
.
As a boy, Chen Yinke attended a private school in Nanjing
, and was once a student of Wang Bohang, a sinologist. His family had a distinguished tradition in classical learning, so he was exposed from an early age to the Chinese classics, to history, and to philosophy. In 1902 he went to Japan
with his elder brother Chen Hengke
to study at the Kobun Gakuin (Kobun Institute 東京弘文學院) in Tokyo
, where other Chinese students such as Lu Xun
were also enrolled. In 1905 he was forced to return to China due to beriberi
, and studied at Fudan Public School, Shanghai
.
In 1910 he obtained a scholarship to study at Berlin University, and later at the University of Zurich
and Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris
. In 1914 he came back to China due to World War I
.
In winter 1918 he got another official scholarship from Jiangxi to go study abroad again. He studied Sanskrit
and Pali
at Harvard University
under Charles Rockwell Lanman
. It was at Harvard where he first met Wu Mi, who was then studying literature under Irving Babbitt
. They became life-long friends.
In 1921, he went to Berlin University to study oriental languages under Heinrich Lüders, Central Asian languages under Max Müller
, and Mongolian
under Erich Haenisch. He acquired in his studies knowledge of Mongolian
, Tibetan
, Manchu
, Japanese
, Sanskrit
, Pali
, English
, French
, German
, Persian
, Turkic
, Tangut
, Latin
, and Greek
. Particularly notable was his mastery of Sanskrit
and Pali
. Xia Zengyou once said to him: "It is good for you to be able to read books in foreign languages. I know only Chinese so I have no more to read after finishing all the Chinese books."
. He accepted the invitation to become a supervisor at Institute of Guoxue Studies, together with Wang Guowei
, Liang Qichao
and Zhao Yuanren. In 1928 Tsinghua School was restructured to become Tsinghua University
. Chen was employed as professor at Chinese Language and Literature Department and History Department, while also adjunct with Peking University
. Chen married Tang Fen, granddaughter of Tang Jingsong
, former governor of Republic of Formosa
, in summer 1928. During this time he mainly gave lectures on Buddhist texts
translation, historical documents of Jin Dynasty, Southern and Northern Dynasties
, Sui Dynasty
, Tang Dynasty
, and Mongolia. He also became adjunct member of Board of Academia Sinica
, research fellow and director of Department 1 of The Institute of History and Philosophy, board member of National Palace Museum
, member of Committee of Qing Dynasty's Documents. After the Second Sino-Japanese War
began, Chen moved to National Southwestern Associated University
, Kunming
, Yunnan, teaching lectures on history of Jin Dynasty Southern and Northern Dynasties
, history of Sui Dynasty
and Tang Dynasty
, and poetry of Yuan Zhen
and Bai Juyi.
due to ongoing battles. In 1941 he became a guest professor with Hong Kong University to teach history of Sui Dynasty
and Tang Dynasty
. Since the Japanese occupation in Hong Kong began in the end of 1941, he conducted history research at home, which resulted in the writing of A Brief Introduction to the Political History of Tang Dynasty. In July 1942, Chen fled to Guilin
to teach in Guangxi University
, later in December 1943 he moved to Chengdu
to teach in Yenching University
. He became employed by Tsinghua University
for a second time in 1946.
, Guangzhou
in late 1948. As a result of a nation-wide restructure campaign across universities and colleges, Lingnan University
was merged into Zhongshan University in 1952. Chen Yinke taught courses on history of Jin Dynasty and Southern and Northern Dynasties
, history of Tang Dynasty
, and Yue fu
of Tang Dynasty
. In 1953 he started writing Biography of Liu Rushi, an in-depth investigation of the poetry and activities of Liu Rushi, a famous prostitute in late Ming Dynasty
and early Qing Dynasty
. He finished this last major work in 1964, by then having been completely blind. He became vice president of Central Research Institute of Culture and History
in July 1960.
due to his previous connection with the out-of-favor Tao Zhu
. He and his wife's salaries were frozen by the Red Guards
. For several times he was forced to write statements to clarify his political standings: "I have never done anything harmful to Chinese people in my life. I have been a teacher for 40 years, only doing teaching and writing, but nothing practical (for Kuomintang
)". Many of his book collections and manuscripts were robbed. He died in Guangzhou
on 7 October 1969.
In 1920s, Chen Yinke insisted that research should be of "thoughts of freedom, spirits of independence". In 1953 he was designated as head of the Second Department of Insititute of History Study in Chinese Academy of Sciences
. He demanded two requests to be granted, in his "Reply to the Chinese Academy of Sciences" on 1 December. The first one was "the Institute of Mid-Ancient Chinese History be exempt from the doctrines of Marxism
, as well as attending politics lectures"; The second one was "a letter of approval from Mao Zedong
or Liu Shaoqi
, as a shield". He explained that "Mao, the top political authority, and Liu, the top party leader, should have consensus with me on the matter, otherwise academic research would be out of the question." He did not assume the position eventually, continuing working at Zhongshan University. The incident was not disclosed to the public until 1980s.
Academia Sinica
The Academia Sinica , headquartered in the Nangang District of Taipei, is the national academy of Taiwan. It supports research activities in a wide variety of disciplines, ranging from mathematical and physical sciences, to life sciences, and to humanities and social sciences.Academia Sinica has...
. His representative works are The Origins of Sui
Sui Dynasty
The Sui Dynasty was a powerful, but short-lived Imperial Chinese dynasty. Preceded by the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it ended nearly four centuries of division between rival regimes. It was followed by the Tang Dynasty....
and Tang
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
Institutions: A Brief Account 《隋唐制度淵源略論稿》, On the Political History of the Tang Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
《唐代政治史述論稿》, and An Alternative Biography of Liu Rushi
Liu rushi
Liu Rushi was a famous courtesan in the late Ming dynasty who married Qian Qianyi at the age of 25. She committed suicide on the death of her husband....
《柳如是別傳》.
Early life
Chen Yinke was born in Changsha, Hunan in 1890, and his ancestral home was Yining, Jiangxi (now Xiushui County, Jiujiang City). Yinke's father Chen Sanli was a famous poet, one of the "Four Gentlemen" of the Hundred Days' ReformHundred Days' Reform
The Hundred Days' Reform was a failed 104-day national cultural, political and educational reform movement from 11 June to 21 September 1898 in late Qing Dynasty China. It was undertaken by the young Guangxu Emperor and his reform-minded supporters...
.
As a boy, Chen Yinke attended a private school in Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
, and was once a student of Wang Bohang, a sinologist. His family had a distinguished tradition in classical learning, so he was exposed from an early age to the Chinese classics, to history, and to philosophy. In 1902 he went to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
with his elder brother Chen Hengke
Chen Shizeng
Chen Shizeng Wade-Giles romanization Ch’en Shih-tseng, original name Chen Hengke, courtesy name Shizeng, literary name Xiudaoren Xiuzhe was a Chinese painter and critic, painter, and educator of early 20th-century China...
to study at the Kobun Gakuin (Kobun Institute 東京弘文學院) in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, where other Chinese students such as Lu Xun
Lu Xun
Lu Xun or Lu Hsün , was the pen name of Zhou Shuren , one of the major Chinese writers of the 20th century. Considered by many to be the leading figure of modern Chinese literature, he wrote in baihua as well as classical Chinese...
were also enrolled. In 1905 he was forced to return to China due to beriberi
Beriberi
Beriberi is a nervous system ailment caused by a thiamine deficiency in the diet. Thiamine is involved in the breakdown of energy molecules such as glucose and is also found on the membranes of neurons...
, and studied at Fudan Public School, Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
.
In 1910 he obtained a scholarship to study at Berlin University, and later at the University of Zurich
University of Zurich
The University of Zurich , located in the city of Zurich, is the largest university in Switzerland, with over 25,000 students. It was founded in 1833 from the existing colleges of theology, law, medicine and a new faculty of philosophy....
and Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris
Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris
The Institut d'études politiques de Paris , simply referred to as Sciences Po , is a public research and higher education institution in Paris, France, specialised in the social sciences. It has the status of grand établissement, which allows its admissions process to be highly selective...
. In 1914 he came back to China due to World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
In winter 1918 he got another official scholarship from Jiangxi to go study abroad again. He studied Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
and Pali
Páli
- External links :* *...
at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
under Charles Rockwell Lanman
Charles Rockwell Lanman
Charles Rockwell Lanman was an American scholar of the Sanskrit language.-Early Life and Education:Charles Rockwell Lanman was born in Norwich, Connecticut, the eighth of the nine children of Peter Lanman III and Catherine Lanman on July 8, 1850...
. It was at Harvard where he first met Wu Mi, who was then studying literature under Irving Babbitt
Irving Babbitt
Irving Babbitt was an American academic and literary critic, noted for his founding role in a movement that became known as the New Humanism, a significant influence on literary discussion and conservative thought in the period between 1910 to 1930...
. They became life-long friends.
In 1921, he went to Berlin University to study oriental languages under Heinrich Lüders, Central Asian languages under Max Müller
Max Müller
Friedrich Max Müller , more regularly known as Max Müller, was a German philologist and Orientalist, one of the founders of the western academic field of Indian studies and the discipline of comparative religion...
, and Mongolian
Mongolian language
The Mongolian language is the official language of Mongolia and the best-known member of the Mongolic language family. The number of speakers across all its dialects may be 5.2 million, including the vast majority of the residents of Mongolia and many of the Mongolian residents of the Inner...
under Erich Haenisch. He acquired in his studies knowledge of Mongolian
Mongolian language
The Mongolian language is the official language of Mongolia and the best-known member of the Mongolic language family. The number of speakers across all its dialects may be 5.2 million, including the vast majority of the residents of Mongolia and many of the Mongolian residents of the Inner...
, Tibetan
Tibetan language
The Tibetan languages are a cluster of mutually-unintelligible Tibeto-Burman languages spoken primarily by Tibetan peoples who live across a wide area of eastern Central Asia bordering the Indian subcontinent, including the Tibetan Plateau and the northern Indian subcontinent in Baltistan, Ladakh,...
, Manchu
Manchu language
Manchu is a Tungusic endangered language spoken in Northeast China; it used to be the language of the Manchu, though now most Manchus speak Mandarin Chinese and there are fewer than 70 native speakers of Manchu out of a total of nearly 10 million ethnic Manchus...
, Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
, Pali
Páli
- External links :* *...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, Turkic
Turkic languages
The Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
, Tangut
Tangut language
Tangut is an ancient northeastern Tibeto-Burman language once spoken in the Western Xia Dynasty, also known as the Tangut Empire. It is classified by some linguists as one of the Qiangic languages, which also include Qiang and rGyalrong, among others...
, Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
. Particularly notable was his mastery of Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
and Pali
Páli
- External links :* *...
. Xia Zengyou once said to him: "It is good for you to be able to read books in foreign languages. I know only Chinese so I have no more to read after finishing all the Chinese books."
Tsinghua period
In March 1925 he returned to China again, meanwhile Wu Mi was in charge of the Institute of Guoxue Studies, Tsinghua SchoolTsinghua University
Tsinghua University , colloquially known in Chinese as Qinghua, is a university in Beijing, China. The school is one of the nine universities of the C9 League. It was established in 1911 under the name "Tsinghua Xuetang" or "Tsinghua College" and was renamed the "Tsinghua School" one year later...
. He accepted the invitation to become a supervisor at Institute of Guoxue Studies, together with Wang Guowei
Wang Guowei
Wang Guowei , courtesy name Jing'an or Baiyu , was a Chinese scholar, writer and poet...
, Liang Qichao
Liang Qichao
Liang Qichao |Styled]] Zhuoru, ; Pseudonym: Rengong) was a Chinese scholar, journalist, philosopher and reformist during the Qing Dynasty , who inspired Chinese scholars with his writings and reform movements...
and Zhao Yuanren. In 1928 Tsinghua School was restructured to become Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University , colloquially known in Chinese as Qinghua, is a university in Beijing, China. The school is one of the nine universities of the C9 League. It was established in 1911 under the name "Tsinghua Xuetang" or "Tsinghua College" and was renamed the "Tsinghua School" one year later...
. Chen was employed as professor at Chinese Language and Literature Department and History Department, while also adjunct with Peking University
Peking University
Peking University , colloquially known in Chinese as Beida , is a major research university located in Beijing, China, and a member of the C9 League. It is the first established modern national university of China. It was founded as Imperial University of Peking in 1898 as a replacement of the...
. Chen married Tang Fen, granddaughter of Tang Jingsong
Tang Ching-sung
Tang Ching-sung was a Chinese general and statesman. He commanded the Yunnan Army in the Sino-French War , and made an important contribution to China's military effort in Tonkin by persuading the Black Flag leader Liu Yung-fu to serve under Chinese command...
, former governor of Republic of Formosa
Republic of Formosa
The Republic of Formosa was a short-lived republic that existed on the island of Taiwan in 1895 between the formal cession of Taiwan by the Qing Dynasty of China to the Empire of Japan by the Treaty of Shimonoseki and its invasion and occupation by Japanese troops...
, in summer 1928. During this time he mainly gave lectures on Buddhist texts
Buddhist texts
Buddhist texts can be categorized in a number of ways. The Western terms "scripture" and "canonical" are applied to Buddhism in inconsistent ways by Western scholars: for example, one authority refers to "scriptures and other canonical texts", while another says that scriptures can be categorized...
translation, historical documents of Jin Dynasty, Southern and Northern Dynasties
Southern and Northern Dynasties
The Southern and Northern Dynasties was a period in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589 AD. Though an age of civil war and political chaos, it was also a time of flourishing arts and culture, advancement in technology, and the spreading of Mahayana Buddhism and Daoism...
, Sui Dynasty
Sui Dynasty
The Sui Dynasty was a powerful, but short-lived Imperial Chinese dynasty. Preceded by the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it ended nearly four centuries of division between rival regimes. It was followed by the Tang Dynasty....
, Tang Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
, and Mongolia. He also became adjunct member of Board of Academia Sinica
Academia Sinica
The Academia Sinica , headquartered in the Nangang District of Taipei, is the national academy of Taiwan. It supports research activities in a wide variety of disciplines, ranging from mathematical and physical sciences, to life sciences, and to humanities and social sciences.Academia Sinica has...
, research fellow and director of Department 1 of The Institute of History and Philosophy, board member of National Palace Museum
National Palace Museum
The National Palace Museum is an art museum in Taipei. It is the national museum of the Republic of China, and has a permanent collection of over 677,687 pieces of ancient Chinese artifacts and artworks, making it one of the largest in the world. The collection encompasses over 8,000 years of...
, member of Committee of Qing Dynasty's Documents. After the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
began, Chen moved to National Southwestern Associated University
National Southwestern Associated University
When the Second Sino-Japanese War broke out between China and Japan in 1937, Peking University, Tsinghua University and Nankai University, merged to form Changsha Temporary University in Changsha, and later National Southwestern Associated University in Kunming...
, Kunming
Kunming
' is the capital and largest city of Yunnan Province in Southwest China. It was known as Yunnan-Fou until the 1920s. A prefecture-level city, it is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of Yunnan, and is the seat of the provincial government...
, Yunnan, teaching lectures on history of Jin Dynasty Southern and Northern Dynasties
Southern and Northern Dynasties
The Southern and Northern Dynasties was a period in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589 AD. Though an age of civil war and political chaos, it was also a time of flourishing arts and culture, advancement in technology, and the spreading of Mahayana Buddhism and Daoism...
, history of Sui Dynasty
Sui Dynasty
The Sui Dynasty was a powerful, but short-lived Imperial Chinese dynasty. Preceded by the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it ended nearly four centuries of division between rival regimes. It was followed by the Tang Dynasty....
and Tang Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
, and poetry of Yuan Zhen
Yuan Zhen
Yuan Zhen , courtesy name Weizhi , was a politician of the middle Tang Dynasty, but is more known as an important Chinese writer and poet, particularly for work Yingying's Biography , which was often adapted for other treatments, including operatic and musical ones...
and Bai Juyi.
During the war
In 1939, Oxford University offered him a professorship in Chinese History. He left for Hongkong in September 1940 on his way to United Kingdom, but was forced to return KunmingKunming
' is the capital and largest city of Yunnan Province in Southwest China. It was known as Yunnan-Fou until the 1920s. A prefecture-level city, it is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of Yunnan, and is the seat of the provincial government...
due to ongoing battles. In 1941 he became a guest professor with Hong Kong University to teach history of Sui Dynasty
Sui Dynasty
The Sui Dynasty was a powerful, but short-lived Imperial Chinese dynasty. Preceded by the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it ended nearly four centuries of division between rival regimes. It was followed by the Tang Dynasty....
and Tang Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
. Since the Japanese occupation in Hong Kong began in the end of 1941, he conducted history research at home, which resulted in the writing of A Brief Introduction to the Political History of Tang Dynasty. In July 1942, Chen fled to Guilin
Guilin
Guilin is a prefecture-level city in the northeast of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of far southern China, sitting on the west bank of the Li River. Its name means "forest of Sweet Osmanthus", owing to the large number of fragrant Sweet Osmanthus trees located in the city...
to teach in Guangxi University
Guangxi University
Guangxi University is a provincial university, located in Nanning, capital of Guangxi, China. It is also commonly abbreviated as .-History:Guangxi University was established in October 1928...
, later in December 1943 he moved to Chengdu
Chengdu
Chengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...
to teach in Yenching University
Yenching University
Yenching University was a university in Beijing, China. It integrated three Christian colleges in the city in 1919. Yenching is an alternative name of Beijing - derived from its status as capital of Yan state, one of the seven Warring States from 5th century BC to 3rd century BC.The university...
. He became employed by Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University , colloquially known in Chinese as Qinghua, is a university in Beijing, China. The school is one of the nine universities of the C9 League. It was established in 1911 under the name "Tsinghua Xuetang" or "Tsinghua College" and was renamed the "Tsinghua School" one year later...
for a second time in 1946.
At Lingnan University
He began to teach at Lingnan UniversityLingnan University
Lingnan University can refer to two separate establishments:*Lingnan University - a university in Hong Kong*Lingnan University - a university in Guangzhou, Guangdong province in China...
, Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
in late 1948. As a result of a nation-wide restructure campaign across universities and colleges, Lingnan University
Lingnan University
Lingnan University can refer to two separate establishments:*Lingnan University - a university in Hong Kong*Lingnan University - a university in Guangzhou, Guangdong province in China...
was merged into Zhongshan University in 1952. Chen Yinke taught courses on history of Jin Dynasty and Southern and Northern Dynasties
Southern and Northern Dynasties
The Southern and Northern Dynasties was a period in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589 AD. Though an age of civil war and political chaos, it was also a time of flourishing arts and culture, advancement in technology, and the spreading of Mahayana Buddhism and Daoism...
, history of Tang Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
, and Yue fu
Yue fu
Yue fu are Chinese poems composed in a folk song style. The term literally means "Music Bureau", a reference to the government organisation originally charged with collecting or writing the lyrics....
of Tang Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
. In 1953 he started writing Biography of Liu Rushi, an in-depth investigation of the poetry and activities of Liu Rushi, a famous prostitute in late Ming Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
and early Qing Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
. He finished this last major work in 1964, by then having been completely blind. He became vice president of Central Research Institute of Culture and History
Central Research Institute of Culture and History
Central Research Institute of Culture and History is an institute founded by Communist Party of China and Chinese government for senior intellects with united front and honorary purposes. Its principle is "respecting elders and promoting culture"...
in July 1960.
During cultural revolution
Chen was persecuted during the Cultural RevolutionCultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
due to his previous connection with the out-of-favor Tao Zhu
Tao Zhu
Tao Zhu is a Former Member of the 8th Communist Party of China Politburo Standing Committee.-Biography:He was Secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Committee and Commander of the Guangzhou Military Region....
. He and his wife's salaries were frozen by the Red Guards
Red Guards (China)
Red Guards were a mass movement of civilians, mostly students and other young people in the People's Republic of China , who were mobilized by Mao Zedong in 1966 and 1967, during the Cultural Revolution.-Origins:...
. For several times he was forced to write statements to clarify his political standings: "I have never done anything harmful to Chinese people in my life. I have been a teacher for 40 years, only doing teaching and writing, but nothing practical (for Kuomintang
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
)". Many of his book collections and manuscripts were robbed. He died in Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
on 7 October 1969.
Research ideology
Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Chinese Academy of Sciences , formerly known as Academia Sinica, is the national academy for the natural sciences of the People's Republic of China. It is an institution of the State Council of China. It is headquartered in Beijing, with institutes all over the People's Republic of China...
. He demanded two requests to be granted, in his "Reply to the Chinese Academy of Sciences" on 1 December. The first one was "the Institute of Mid-Ancient Chinese History be exempt from the doctrines of Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
, as well as attending politics lectures"; The second one was "a letter of approval from Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
or Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi was a Chinese revolutionary, statesman, and theorist. He was Chairman of the People's Republic of China, China's head of state, from 27 April 1959 to 31 October 1968, during which he implemented policies of economic reconstruction in China...
, as a shield". He explained that "Mao, the top political authority, and Liu, the top party leader, should have consensus with me on the matter, otherwise academic research would be out of the question." He did not assume the position eventually, continuing working at Zhongshan University. The incident was not disclosed to the public until 1980s.
List of works
- Chen Yinke Wei Jin Nan Bei Chao Shi Yan Jiang Lu (Lectures on History of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties)
- Sui Tang Zhi Du Yuan Yuan Lue Lun Gao (A Brief Introduction to the Origins of Institutions of Sui and Tang Dynasties)
- Tang Dai Zheng Zhi Shi Lun Shu Gao (A Brief Introduction to the Political History of Tang Dynasty)
- Yuan Bai Shi Jian Zheng Gao (A Testifying on Yuan Zhen and Bai Juyi's Poems)
- Lun Zai Sheng Yuan (On Zai Sheng Yuan)
- Liu Ru Shi Bie Zhuan (An Unofficial Biography of Liu Rushi)
- Jin Ming Guan Cong Gao Chu Bian (Writings on Jin Ming Guan, Vol. 1)
- Han Liu Tang Ji
- Chen Yin Ke Xue Shu Wen Hua Sui Bi (Essays on Chen Yinke's Academy and Culture)
- Chen Yin Ke Wen Ji (Collection of Chen Yin Ke)
- Chen Yin Ke Ji (Corpus of Chen Yin Ke)
- Jin Ming Guan Cong Gao Er Bian (Writings on Jin Ming Guan, Vol. 2)
Biographical references
- Wu Mi and Chen Yinke, by Wu Xuezhao, Tsinghua University Press, ISBN 978-7-302-00974-0
- On Memories of Chen Yinke, by Zhang Jie and Yang Yanli, Social Science Academy Press, ISBN 978-7-80149-158-9
- Analysis of Chen Yinke, by Zhang Jie and Yang Yanli, Social Science Academy Press, ISBN 978-7-80149-159-6
- Chronicles of Chen Yinke (revised), by Jiang Tianshu, Shanghai Ancient Book Press, 1997
- The Last 20 Years of Chen Yinke, by Lu Jiandong, 陆键东，《陈寅恪的最后二十年》，Linking Press, 1997
- Biography of Historian Chen YinKe, by Wang Rongzu, Peking University Press
- Who Wanted to Come to Taiwan? By Li Ao
- On Chen Yinke, By Yu Dawei et al.
- Explanation and Argumentations of Late Chen Yinke's Writings, by Yu Yingshi, 1998
- Four Sirs in Late Qing Dynasty, by Gao YangGao YangGao Yang may refer to:* Gao Yang clan 高陽氏 mentioned in the Zuo Zhuan, Wen Gong 18 * Emperor Wenxuan of Northern Qi, named Gao Yang* Gao Yang , former President of the CPC Central Party School...
, Crown Press 1983 - The Family History of Chen Yinke, by Zhang Qiu Hui, Guangdong Education Press, 2000