The
Zizhi Tongjian was a pioneering reference work in
Chinese historiographyChinese historiography refers to the study of methods and assumptions made in studying Chinese history.-History of Chinese Historians:Record of Chinese history dated back to the Shang Dynasty. The Classic of History, one of the Five Classics of Chinese classic texts is one of the earliest...
, published in 1084, under the form of a chronicles. In 1065 CE,
Emperor Yingzong of SongEmperor Yingzong was the fifth emperor of the Song Dynasty of China. His personal name was originally Zhao Zongshi but he later changed it to Zhao Shu. He reigned from 1063 to 1067...
ordered the great historian
Sima GuangSīmǎ Guāng was a Chinese historian, scholar, and high chancellor of the Song Dynasty, jinshi 1038.-Life, profession, and works:...
(1019–1086) to lead with other scholars such as his chief assistants Liu Shu, Liu Ban and Fan Zuyu, the compilation of a
universal historyUniversal history is basic to the Western tradition of historiography, especially the Abrahamic wellspring of that tradition. Simply stated, universal history is the presentation of the history of humankind as a whole, as a coherent unit.-Ancient authors:...
of China. The task took 19 years to be completed, and, in 1084, it was presented to his successor
Emperor Shenzong of SongEmperor Shenzong of Song was the sixth emperor of the Chinese Song Dynasty. His personal name was Zhao Xu...
. The Zizhi Tongjian exposes Chinese history from -403 BCE to 959 CE, covering 16 dynasties and spanning across 1363 years, and contains 294 volumes (巻) and about 3 million Chinese characters.
The book
The book chronologically narrates the
history of ChinaChinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...
from the Warring States to the Five Dynasties (403 B.C.-959 C.E). The major contributor was Sima Guang, was active in each step, from collecting events and dates from various previous works, to drafting and publication.
Sima Guang left the traditional usage in Chinese historiography. Since almost 1,000 years and the
Shiji, standard Chinese dynastic histories primarily divided chapters between annals (紀) of rulers, and biographies (傳) of officials. In Chinese terms, the book changed the format of histories from biographical style (紀傳體) to chronological style (編年體), which is better suited for analysis, activism and criticism. According to Wilkinson,
"It had an enormous influence on later Chinese historical writing, either directly or through its many abbreviations, continuations, and adaptations. It remains an extraordinarily useful first reference for a quick and reliable coverage of events at a particular time."
The book consisted of 294 volumes, sweeping through 11 Chinese historical periods (Warring States, Qin, Western Han, Eastern Han, Three Kingdoms, Jin and the Sixteen Kingdoms, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui, Tang, and Five Dynasties）. It was one of the largest historical
magnum opus in history.
Hu Sansheng of the Yuan Dynasty added commentaries to Zizhi Tongjian.
Derivative and commented works
In the 12th century,
Zhu XiZhū Xī or Chu Hsi was a Song Dynasty Confucian scholar who became the leading figure of the School of Principle and the most influential rationalist Neo-Confucian in China...
produced a reworked, condensed version of Zizhi Tongjian, known as Tongjian Gangmu, or
Zizhi Tongjian Gangmu (通鉴纲目). This condensed version was itself later translated into
Manchu languageManchu 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...
, upon the request of
Qing DynastyThe 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....
Kangxi EmperorThe Kangxi Emperor ; Manchu: elhe taifin hūwangdi ; Mongolian: Энх-Амгалан хаан, 4 May 1654 –20 December 1722) was the fourth emperor of the Qing Dynasty, the first to be born on Chinese soil south of the Pass and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, from 1661 to 1722.Kangxi's...
. This Manchu version was itself translated into French by French Jesuit missionary
Joseph-Anna-Marie de Moyriac de MaillaJoseph-Anne-Marie de Moyriac de Mailla was a French Jesuit missionary to China.-Biography:...
. His twelve-volume translation, "Histoire générale de la Chine, ou Annales de cet Empire; traduit du Tong-kien-kang-mou par de Mailla" was published posthumously in Paris in 1777-1783.
The
Zhonghua ShujuZhonghua Book Company is a publisher in China with a focus on humanities, especially on classical Chinese works. Its headquarters is located in Beijing....
edition contains textual criticism made by
Yuan DynastyThe Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
historian Hu Sanxing.
Sections of Zizhi Tongjian pertaining to China's relations with the Xiongnu have been translated into English.
See also
- Culture of the Song Dynasty
The Song Dynasty was a culturally rich and sophisticated age for China. There was blossoming of and advancements in the visual arts, music, literature, and philosophy...
- History of the Song Dynasty
The Song Dynasty of China was a ruling dynasty that controlled China proper and southern China from the middle of the 10th century into the last quarter of the 13th century...
- Chinese literature
Chinese literature extends thousands of years, from the earliest recorded dynastic court archives to the mature fictional novels that arose during the Ming Dynasty to entertain the masses of literate Chinese...
External links
- Zizhi Tongjian "Comprehensive Mirror to Aid in Government" — Chinaknowledge
Chinaknowledge, with the subtitle "a universal guide for China studies", is a hobbyist's web site that contains a wide variety of information on China and Chinese topics. It is frequently used as a citation source for facts presented elsewhere, however the site's author states, "When writing...