|
Scholar-official
The scholar-officials, also known as literati, scholar-gentlemen or scholar-bureaucrats (), were government officials and prestigious scholars in Chinese society, forming a distinct social class. Scholar-officials were politicians and government officials appointed by the emperor of China to perform day-to-day political duties from the Han dynasty to the end of the Qing dynasty in 1912, China's last imperial dynasty. After the Sui dynasty these officials mostly came from the Landed gentry in China, scholar-gentry (紳士 ''shēnshì'') who had earned academic degrees (such as ''xiucai'', ''juren'', or ''Jinshi (imperial examination), jinshi'') by passing the imperial examinations. Scholar-officials were the elite class of imperial China. They were highly educated, especially in literature and the arts, including calligraphy and Confucianism, Confucian texts. They dominated the government administration and local life of China until the early 20th century. Origins and formations ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Four Occupations
The four occupations (), or "four categories of the people" (),Hansson, pp. 20-21Brook, 72. was an occupation classification used in ancient China by either Confucian or Legalist scholars as far back as the late Zhou dynasty and is considered a central part of the fengjian social structure (c. 1046–256 BC).Fairbank, 108. These were the '' shi'' (warrior nobles, and later on gentry scholars), the '' nong'' (peasant farmers), the ''gong'' (artisans and craftsmen), and the '' shang'' (merchants and traders). The four occupations were not always arranged in this order. The four categories were not socioeconomic classes; wealth and standing did not correspond to these categories, nor were they hereditary. The system did not factor in all social groups present in premodern Chinese society, and its broad categories were more an idealization than a practical reality. The commercialization of Chinese society in the Song and Ming periods further blurred the lines between these four oc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Song Dynasty
The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period#Ten Kingdoms, Ten Kingdoms, ending the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The Song frequently came into conflict with the contemporaneous Liao dynasty, Liao, Western Xia and Jin dynasty (1115–1234), Jin dynasties in northern China. After retreating to southern China following attacks by the Jin dynasty, the Song was eventually conquered by the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The History of the Song dynasty, dynasty's history is divided into two periods: during the Northern Song (; 960–1127), the capital was in the northern city of Bianjing (now Kaifeng) and the dynasty controlled most of what is now East China. The #Southern Song, 1127–1279, Southern Song (; 1127–1279) comprise the period following ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ming Dynasty
The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of China ruled by the Han people, the majority ethnic group in China. Although the primary capital of Beijing fell in 1644 to a rebellion led by Li Zicheng (who established the short-lived Shun dynasty), numerous rump state, rump regimes ruled by remnants of the House of Zhu, Ming imperial family, collectively called the Southern Ming, survived until 1662. The Ming dynasty's founder, the Hongwu Emperor (1368–1398), attempted to create a society of self-sufficient rural communities ordered in a rigid, immobile system that would guarantee and support a permanent class of soldiers for his dynasty: the empire's standing army exceeded one million troops and the naval history of China, navy's dockyards in Nanjing were the largest in the world. H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Qing Dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the Ming dynasty and succeeded by the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China. At its height of power, the empire stretched from the Sea of Japan in the east to the Pamir Mountains in the west, and from the Mongolian Plateau in the north to the South China Sea in the south. Originally emerging from the Later Jin (1616–1636), Later Jin dynasty founded in 1616 and proclaimed in Shenyang in 1636, the dynasty seized control of the Ming capital Beijing and North China in 1644, traditionally considered the start of the dynasty's rule. The dynasty lasted until the Xinhai Revolution of October 1911 led to the abdication of the last emperor in February 1912. The multi-ethnic Qing dynasty Legacy of the Qing dynasty, assembled the territoria ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Landed Gentry In China
The "gentry", or "landed gentry" in China was the elite who held privileged status through passing the Imperial exams, which made them eligible to hold office. These literati, or scholar-officials, (''shenshi'' 紳士 or ''jinshen'' 縉紳), also called 士紳 ''shishen'' "scholar gentry" or 鄉紳 ''xiangshen'' "local gentry", held a virtual monopoly on office holding, and overlapped with an unofficial elite of the wealthy. The Tang and Song dynasties expanded the civil service exam to replace the nine-rank system which favored hereditary and largely military aristocrats. As a social class they included retired mandarins or their families and descendants. Owning land was often their way of preserving wealth.Chang Chung-li hongli Zhang ''The Chinese Gentry: Studies on Their Role in Nineteenth-Century Chinese Society'' (Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1955). Confucian classes The Confucian ideal of the four occupations ranked the scholar-official above farme ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Imperial Examination
The imperial examination was a civil service examination system in History of China#Imperial China, Imperial China administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the Civil service#China, state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by merit rather than by birth started Imperial examination in Chinese mythology, early in Chinese history, but using written examinations as a tool of selection started in earnest during the Sui dynasty (581–618), then into the Tang dynasty (618–907). The system became dominant during the Song dynasty (960–1279) and lasted for almost a millennium until its abolition during the late Qing reforms, late Qing dynasty reforms in 1905. The key sponsors for abolition were Yuan Shikai, Yin Chang and Zhang Zhidong. Aspects of the imperial examination still exist for entry into the civil service of both China and Taiwan. The exams served to ensure a common knowledge of writing, Chinese classics, and literary style among state officials. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Confucian Scholars Of Wu Family Shrines, Tracing From Jinshisuo CADAL09010673 金石索(九)2
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, religion, theory of government, or way of life. Founded by Confucius in the Hundred Schools of Thought era (c. 500 BCE), Confucianism integrates philosophy, ethics, and social governance, with a core focus on virtue, social harmony, and familial responsibility. Confucianism emphasizes virtue through self-cultivation and communal effort. Key virtues include '' ren'' (benevolence), '' yi'' (righteousness), '' li'' (propriety), '' zhi'' (wisdom), and '' xin'' (sincerity). These values, deeply tied to the notion of ''tian'' (heaven), present a worldview where human relationships and social order are manifestations of sacred moral principles.. While Confucianism does not emphasize an omnipotent deity, it upholds ''tian'' as a transcendent moral order. Confucius regarded himself as a transmitter of cultural va ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after India, representing 17.4% of the world population. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and Borders of China, borders fourteen countries by land across an area of nearly , making it the list of countries and dependencies by area, third-largest country by land area. The country is divided into 33 Province-level divisions of China, province-level divisions: 22 provinces of China, provinces, 5 autonomous regions of China, autonomous regions, 4 direct-administered municipalities of China, municipalities, and 2 semi-autonomous special administrative regions. Beijing is the country's capital, while Shanghai is List of cities in China by population, its most populous city by urban area and largest financial center. Considered one of six ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Of China
Throughout Chinese history, "Emperor" () was the superlative title held by the monarchs of imperial China's various dynasties. In traditional Chinese political theory, the emperor was the " Son of Heaven", an autocrat with the divine mandate to rule all under Heaven. Emperors were worshiped posthumously under an imperial cult. The lineage of emperors descended from a paternal family line constituted a dynasty, and succession in most cases theoretically followed agnatic primogeniture. The emperor of China was an absolute monarch. During the Han dynasty, Confucianism gained sanction as the official political theory. The absolute authority of the emperor came with a variety of governing duties and moral obligations; failure to uphold these was thought to remove the dynasty's Mandate of Heaven and to justify its overthrow. In practice, emperors sometimes avoided the strict rules of succession and dynasties' purported "failures" were detailed in official histories written by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Confucianism
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, Religious Confucianism, religion, theory of government, or way of life. Founded by Confucius in the Hundred Schools of Thought era (c. 500 BCE), Confucianism integrates philosophy, ethics, and social governance, with a core focus on virtue, Harmonious Society, social harmony, and Filial piety, familial responsibility. Confucianism emphasizes virtue through self-cultivation and communal effort. Key virtues include ''Ren (philosophy), ren'' (benevolence), ''Yi (philosophy), yi'' (righteousness), ''Li (Confucianism), li'' (propriety), ''Wisdom, zhi'' (wisdom), and ''Xin (virtue), xin'' (sincerity). These values, deeply tied to the notion of ''tian'' (heaven), present a worldview where human relationships and social order are manifestations of sacred moral principles.. While Confucianism does not emphasize an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xie Clan Of Chen
The Xie clan of Chen Commandery () was a prominent clan, originating in Chen Commandery (modern-day Zhoukou, Henan). First rising to prominence in the Eastern Jin period, they retained their importance throughout the Southern dynasties in the Northern and Southern Dynasties period, along with such clans as the Wang clan of Langya, with which they were often associated as "Wang-Xie" (). Prominent Members Three Kingdoms period * Xie Zuan (謝纘, 214–282), Cao Wei and Western Jin general and politician; founded the clan in Yangxia County, Chen commandery Jin dynasty * Xie An (320–385), Eastern Jin statesman, overall commander at the Battle of the Fei River * Xie Wan (320–361), Jin general * Xie Shang (327–389), Jin general * Xie Xuan (343–388), Jin general * Xie Daoyun (340 – after 399), poet and calligrapher, daughter-in-law of Wang Xizhi Northern and Southern dynasties * Xie Lingyun (385–433), poet and pioneer of 'mountain-and-water poetry' * Xie Hui, (390� ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
