The Cui clan of Boling (博陵崔氏) was a notable Chinese clan of noble descent which was politically active from the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a war ...

to the end of the

Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen concu ...

. They shared the same ancestry as the

Cui clan of Qinghe The Cui clan of Qinghe (清河崔氏) was an eminent Chinese family of high-ranking government officials and Confucian scholars. The clan's ancestral home was in Qinghe Commandery (清河郡), which covered parts of present-day Shandong and Hebei ...

. The founding father of this clan, Cui Zhongmou (崔仲牟), was a younger brother of Cui Ye (崔業), the founding father of the Cui clan of Qinghe. Their father, Jizi (季子), was the common ancestor of these two clans. The Cui clan of Boling traditionally lived in Boling Commandery, which covered parts of present-day

Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, and ...

. Members of this clan served as officials in the government of the Han dynasty. Although there were many famous Confucian scholars from the Cui family, they did not have any significant political influence until the late

Six Dynasties Six Dynasties (; 220–589 or 222–589) is a collective term for six Han-ruled Chinese dynasties that existed from the early 3rd century AD to the late 6th century AD. The Six Dynasties period overlapped with the era of the Sixteen Kingdoms, ...

era. During the Sui and Tang dynasties, the Cui clan of Boling became so influential that when Emperor Taizong of the Tang dynasty once asked a minister which was the most influential clan of that time, the minister replied that it was the Cui family of Boling. The emperor felt displeased because he thought that the Li family, the imperial family, should be the most prestigious one in his time. In total, there were 15 members from the Cui family of Boling who held the position of

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

during the Tang dynasty, and one during the

. It is not known what happened to the Cui clan of Boling after the establishment of the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

as nothing was recorded about them in historical records. It is clear, however, that most of the notable Chinese clans suffered from the wars in the

Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen conc ...

era, and many of them were no longer mentioned in historical records again after that period.

Branches

These were the branches of the Cui clan of Boling. * Boling Anping branch (博陵安平房) * Elder Boling branch (博陵大房) * Second Boling branch (博陵第二房) * Third Boling branch (博陵第三房) * Fourth Boling branch (博陵第四房) * Fifth Boling branch (博陵第五房) * Sixth Boling branch (博陵第六房)

References

{{reflist Chinese clans