Li Yannian (; died 90 BC) was a Chinese musician during 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 warr ...

. He became a court musician during Emperor Wu's reign, but was eventually executed for

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

. His wrote the song ''Jiaren Qu'' (

literally ''Literally'' is an English adverb. It has been controversially used as an intensifier for figurative statements. History The first known use of the word ''literally'' was in the 15th century, or the 1530s, when it was used in the sense of "in ...

: ''The Beauty Song''), describing a lady with exceptional beauty. Upon hearing this song, the Emperor did not believe there could be such a woman on

earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

, but his sister

Princess Pingyang Princess Pingyang (, formally Princess Zhao of Pingyang (, 590s–623) was the daughter of Li Yuan (later enthroned as Emperor Gaozu), the founding emperor of the Tang dynasty. She helped him to seize power and eventually take over the throne f ...

mentioned Li has a younger sister who could match the description, so Emperor Wu took Li's sister

Li Furen Lady Li (李夫人, died between 104 and 101 BC), also rendered as Li Fu-jēn, was a Han dynasty concubine of Emperor Wu of Han, Emperor Wu. Civil unrest broke out between her family and Wei Zifu's family. Moreover, her siblings defected to the Xi ...

as a

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive. Concubi ...

. Li Yannian himself allegedly was

homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

. When Emperor re-established the Imperial Music Bureau, Li Yannian was appointed a musician in the court. Li Yannian's brother

Li Guangli Li Guangli (died 88 BC) was a Chinese military general of the Western Han dynasty and a member of the Li family favoured by Emperor Wu of Han. His brother Li Yannian was also close to Emperor Wu. With the suicide of Emperor Wu's crown prince ...

also became a general in the Han armies.

Jiarenqu

Jiarenqu (佳人曲, ''The Beauty Song'')

Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Later ...

67:34 : ''From the north comes a ravishing maiden,'' : ''Whose beauty stands alone.'' : ''One look at her, cities fall,'' : ''On the second glance, empires collapse.'' : ''Care not whether cities fall or empires collapse,'' : ''Such beauty never comes around twice.''

Death, execution, and treason

After the death of his sister, Yannian's family began to lose Wu's favour. In 90 BC, much of the Li family was executed on multiple charges, including

. According to one source, Li was executed in 90 BC during a struggle between the Li family and Empress Wei's family.D. Twitchett & M. Loewe, 176

Notes

References

* Rexroth, Kenneth (1970). Love and the Turning Year: One Hundred More Poems from the Chinese. New York: New Directions. *D. Twitchett & M. Loewe, The Cambridge History of China, 176 {{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Yannian 82 BC deaths Executed Han dynasty people 1st-century BC executions People executed by the Han dynasty People executed for treason against China Year of birth unknown Han dynasty musicians 1st-century BC Chinese musicians