Wei Zhao (204–273),
courtesy name
A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...
Hongsi, was an official, historian and scholar of the state of
Eastern Wu
Wu ( Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' < : ''*ŋuɑ''), known in h ...
during the
Three Kingdoms
The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...
period of China. He shared the same personal name as
Sima Zhao
Sima Zhao () (211 – 6 September 265), courtesy name Zishang, was a Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
Sima Zhao capably maintained control of Wei, which had been ...
(,an ancestor of the
Jin dynasty emperors) so, in order to avoid
naming taboo
A naming taboo is a cultural taboo against speaking or writing the given names of exalted persons, notably in China and within the Chinese cultural sphere. It was enforced by several laws throughout Imperial China, but its cultural and possibly r ...
, the historian
Chen Shou
Chen Shou (; 233–297), courtesy name Chengzuo (), was a Chinese historian, politician, and writer who lived during the Three Kingdoms period and Jin dynasty of China. Chen Shou is most known for his most celebrated work, the ''Records of the ...
changed Wei Zhao's personal name to "Yao()" when he wrote Wei Zhao's biography in the ''
Sanguozhi
The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220 ...
'' (the authoritative source for the history of the Three Kingdoms period).
Life
Wei Zhao was appointed as the first Erudite Libationer (博士祭酒; i.e. President) of the precursor to the
Imperial Nanking University by the third Wu emperor,
Sun Xiu
Sun Xiu (235 – 3 September 264), courtesy name Zilie, formally known as Emperor Jing of Wu, was the third emperor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
Early life
Sun Xiu was born in 235 to Wu's founding emper ...
, in 258. He was the chief editor of the ''Book of Wu'', an official history of Wu. While he was compiling the Book of Wu'', the fourth Wu emperor
Sun Hao
Sun Hao (243 – January or February 284), courtesy name Yuanzong, originally named Sun Pengzu with the courtesy name Haozong, was the fourth and last emperor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the son ...
attempted to force him to rewrite certain portions of the book, but Wei Zhao refused on the grounds that such amendments would infringe the principle of history. Wei Zhao's insistence on producing a historically accurate ''Book of Wu'' resulted in his execution by Sun Hao. Wei Zhao also wrote several other works, such as ''Annotations to
Guoyu'' (國語注) and ''Argument and Interpretation of Names'' ().
Wei Zhao's tomb is located near East Street, Yanling Town in
Danyang,
Jiangsu
Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...
. The Wei Zhao Temple (), a memorial to him along with his former residence, is also located near there.
See also
*
Lists of people of the Three Kingdoms
The following are lists of people significant to the Three Kingdoms period (220–280) of Chinese history. Their names in Mandarin pinyin are sorted in alphabetical order.
Fictional characters in the 14th-century historical novel ''Romance of ...
References
*
Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''
Records of the Three Kingdoms
The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220– ...
'' (''Sanguozhi'').
*
Pei, Songzhi (5th century). ''
Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms
Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms () by Pei Songzhi (372-451) is an annotation completed in the 5th century of the 3rd century historical text ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'', compiled by Chen Shou. After leaving his native land, Pei ...
'' (''Sanguozhi zhu'').
204 births
273 deaths
Eastern Wu politicians
Eastern Wu historians
Writers from Zhenjiang
Politicians from Zhenjiang
Forced suicides of Chinese people
Suicides in Eastern Wu
Executed Eastern Wu people
Eastern Wu essayists
3rd-century executions
Executed people from Jiangsu
People executed by Eastern Wu
Historians from Jiangsu
3rd-century Chinese historians
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