Ding Wenjiang
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Ding Wenjiang ( Chinese: 丁文江; March 20, 1887 – January 5, 1936), courtesy name Zaijun, was a Chinese essayist, geologist, and writer active especially in the
Republic of China (1912–49) Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeas ...
. In his own time, his name was transcribed as either V.K. Ting, or Ting Wen-chiang.


Biography


Early life

Ding was born into a wealthy family in
Taixing Taixing () is a county-level city under the administration of Taizhou, Jiangsu province, China. It is located in the Yangtze River Delta, bordering the prefecture-level cities of Nantong to the east, Changzhou to the southwest, and Zhenjiang to th ...
,
Jiangsu Province Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its ca ...
. He went to study in Japan in 1902, and later studied in Britain, majoring in zoology and geology. In 1911, Ding graduated from the
University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...
. After returning to China, he taught at Nanyang Public School (now
Shanghai Jiao Tong University Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU; ) is a public research university in Shanghai, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university was established on April 8, 1896 as Nanyang Public School (南洋 ...
) in
Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
. In 1913, Ding became the geological section chief in the Mining Administrative Bureau of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, and went to
Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
and
Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...
, conducting geological and mineral exploitation.


National Geological Survey

Together with Wong Wen-hao (
Weng Wenhao Weng Wenhao (; 26 July 1889 – 27 January 1971) was a Chinese geologist and politician. He was one of the earliest modern Chinese geologists, and is regarded as the founder of modern Chinese geology and the father of modern Chinese oil industry ...
in pinyin), Ding was also the founder of China's new National Geological Survey, where he collaborated closely with foreign scholars such as
Johan Gunnar Andersson Johan Gunnar Andersson (3 July 1874 – 29 October 1960)"Andersson, Johan Gunnar" in ''Encyclopædia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 385. was a Sweden, Swedish arc ...
in training the first generation of Chinese geologists (Fiskesjö and Chen 2004; Fiskesjö 2011, Shen 2014). In 1921, Ding became the general manager of the Beipiao Mining Company, and founded the Chinese Geological Society. He served as vice president of the society, and was the editor-in-chief of "Chinese Palaeobiology". In 1923, Ding published a paper, "Mythology and Science", arguing with
Zhang Junmai Carsun Chang (Shanghainese for (; 1886–1969), also known as Chang Chun-mai (), was a prominent Chinese philosopher, public intellectual and political figure. Carsun Chang was a social democratic politician. Biography A pioneering theorist of ...
over science and philosophy, fighting against the view that "science is irrelevant to human philosophy" (on the major debates of which this was a part, see Furth 1970).


Director

In 1925, Ding was appointed as the director of Shanghai Commercial Bureau. He represented Jiangsu provincial government to negotiate with foreign delegates to Shanghai. They signed "The Temporary Regulation on Reclamation of Juridical Rights in Shanghai by China" on August 1, 1926. In 1931, Ding became a professor of geology at
Peking University Peking University (PKU; ) is a public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education. Peking University was established as the Imperial University of Peking in 1898 when it received its royal charter ...
. Together with
Weng Wenhao Weng Wenhao (; 26 July 1889 – 27 January 1971) was a Chinese geologist and politician. He was one of the earliest modern Chinese geologists, and is regarded as the founder of modern Chinese geology and the father of modern Chinese oil industry ...
and Zeng Shiying, he edited and published "New Geographic Map of the Republic of China", and "Provincial Maps of China". In June, 1934, Ding served as the chief staff of
Academia Sinica Academia Sinica (AS, la, 1=Academia Sinica, 3=Chinese Academy; ), headquartered in Nangang, Taipei, is the national academy of Taiwan. Founded in Nanking, the academy supports research activities in a wide variety of disciplines, ranging from ...
. When he was exploring a coal mine in
Hunan Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to ...
in 1936, he was poisoned by coal gas.
Fu Sinian Fu Ssu-nien (; 26 March 1896 – 20 December 1950), was a Chinese historian, linguist, and writer. He was one of the leaders of the May Fourth Movement in 1919. He was also one of the creators of the Academia Sinica, and was named director of th ...
came from Beijing to take care of him. On January 5, Ding died in Xiangya Hospital in
Changsha Changsha (; ; ; Changshanese pronunciation: (), Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is the capital and the largest city of Hunan Province of China. Changsha is the 17th most populous city in China with a population of over 10 million, an ...
. Following his will, he was buried on
Yuelu Mountain Yuelu Mountain () is located on the west bank of the Xiang River, one tributary of Wu River in Changsha, Hunan. Its main peak and the highest point, Yunlu Peak, is about above the sea level. Introduction of Yuelu Mountain There are more than ...
.


Author

Ding authored ''The Textbook of Zoology''. His geological exploitation materials were compiled into ''Mr. Ding Wenjiang's Geological Investigation Report'', and published in 1947. Ding was also the first Chinese scholar to systematically study the written words of Yi ethnicity (see Fiskesjö 2011).
Hu Shih Hu Shih (; 17 December 1891 – 24 February 1962), also known as Hu Suh in early references, was a Chinese diplomat, essayist, literary scholar, philosopher, and politician. Hu is widely recognized today as a key contributor to Chinese libera ...
wrote ''Biography of Ding Wenjiang'', and commented that he is "a most Europeanized Chinese, and a most scientifically styled Chinese." (Hu Shih: ''Ding Wenjiang''). At the time of his death, he was working on a comprehensive book on the archaeology of ancient China.


References

* Furth, Charlotte. ''Ting Wen-chiang: Science and China's New Culture''. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1970. (This comprehensive biography focuses on Ding's scientific and political career, but almost entirely omits Ding's role in the creation of modern Chinese archaeology. A Chinese version was published in 1987: ''Ding Wenjiang—kexue yu zhongguo xin wenhua'' 丁文江—科学与中国新文化, translated by Ding’s niece, Ding Zilin, Jiang Yijian, and Yang Zhao. Changsha: Hunan Kexue jishu chubanshe, 1987) * Fiskesjö, Magnus and Chen Xingcan. ''China Before China: Johan Gunnar Andersson, Ding Wenjiang, and the Discovery of China’s Prehistory'' / 中国之前的中国:安特生,丁文江,和中国史前史的发现. Bilingual edition, in English and Chinese. A companion volume for the new exhibit at the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities. Numerous archival illustrations. Stockholm: MFEA monographs no. 15, 2004. . (This monograph describes the dramatic beginnings of Neolithic archaeology in China in the 1920s, through the collaboration of Swedish scholar
Johan Gunnar Andersson Johan Gunnar Andersson (3 July 1874 – 29 October 1960)"Andersson, Johan Gunnar" in ''Encyclopædia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 385. was a Sweden, Swedish arc ...
who worked at China's National Geological Survey from 1914 to 1925, with its founder-director, Ding Wenjiang. ) * Fiskesjö, Magnus. "Science across borders: Johan Gunnar Andersson and Ding Wenjiang." In: Stevan Harrell, Charles McKhann, Margaret Swain and Denise M. Glover, eds., ''Explorers and Scientists in China's Borderlands, 1880-1950''. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2011, pp. 240–66. . (In-depth discussion of Ding Wenjiang's life and career, as it intersected with the birth of modern archaeology in China.) * Shen, Grace Yen. ''Unearthing the Nation: Modern Geology and Nationalism in Republican China''. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2014. (A general history of the development of modern geology in China) * Hu Shih etc.″The Guy Ding Wenjiang.″/ Chinese:丁文江这个人 / Zhonghua Book Company, Beijing, 2014.8, Note: The above sources (esp. Furth 1970; Fiskesjö & Chen 2004) should be consulted for the correct titles of the Chinese-language works by Hu Shih and other writers, most of which are mistranslated and quoted incorrectly in English, in the entry text above—thus potentially misleading the readers of this entry. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ding Wenjiang 1887 births 1936 deaths 20th-century essayists 20th-century Chinese geologists Educators from Taizhou, Jiangsu Peking University faculty Republic of China essayists Republic of China science writers Scientists from Taizhou, Jiangsu Writers from Taizhou, Jiangsu