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Gong was a
By the time of the Zhou dynasty, Zhou dynasties of China, dynasty, the title gong was used alongside other familial titles for important members of the royal family, royal Ji (Zhou dynasty ancestral surname), Ji family outside the immediate line of succession. The regents of the Cheng King of Zhou, Cheng Kinghis uncles Dan and Shi and the important vassal Lü Shangwere known to history as Zhou Gong, Shao Gong, and Jiang Ziya. His uncles Guanshu Xian, Xian, Caishu Du, Du, and Huoshu Chu, Chu who acted as the "Three Guards" of the eastern territories before Rebellion of the Three Guards, their rebellion against the regency were likewise known by the somewhat lower rank of ''shū'' (), now used for younger paternal uncles or male friends of the family.
Subsequently, the Three Excellencies, the highest Zhou government ministers, bore the title gong, as did the highest ranking rulers of the kingdom's fief (Chinese), fiefs even whenlike the Yīn (surname), Shang rulers of Song (state), Songthey came from outside the royal family. The Xiang Duke of Song, Xiang Duke of Song (r. 650–637 BC) even became one of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn period, before such lords began to use the title of wang (title), king. During the rites of Chinese ancestral veneration, ancestral veneration, any ancestor of great antiquity could be accorded the title gong regardless of their proper title in life; this was sometimes a formal upgrade, as when Jiang Ziya's fief of Qi (state), Qi became a duchy and he was posthumously promoted to the title of gong himself. The name was also used by courtiers and others to address ruling nobles of any formal rank within their own states.
Under the Han dynasty, Han and subsequent dynasties, wang (title), wangpreviously the king (title), royal title of the list of Xia emperors, Xia, list of Shang emperors, Shang, and list of Zhou emperors, Zhou sovereignscame to be used for senior princes and vassal kingdom, vassal rulers who controlled the more important primary divisions of the empire. At this time, gong came into use for nominal or actual lords of its more important secondary divisions.
With the rise of notional titles, some of the dukedoms acquired literary rather than territorial designations. The primary example is how, under the Northern Song dynasty, Northern Song, the emperor Emperor Renzong of Song, Renzong made the title Duke Yansheng"Overflowing with Wisdom"hereditary title, hereditary within Family tree of Confucius in the main line of descent, the line of direct descent from Confucius. This was converted to a Cabinet of the Republic of China, cabinet-level political office of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China in 1935 and an uncompensated honorary title on
Gong was a title
A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify their generation, official position, military rank, professional or academic qualification, or nobility. In some languages, titles may be ins ...
of ancient
Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient h ...
and imperial Chinese nobility
The nobility of China represented the upper strata of aristocracy in premodern China, acting as the ruling class until , and remaining a significant feature of the traditional social structure until the end of the imperial period.
The concepts ...
roughly equivalent to and usually translated as duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...
. It was also historically used within Chinese fiefs as a respectful term of address to any living liege (similar to the English "lord
Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...
") and is still used in modern Chinese as a respectful term of address for any man of high status (similar to " sir"), particularly for the honored deceased as with formal reference to Chiang Kai-shek as ''Jiǎng Gōng'' () in Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
.
Name
Within theChinese language
Chinese ( or ) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and List of ethnic groups in China, many minority ethnic groups in China, as well as by various communities of the Chinese diaspora. Approximately 1.39& ...
, the same character (''gōng'') is used as a noun
In grammar, a noun is a word that represents a concrete or abstract thing, like living creatures, places, actions, qualities, states of existence, and ideas. A noun may serve as an Object (grammar), object or Subject (grammar), subject within a p ...
in the terms for respected male relatives (e.g. ''lǎogōng'', "husband
A husband is a man involved in a marital relationship, commonly referred to as a spouse. The specific rights, responsibilities, and societal status attributed to a husband can vary significantly across different cultures and historical perio ...
", and ''wàigōng'', " maternal grandfather") and as an adjective
An adjective (abbreviations, abbreviated ) is a word that describes or defines a noun or noun phrase. Its semantic role is to change information given by the noun.
Traditionally, adjectives are considered one of the main part of speech, parts of ...
in the terms for various male animals (e.g. ''gōngniú'', "bull", and ''gōngyáng'', "ram (sheep), ram" or "billy goat"). Paul R. Goldin has argued for its etymology, etymological relationship with (''wēng''), with their shared original term having meant "respected elder".
The typical English language, English translation within aristocracy, aristocratic ancient and imperial Chinese contexts is "duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...
", although Herrlee G. Creel, Creel has proposed translating it under the Western Zhou as "lord
Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...
" and as "duke" only beginning with the Eastern Zhou.
History
By the time of the Zhou dynasty, Zhou dynasties of China, dynasty, the title gong was used alongside other familial titles for important members of the royal family, royal Ji (Zhou dynasty ancestral surname), Ji family outside the immediate line of succession. The regents of the Cheng King of Zhou, Cheng Kinghis uncles Dan and Shi and the important vassal Lü Shangwere known to history as Zhou Gong, Shao Gong, and Jiang Ziya. His uncles Guanshu Xian, Xian, Caishu Du, Du, and Huoshu Chu, Chu who acted as the "Three Guards" of the eastern territories before Rebellion of the Three Guards, their rebellion against the regency were likewise known by the somewhat lower rank of ''shū'' (), now used for younger paternal uncles or male friends of the family.
Subsequently, the Three Excellencies, the highest Zhou government ministers, bore the title gong, as did the highest ranking rulers of the kingdom's fief (Chinese), fiefs even whenlike the Yīn (surname), Shang rulers of Song (state), Songthey came from outside the royal family. The Xiang Duke of Song, Xiang Duke of Song (r. 650–637 BC) even became one of the Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn period, before such lords began to use the title of wang (title), king. During the rites of Chinese ancestral veneration, ancestral veneration, any ancestor of great antiquity could be accorded the title gong regardless of their proper title in life; this was sometimes a formal upgrade, as when Jiang Ziya's fief of Qi (state), Qi became a duchy and he was posthumously promoted to the title of gong himself. The name was also used by courtiers and others to address ruling nobles of any formal rank within their own states.
Under the Han dynasty, Han and subsequent dynasties, wang (title), wangpreviously the king (title), royal title of the list of Xia emperors, Xia, list of Shang emperors, Shang, and list of Zhou emperors, Zhou sovereignscame to be used for senior princes and vassal kingdom, vassal rulers who controlled the more important primary divisions of the empire. At this time, gong came into use for nominal or actual lords of its more important secondary divisions.
With the rise of notional titles, some of the dukedoms acquired literary rather than territorial designations. The primary example is how, under the Northern Song dynasty, Northern Song, the emperor Emperor Renzong of Song, Renzong made the title Duke Yansheng"Overflowing with Wisdom"hereditary title, hereditary within Family tree of Confucius in the main line of descent, the line of direct descent from Confucius. This was converted to a Cabinet of the Republic of China, cabinet-level political office of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China in 1935 and an uncompensated honorary title on Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
in 2008.
References
Citations
Sources
* . * . * . * . * . {{DEFAULTSORT:Gong (Title) Chinese honorifics Chinese dukes Chinese royal titles Family in China