Today’s Chinese and Japanese scholars have maintained close dialogues and exchanges in their research on ancient Chinese history.The socioeconomic history of the Jiangnan region during the Ming and Qing dynasties inv...Today’s Chinese and Japanese scholars have maintained close dialogues and exchanges in their research on ancient Chinese history.The socioeconomic history of the Jiangnan region during the Ming and Qing dynasties involves two important research areas:regional history and socioeconomic history.Whereas the former embraces a holistic macro-view,the latter lays stress on the economic and social behavior of humankind.Over past years,endeavors to combine the two areas have produced a number of influential general conclusions on the social development of Jiangnan during the Ming and Qing.Professor Mori Masao,a Japanese scholar,has provided an in-depth interpretation of the theory of regional society,while Professor Zheng Zhenman,a Chinese scholar,has responded in terms of xiangzu theory.Long-term dialogues and exchanges in the international academic world that inspire theoretical innovation in studies of earlier societies can serve as a valuable source for the intellectual community.展开更多
The Qing Dynasty Grand Secretariat Archives are considered to be among the four great ancient texts discovered in modem Chinese history,and the memorials from the Ministry of Justice have garnered particular attention...The Qing Dynasty Grand Secretariat Archives are considered to be among the four great ancient texts discovered in modem Chinese history,and the memorials from the Ministry of Justice have garnered particular attention due to their well-preserved socio-economic contemt(S)).From the 20th century onwards the New History,with its emphasis on drawing upon the social sciences'discussions of citizens,comnnunities and society,came to replace the more traditional"Imperial Genealogy"style of historiography,affording us a grander view of history.Progressing fbrward with"the times,"the New History continued to innovate and diversify the field;in terms of Qing dynasty social historical research,it brought about constant exploration and change within the field,first having shifted from socio-economic history to social history,then moving on to life history,the investigation of the"seeds of capitalism,"class relations,lower-clss society,marriage and family relations,law and justice,gender studies,daily life(Tif T,livelihood and environment"),and so on,continually pushing the boundaries of academic research.Yet,underlying all this change wqs a close relationship between the use of the Ministry of Justice Memorials and the field's overall development.This article not only introduces several findings made by academicians in using the Ministry of Justice Memiorials,but also sets out to further reveal the relationship between the New History and the memorials themselves,probing into the deeper question of broader changes in historiography and their relationship with generational shifts in inrellectual thought.展开更多
Zhao Yingcheng （1619-1657）, known as ＂The Great Advisor＂, is the only Kaifeng Jew who is mentioned both in the synagogal stele of 1663 and in Chinese gazetteers during his lifetime. Zhao, given the Hebrew name of ...Zhao Yingcheng （1619-1657）, known as ＂The Great Advisor＂, is the only Kaifeng Jew who is mentioned both in the synagogal stele of 1663 and in Chinese gazetteers during his lifetime. Zhao, given the Hebrew name of Moshe ben Avram, was fluent in Hebrew but also achieved success as a Confucian scholar familiar with the Chinese classics. He would have witnessed the destruction of his hometown by a catastrophic flood during the 1642 Siege of Kaifeng. In 1645, at the age of 26, he attained the jinshi rank in the Imperial Exams, in which only one in 10,000 can- didates was successful. A year later, he was appointed Minister of Justice for the newly installed Qing Dynasty and supervised the controversial decree forcing the Manchu tonsure onto the Han population as a mark of submission. In 1647, he was sent as an envoy to quell the unrest in Fujian province. After defeating bands of violent warlords funded by the notorious pirate Koxinga, Zhao set up a system of public schools to provide greater economic opportunity for the poor. After the death of his father, Zhao returned to Kaifeng for the three-year mourning period; during that time, he funded the restoration of the synagogue, which had been destroyed in the deluge, and the rectification of the Torah scrolls damaged in that catastrophe. Though the biographical facts are sparse, when these are juxtaposed with the dra- matic events that unfolded during his short lifetime, the potential for a fascinating historical fictionalization emerges. Moreover, many of those historical events in seventeenth-century China--climate change, elite corruption, populist revolt, xenophobia, terrorism, law and order, etc.--resonate with contemporary tropes. The story of ＂The Great Advisor＂ shows how a Jew in seventeenth-century China rose to national prominence at a time when Jews in Europe faced severe discrimination and persecution.展开更多
文摘Today’s Chinese and Japanese scholars have maintained close dialogues and exchanges in their research on ancient Chinese history.The socioeconomic history of the Jiangnan region during the Ming and Qing dynasties involves two important research areas:regional history and socioeconomic history.Whereas the former embraces a holistic macro-view,the latter lays stress on the economic and social behavior of humankind.Over past years,endeavors to combine the two areas have produced a number of influential general conclusions on the social development of Jiangnan during the Ming and Qing.Professor Mori Masao,a Japanese scholar,has provided an in-depth interpretation of the theory of regional society,while Professor Zheng Zhenman,a Chinese scholar,has responded in terms of xiangzu theory.Long-term dialogues and exchanges in the international academic world that inspire theoretical innovation in studies of earlier societies can serve as a valuable source for the intellectual community.
文摘The Qing Dynasty Grand Secretariat Archives are considered to be among the four great ancient texts discovered in modem Chinese history,and the memorials from the Ministry of Justice have garnered particular attention due to their well-preserved socio-economic contemt(S)).From the 20th century onwards the New History,with its emphasis on drawing upon the social sciences'discussions of citizens,comnnunities and society,came to replace the more traditional"Imperial Genealogy"style of historiography,affording us a grander view of history.Progressing fbrward with"the times,"the New History continued to innovate and diversify the field;in terms of Qing dynasty social historical research,it brought about constant exploration and change within the field,first having shifted from socio-economic history to social history,then moving on to life history,the investigation of the"seeds of capitalism,"class relations,lower-clss society,marriage and family relations,law and justice,gender studies,daily life(Tif T,livelihood and environment"),and so on,continually pushing the boundaries of academic research.Yet,underlying all this change wqs a close relationship between the use of the Ministry of Justice Memorials and the field's overall development.This article not only introduces several findings made by academicians in using the Ministry of Justice Memiorials,but also sets out to further reveal the relationship between the New History and the memorials themselves,probing into the deeper question of broader changes in historiography and their relationship with generational shifts in inrellectual thought.
文摘Zhao Yingcheng （1619-1657）, known as ＂The Great Advisor＂, is the only Kaifeng Jew who is mentioned both in the synagogal stele of 1663 and in Chinese gazetteers during his lifetime. Zhao, given the Hebrew name of Moshe ben Avram, was fluent in Hebrew but also achieved success as a Confucian scholar familiar with the Chinese classics. He would have witnessed the destruction of his hometown by a catastrophic flood during the 1642 Siege of Kaifeng. In 1645, at the age of 26, he attained the jinshi rank in the Imperial Exams, in which only one in 10,000 can- didates was successful. A year later, he was appointed Minister of Justice for the newly installed Qing Dynasty and supervised the controversial decree forcing the Manchu tonsure onto the Han population as a mark of submission. In 1647, he was sent as an envoy to quell the unrest in Fujian province. After defeating bands of violent warlords funded by the notorious pirate Koxinga, Zhao set up a system of public schools to provide greater economic opportunity for the poor. After the death of his father, Zhao returned to Kaifeng for the three-year mourning period; during that time, he funded the restoration of the synagogue, which had been destroyed in the deluge, and the rectification of the Torah scrolls damaged in that catastrophe. Though the biographical facts are sparse, when these are juxtaposed with the dra- matic events that unfolded during his short lifetime, the potential for a fascinating historical fictionalization emerges. Moreover, many of those historical events in seventeenth-century China--climate change, elite corruption, populist revolt, xenophobia, terrorism, law and order, etc.--resonate with contemporary tropes. The story of ＂The Great Advisor＂ shows how a Jew in seventeenth-century China rose to national prominence at a time when Jews in Europe faced severe discrimination and persecution.
