Draft Annotations on Thirteen Border Records of the Five Dynasties, Song, Jin, and Yuan

Author: Jia Jingyan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-08-01
Features: The entire manuscript is organized into thirteen chapters, with approximately 300,000 words. Among them, one is from the Later Jin of the Five Dynasties, three are from the Yuan Dynasty (Wang Yuan, Zhang Dehui, and Zhou Boqi), and the majority are from the Song Dynasty (Hu Qiao, Lu Zhen, Wang Zeng, Xu Kuangzong, and Wang Ji). Most of the major travel accounts about the northeastern frontier regions before the Ming Dynasty are included here. Jia, with his relatively complete academic system and unique style, meticulously compares and examines each entry, delving into details and appending his own insights. Each chapter follows the original text as the main reference, with original annotations listed next, followed by his own annotations. Annotations are marked as "Yan's Notes" or left unmarked, all starting on a new line in a well-organized sequence, especially convenient for readers. Annotations range from a few words to hundreds or even over a thousand, leaving blank when no notes are needed. He does not force himself to claim knowledge he lacks but ensures that claims are supported by historical evidence to substantiate his arguments. Some notes also hint at deeper meanings, leaving room for future scholars to explore.