Ethnicity and the History of Ancient China

Author: Fu Si-nien
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-08-01
Features: As the 20th century was approaching its end, Chinese historiography underwent a century of transformation and innovation. It was a prosperous and productive period, marked by remarkable achievements and the emergence of prominent scholars, making it worthy of study and summary. The series "Major Works of Chinese Historiography in the 20th Century" published by this press aims to systematically showcase the accomplishments of this century's historiography by presenting the works of representative historians to the readers.
The book Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China, a monograph on ancient Chinese history by Fu Si-nien, was left unfinished during his lifetime. According to his own account, by the summer of the 20th year of the Republic of China (1931), "two-thirds of it had been completed." In the preface to The East and West of the Yi and Xia, he wrote: "This essay is a chapter from the book Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China I wrote before the 'September 18th Incident.' The draft of this book was largely written two to six months before the 'September 18th Incident.' These chapters were written in the spring of the 20th year (1931) due to the impact of the political situation, and the research institute moved twice, preventing me from following the original plan. As a result, the book was never fully compiled." In the preface to The Eastern Enfeoffment of Zhou and the Survivors of Yin, he again referred to the book's title as Ancient China and Ethnic Groups. He stated: "This is a chapter from the book Ancient China and Ethnic Groups I wrote. The book began five years ago, and nearly two-thirds of it was completed. When the Japanese invaded Liaodong, my mind was in turmoil, and I paused work for several months. Later, due to numerous personal and official matters, followed by a serious illness, I was unable to finalize it. How could it have been completed! This chapter was likely written in the winter of the 19th year (1930) or the spring of the 20th year, along with several other chapters, which were submitted to Hu Shi in December of the 20th year for review. Mr. Hu Shi kindly praised it."
It appears that Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China and Ancient China and Ethnic Groups are different titles for the same book, not two separate works. It is normal to consider a book's title before it is finalized. The preface to The Eastern Enfeoffment of Zhou and the Survivors of Yin was written in "June of the 23rd year (1934)," and the preface to The East and West of the Yi and Xia was written in "October of the 23rd year." This means Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China was used later. Fu Si-nien may have preferred this title for the book.
The phrase "This theory on the origins of the Shang dynasty should be in northern Hebei and the area where the Jishui River flows into the sea, as seen in my book Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China, to be published after two months" in The Outline of Northeast History further confirms that Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China was the title of his book on ancient Chinese history. Therefore, I used it as the title of this book (Note: This preface was written by the author for the publication of Fu Si-nien's Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China in the series "Major Works of Chinese Historiography in the 20th Century" by Hebei Education Press).
Between 1931 and 1932, while studying at the Department of History at Peking University, I attended Fu Si-nien's lectures. In class, he often mentioned his plan to write a book titled From Tribe to Empire (From Tribe to Empire). The opening section of The East and West of the Yi and Xia already mentions: "During the Three Dynasties and before them, the political evolution from tribe to empire was centered on the regions of the Yellow, Ji, and Huai Rivers." In the "Conclusion" section of The East and West of the Yi and Xia, he further states: "We can synthesize the results discussed in the previous chapters to examine the final outcome of the east-west confrontation in the process of ancient China evolving from tribe to kingdom (later to empire)."
I believe From Tribe to Empire more accurately reflects the content of the book, so I added it as a subtitle under the title Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China to serve as the full title of the work. It is certain that The East and West of the Yi and Xia and The Eastern Enfeoffment of Zhou and the Survivors of Yin are part of Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China—From Tribe to Empire, as Fu Si-nien himself stated that The East and West of the Yi and Xia was "three chapters from the book Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China he wrote," and The Eastern Enfeoffment of Zhou and the Survivors of Yin was "a chapter from the book Ancient China and Ethnic Groups he wrote."
Additionally, Jiang Yuan (The Origin of Jiang Yuan), The Great East and Small East Theory (The Great East and Small East Theory), and On the So-Called Five-Rank Nobility (On the So-Called Five-Rank Nobility) are likely also part of Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China—From Tribe to Empire. The three essays discuss issues related to ancient Chinese history and were published in the second issue of the Journal of the Institute of History and Economics of the National Central Research Academy in May 1930. Fu Si-nien noted in the preface to On the So-Called Five-Rank Nobility that it was "written in Peking in January of the 19th year of the Republic of China (1930)." The other two essays did not specify the date of writing, but they were definitely completed before May 1930, aligning with Fu Si-nien's statement that the draft of Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China was "largely written two to six months before the 'September 18th Incident.'"
The "other chapters" Fu Si-nien mentioned in his article, such as those referred to in The East and West of the Yi and Xia, likely include Jiang Yuan, The Great East and Small East Theory, and On the So-Called Five-Rank Nobility. He frequently mentioned seeing certain chapters in his writings, such as in The East and West of the Yi and Xia, where he wrote: "There is also a figure called Bo Yi, a descendant of the Jiang clan, who should be considered a tribal name alongside Shu Qi, as seen in the Jiang Clan Chapter. Similarly, the distribution of the eight surnames of Zhu Rong in the East is also called Yi, and there is a separate Zhu Rong's Eight Surnames Chapter, which is not included in this text." These "" (specific chapters) may have been unfinished, but they undoubtedly belonged to Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China.
The Confucian Doctrine of Life and Death (The Confucian Doctrine of Life and Death), as cited in this article, is his specialized work but not a historical one. The Outline of Northeast History was co-authored with others, although he personally wrote most of it and the main arguments reflect his views, it cannot be considered his representative historical work. The only work that truly represents his historical contributions is this unfinished Ethnic Groups and the History of Ancient China.
However, even based on these five published chapters, each is profound, innovative, and groundbreaking, truly exceptional works. The completed chapters of this unfinished book alone are sufficient to secure Fu Si-nien a place among the masters of 20th-century Chinese historiography and earn him the honor of being recognized as a master.