Anting Zhi

Author: Chen Shude
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2003-07-01
Features: Anting has a long history, having formed land as early as 6,000 years ago. By the Han Dynasty, it was known as "Anting." This book is a comprehensive local chronicle, documenting the historical evolution, development, and social customs of Anting. It is rich in sources, meticulously researched, and holds significant historical value, serving as an important document for studying the cultural and historical aspects of Shanghai. The book comprises twenty volumes, divided into seventeen sections such as historical evolution, origins, lanes, etc. It was edited and annotated by the renowned historian Zhu Ruixi, using the earliest Jiaqing edition as the base text, with revisions based on the Republican-era reprints and other relevant documents, correcting many errors and enhancing its completeness.
Preface to the Chronicle of Anting
Song Le Shi wrote "Taiping Huanyu Ji" (Comprehensive Geography of the Great Peace), classifying cities and towns based on the presence or absence of notable figures. It is said that even in a small village of ten households, there must be loyal and trustworthy people, and places are made famous by their inhabitants, giving them enduring names. Anting was the place where the Ming Dynasty's Gu Tai Bo studied and taught, situated at the intersection of Kunshan and Jiading counties. It is rich in paper production and boasts outstanding culture, though geographically remote, it attracts scholars. In recent years, efforts have been made to compile the county annals. I believe that official institutions are capable of covering all details comprehensively, so the elderly in the county, well-versed in local customs, compiled records of their respective regions. By combining these, a complete book was formed without difficulty.
Words heard often contain, while observations often include plain language. may not preserve truth, and plain language may not endure long. Only by combining the two can we create something credible for both the present and the future. This is the responsibility of those who are rooted in this land, and only those who have long resided here can outline its history from beginning to end, ensuring a complete book without regrets. This also depends on those who read this book afterward, who must possess broad and erudite talents to revise and enhance it, so that it lives up to the original intent of its creation.
This is the preface.
Written in the fifth month of the Jiaqing thirteenth year (), summer, by Wu Huan, a Wenlin official and the magistrate of Jiading County.