Chen Yuan Volume

Author: Liu Mengxi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1996-08-01
Features: The great historian Chen Yuan is often referred to alongside Chen Yinque as the "Two Chen of Historiography." Chen Yuan dedicated much of his research to the history of religion, historical documentology, and the Yuan Dynasty, achieving remarkable accomplishments with a wealth of works. He pioneered the study of historical sources, historical euphemisms, and textual criticism. This volume selects from his over twenty life-long works, including A Study of the Christian Sects in the Yuan Dynasty (), A Study of the Influence of Chinese Culture on Foreign Cultures in the Yuan Dynasty (), the foundational work on historical euphemisms Examples of Historical Euphemisms (), the foundational work on textual criticism Exemplary Textual Criticism (), the renowned work Revelations on the Collected Edition of the Old Five Dynasties History (), and the later representative work Manifestations of the Hu Annotations in the Zizhi Tongjian ().
Chen Yuan (1880–1971), styled Yuan'an, was a native of Xinhui, Guangdong, and a modern historian of religion. In his early years, he participated in anti-Qing movements in Guangzhou. In 1907, he was admitted to the Boji Medical College run by American missionaries. In 1913, he was elected as a member of the National Assembly and settled in Beijing, engaging in historical research and education. From 1926 to 1952, he served as president of Fu Ren University and Beijing Normal University. Throughout his life, he wrote nearly two hundred works on historiography, becoming one of the pioneers in the study of Chinese religious history and conducting in-depth research on various religions. His major works on religious history include A Record of Doubts about the Buddhist Era (), A Study of Buddhism in Yunnan and Guizhou during the Late Ming Dynasty (), An Introduction to Buddhist Historical Texts in China (), A Study of the Christian Sects in the Yuan Dynasty (), and A Study of the New Road of Buddhism in Northern Hebei in the Early Southern Song Dynasty (), among others.