A Study of the Era Names of Chinese Dynasties (Revised Edition)

Author: Li Chongzhi
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2001-01-01
Features: This book was first published in 1981, and the second printing in 1985 included over twenty supplementary corrections. Due to the limitations of the time, the first edition was typeset in simplified characters. For this revision, following the principle of "let the master speak," the era names were recorded as they appeared in historical records and artifacts. For some era names in unearthed documents belonging to ethnic minorities, the generally accepted Chinese translations recognized by scholars were adopted. To maintain uniformity in the book's typography, annotations and other explanatory texts were also changed to traditional characters. The revised edition adds ten era names: Chengyang, Taiyuan, and Jianping of Northern Liang; Jianchu, Chengping, and Yixi of Gaochang; and Tianzun, Zhongxing, Tianxing, and Tianshou of Yuquan. Additionally, some annotations were newly added or rewritten, primarily to incorporate new research findings by historians and to supplement or replace certain annotation materials. Three entries with coin evidence but unknown era names were removed. Errors in the first edition were corrected, and the original supplementary corrections and some appendices were integrated into the main text. Explanations of dynastic titles were also added or deleted. In total, over one hundred and sixty revisions and additions were made.