Social Survey Series of the Republic of China Era (Marriage and Family Volume)

Author: Li Wenhai, Editor-in-Chief, Xia Mingfang, Deputy Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-03-01
Features: In the long history of thousands of years of China, the first half of the 20th century, marked by the Republic of China, although just a fleeting moment, was undoubtedly one of the most turbulent and dramatic scenes in terms of social life. During this period, new systems coexisted with old traditions, construction walked alongside destruction, revolution clashed with reaction, internal troubles and external crises pressed in from all sides. Every aspect of Chinese society, whether political systems, economic foundations, science and technology, or ideology and cultural customs, was undergoing profound changes and transformations, ultimately laying a solid foundation for the victory of the New Democratic Revolution. With the passage of time, especially with the arrival of the 21st century, "the Republic of China" gradually broke free from the framework of the history of the Chinese revolution that had long covered it. In a sense, the Republic of China has been recognized and accepted as an important historical period, parallel to the 26 dynasties in the history of China before it. In academic circles both at home and abroad, especially in China, an increasing number of scholars have begun to study various aspects of this period from the perspective of a specific historical era. It is also worth noting that as academic research deepens, in order to meet the needs of contemporary Chinese society, the study of the Republican era has gradually shifted from the dramatic historical figures, thrilling political events, and entertaining anecdotes of the past to, or more accurately, into the realms of economic life and social life. In Marx's words, this means "moving from the superficial appearance of political forms to the depths of social life," thereby making the study of the Republican era more closely linked to contemporary society, which is centered on economic development. As a result, the history of the Republic of China has not only presented its original complete form independently to the people of contemporary China, becoming a new hot spot and growth point in the study of Chinese history and even the entire academic field, but it has also inevitably played an increasingly significant historical reference role in the economic construction and social development of contemporary China, thereby attracting broader attention from all sectors of society. However, it is regrettable that to date, despite the extensive collection of Republican-era historical materials, including archives, local chronicles, newspapers and magazines, official documents, private writings, and memoirs from the People's Republic period, these materials are all extremely valuable, yet few people have noticed another unique treasure trove of Republican-era materials—massive social surveys conducted by major political forces and factions at home and abroad, local governments, academic organizations, schools, and individual scholars, especially rural social surveys. Compared to other materials that have already been compiled, these surveys possess unique and irreplaceable academic and collection value. This is not only because the surveys cover a vast range of topics, including natural environments and social life in urban, rural, and other areas across most provinces in China, but more importantly, these surveys were mostly completed using modern scientific methods such as modern economics, anthropology, sociology, and other methods and means, and were all presented in the form of survey reports or academic papers as final outcomes. This approach preserved a large amount of survey data and original materials while also consolidating the analyses, insights, and solutions proposed by relatively advanced Chinese intellectuals of the time to address various natural, social, political, and economic issues, making them highly valuable for practical reference. These surveys are extremely precious first-hand original materials for in-depth research and understanding of urban and rural social issues in old China, as well as an invaluable repository of ideas for contemporary socioeconomic construction. In fact, Republican-era survey materials have already moved beyond the confines of the historical field and have attracted the attention of scholars in other disciplines. Thanks to the foresight and strong support of Fujian Education Press, we have finally been able to take on this historical responsibility together. However, given the diverse and vast number of social surveys from this period, as well as their scattered storage—with some even lost overseas—if we were to pursue completeness, it would be impossible and would also fail to meet the urgent needs of the current academic community. Therefore, we have decided to adopt the format of an "edited series" and publish the materials in stages, step by step. The selected materials in this series total 193, which are broadly divided into 10 volumes based on their survey content, including marriage and family, social security, social organizations, religion and folklore, marginalized society, urban labor life, rural society, population, cultural and educational undertakings, and ethnic minorities. Among them are books published at the time, as well as papers scattered in various newspapers and magazines, and some manuscripts and mimeographed copies that have not yet been publicly published. Works such as the "Ding County Social Survey," which were republished after the liberation and became widely popular, are temporarily excluded from this collection.