Who was Sima Qian?
Sima Qian was a Chinese astronomer, historian, scientist, and calendar expert. He is accredited for his work that was referred to as Shiji, translated as ‘'historian records'' (Klein, 2010). The Shiji is regarded as one of the most remarkable accounts of China's history until the end of the second century. Sima Qian's father was known as Sima Tan, who was considered as the grand historian. In his youth, Sima Qian traveled extensively, a factor that motivated him to join the court service. After his father's death, he was appointed to represent him in the position of the grand historian. Qian also played a role in reforming the calendar used by the Chinese people that marked the new beginning of the dynasty of Han (Nienhauser Jr, 2011). Most importantly enough, in 105, Sima Qian started to pursue his father’s unfulfilled ambition of writing the Chinese history of the past.
What Kind Of History Did He Write?
The history written by Sima Qian was known as Shiji. The history highlights major personalities and events that took place 2,000 years before the time of the author. The events in the history were divided into five parts. The ‘'basic Annals'' provide an account of events that chronologically happened at the court. It highlights the paramount power that the court possessed at that particular time. The ‘'succeeding'' part focuses on the history of the feudal kingdoms giving the reader a scope of what was happening in each state. The chapter known as ‘'The Hereditary Houses'' contains detailed information of the states. The history also contains the ‘'Biography'' section that includes information about the famous people and their conduct. The biography section also discusses vital information about the foreign people who were important during the time of Wadi, the emperor (The Fergana Chapter of the Shiji , Chapter 123).
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References
Klein, E. S. (2010). The history of a historian: Perspectives on the authorial roles of Sima Qian . Princeton University.
Nienhauser Jr, W. H. (2011). Sima Qian and the Shiji. The Oxford History of Historical Writing: Volume 1: Beginnings to AD 600 , 463.
The Fergana Chapter of the Shiji (123)
