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Sima (office)
Sima is an official post from ancient China that first appears in texts dating from the Western Zhou dynasty and continued to be used during the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period. Translated literally, it means "administrator of the horses." Since the power and responsibilities associated with the office changed somewhat throughout Chinese history, a variety of English translations for the term have been suggested. The textually closest equivalent is Master of the Horse. Other English terms such as 'marshal' and 'Major (rank), major' have also been suggested, and may be appropriate in different contexts: for example 'marshal' may be appropriate in the Western Han dynasty, when "Grand Sima" was a title granted to high generals, while 'major' may be appropriate as the translation for the lower military position also called "Sima" from the Cao Wei, Wei dynasty to the Song dynasty. During the Eastern Han dynasty the term 'Grand Marshal' ( zh, t=大司馬, p=dàsīmǎ, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ancient China
The history of China spans several millennia across a wide geographical area. Each region now considered part of the Chinese world has experienced periods of unity, fracture, prosperity, and strife. Chinese civilization first emerged in the Yellow River valley, which along with the Yangtze River, Yangtze basin constitutes the geographic core of the Sinosphere, Chinese cultural sphere. China maintains a rich diversity of ethnic and linguistic people groups. The Chinese historiography, traditional lens for viewing Chinese history is the Dynasties of China, dynastic cycle: imperial dynasties rise and fall, and are ascribed certain achievements. This lens also tends to assume Chinese civilization can be traced as an unbroken thread Five thousand years of Chinese civilization, many thousands of years into the past, making it one of the Cradle of civilization, cradles of civilization. At various times, states representative of a dominant Chinese culture have directly controlled areas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minister Of War
A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Military, military forces, found in Sovereign state, states where the government is divided into Ministry (government department), ministries or departments. Such a department usually includes all Military branch, branches of the military, and is usually controlled by a defence minister or secretary of defense. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in some the minister (government), minister is only in charge of general budget matters and procurement of equipment, while in others they are also an integral part of the operational military chain of command. Historically, such departments were referred to as a ministry of war or department of war, although they generally had authority only over the army of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese-language Titles
Chinese ( or ) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and many minority ethnic groups in China, as well as by various communities of the Chinese diaspora. Approximately 1.39 billion people, or 17% of the global population, speak a variety of Chinese as their first language. Chinese languages form the Sinitic branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family. The spoken varieties of Chinese are usually considered by native speakers to be dialects of a single language. However, their lack of mutual intelligibility means they are sometimes considered to be separate languages in a family. Investigation of the historical relationships among the varieties of Chinese is ongoing. Currently, most classifications posit 7 to 13 main regional groups based on phonetic developments from Middle Chinese, of which the most spoken by far is Mandarin with 66%, or around 800 million speakers, followed by Min (75 million, e.g. Southern Min), Wu (74 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Translation Of Han Dynasty Titles
The translation of Han dynasty government titles into English varies within the academic community. This page is a reference to compare renderings of Chinese official titles by different sinologists. History The first specialist reference for the English renderings of Chinese official titles was written in 1878 by a British legate to the Chinese government in Beijing, William Frederick Mayers. The most common terms used today in translation of official titles date back to Homer H. Dubs's translation of the ''Book of Han'' and ''Book of the Later Han'' from 1938 to 1955. Dubs's translation lacked a published glossary of titles, but a list of titles used by Dubs was compiled by Rafe de Crespigny and published in 1967. In the interim, Wang Yuquan (王毓銓) published ''An Outline of the Central Government of the Former Han Dynasty'' in 1949. The next major systematising work on Han dynasty government was ''The Bureaucracy of Han Times'' written by Hans Bielenstein in 1980, dra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sima (Chinese Surname)
Sima (, ) is a Chinese family name. It is one of the rare Chinese compound surname, two-character Chinese family names; most Chinese family names consist of only a single Chinese character, character. It is an occupational surname, literally meaning "control" (sī) "horses" (mǎ), or "horse officer". The family name originated from Sima (office), one of the offices of the Zhou dynasty. History The Sima clan were said to be the descendants of the mythological figures Zhuanxu, Gaoyang and Zhu Rong (god), Chongli (Gaoyang's son). They served as ''xiaguan'' (夏官; "officers of summer") in the reigns of the mythical emperors Emperor Yao, Yao and Emperor Shun, Shun and through the Xia dynasty, Xia and Shang dynasty, Shang dynasties. During the Zhou dynasty, officials holding the appointment of ''xiaguan'' oversaw military affairs and were collectively known as "''xiaguan sima''". Cheng-bo Xiufu (程伯休甫), a descendant of Chongli (Zhurong), helped King Xuan of Zhou, King Xuan of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chancellor (China)
The grand chancellor (, among other titles), also translated as counselor-in-chief, chancellor, chief councillor, chief minister, imperial chancellor, lieutenant chancellor and prime minister, was the highest-ranking executive official in the imperial Chinese government. The term was known by many different names throughout Chinese history, and the exact extent of the powers associated with the position fluctuated greatly, even during a particular dynasty. Professor Zhu Zongbin of Peking University outlined the role of "grand chancellor" as one with the power to oversee all jurisdictional matters, the right to decide and to draft edicts with other ministers, and the position of chief advisor to the emperor. This extended even to the ability to criticize the emperor's edicts and decisions. Thus, the grand chancellor served as the emperor's chief of staff and main political advisor, often exercising power second only to the emperor. In practice, the grand chancellor was often a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cao Cao
Cao Cao (; ; ; 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde, was a Chinese statesman, warlord, and poet who rose to power during the end of the Han dynasty (), ultimately taking effective control of the Han central government. He laid the foundation for the state of Cao Wei (220–265), established by his son and successor Cao Pi, who ended the Eastern Han dynasty and inaugurated the Three Kingdoms period (220–280). Beginning in his own lifetime, a corpus of legends developed around Cao Cao which built upon his talent, his cruelty, and his perceived eccentricities. Cao Cao began his career as an official under the Han government and held various appointments including that of a district security chief in the capital and the chancellor of a Jun (country subdivision), principality. He rose to prominence in the 190s during which he recruited his own followers, formed his own army, and set up a base in Yan Province (covering parts of present-day Henan and Shandong). In 196, he received E ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Western Han
The Han dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) and a warring interregnum known as the Chu–Han Contention (206–202 BC), and it was succeeded by the Three Kingdoms period (220–280 AD). The dynasty was briefly interrupted by the Xin dynasty (9–23 AD) established by the usurping regent Wang Mang, and is thus separated into two periods—the Western Han (202 BC9 AD) and the Eastern Han (25–220 AD). Spanning over four centuries, the Han dynasty is considered a golden age in Chinese history, and had a permanent impact on Chinese identity in later periods. The majority ethnic group of modern China refer to themselves as the " Han people" or "Han Chinese". The spoken Chinese and written Chinese are referred to respectively as the "Han language" and " Han characters". ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Three Ducal Ministers
The Three Ducal Ministers (), also translated as the Three Dukes, Three Excellencies, or the Three Lords, was the collective name for the three highest officials in Ancient China and Imperial China. These posts were abolished by Cao Cao in 208 AD and replaced with the position of Grand Chancellor. When Cao Cao's son Cao Pi became King of Wei after his father's death, he reinstated the three positions. Hua Xin was made Chancellor, Jia Xu was made Grand Commandant and Wang Lang was made Grand Secretary. When Cao Pi declared himself emperor in late 220, Hua Xin was made Cao Wei's first Minister of the Masses, Jia Xu remained as Grand Commandant, and Wang Lang was made the first Minister of Works. Overview Each minister was responsible for different areas of government, but the boundaries were often blurred. Together, the Three Ducal Ministers were the emperor's closest advisors. Starting in the late Shang dynasty and Zhou dynasty, the top three were: * Grand Preceptor (); * Grand ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eastern Han
The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) and a warring interregnum known as the Chu–Han Contention (206–202 BC), and it was succeeded by the Three Kingdoms period (220–280 AD). The dynasty was briefly interrupted by the Xin dynasty (9–23 AD) established by the usurping regent Wang Mang, and is thus separated into two periods—the #Western Han (202 BC – 9 AD), Western Han (202 BC9 AD) and the #Eastern Han (25–220 AD), Eastern Han (25–220 AD). Spanning over four centuries, the Han dynasty is considered a Golden ages of China, golden age in Chinese history, and had a permanent impact on Chinese identity in later periods. The majority ethnic group of modern China refer to themselves as the "Han people" or "Han Chinese". The spoken Chinese ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Western Zhou
The Western Zhou ( zh, c=西周, p=Xīzhōu; 771 BC) was a period of Chinese history corresponding roughly to the first half of the Zhou dynasty. It began when King Wu of Zhou overthrew the Shang dynasty at the Battle of Muye and ended in 771 BC when Quanrong pastoralists sacked the Zhou capital at Haojing and killed King You of Zhou. The "Western" label for the period refers to the location of the Zhou royal capitals, which were clustered in the Wei River valley near present-day Xi'an. The early Zhou state was ascendant for about 75 years; thereafter, it gradually lost power. The former lands of the Shang were divided into Ancient Chinese states, hereditary fiefs that became increasingly independent of the Zhou king over time. The Zhou court was driven out of the Wei River valley in 771 BC: this marked the beginning of the Eastern Zhou period, wherein political power was wielded in actuality by the king's nominal vassals. Sources The Western Zhou are known from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
