Yingya Shenglan

The ''Yingya Shenglan'', written by Ma Huan and published in 1451, is a book about the countries visited by the Chinese over the course of the Ming treasure voyages led by Zheng He.

Development

Ma Huan (馬歡) served as an interpreter on the fourth, sixth, and seventh voyage... Guo Chongli (郭崇礼), who participated in three of the expeditions, was Ma Huan collaborator on the book.. The two gentlemen recorded their observations about the different countries visited during the voyages, which were used to compose the book.

Soon after the return to China in 1415, Ma Huan began arranging their notes in book form. In 1416, he wrote a foreword and poem for the book. Some time after 1424, Ma Huan introduced the posthumous title of the Yongle Emperor, who had recently died, to the foreword.

In 1444, Ma Jing wrote a foreword for the book.. In 1451, the imperial clerk Gu Po wrote an afterword for the book.. Guo Chongli, with the help of his friend Lu Ting-yung, successfully sought out Gu Po to write the afterword. The book was published in 1451.

Versions

There is no known extant version of the original ''Yingya Shenglan'', published in 1451.. However, later copies of Ma Huan's work have been preserved, even though these copies contain differences due to later editors.

The ''Guochao Diangu'' (國朝典故) contains one of the versions of the ''Yingya Shenglan''. It was edited by Zhu Dangmian (朱當㴐) at an unknown date between 1451 and 1644. The version comprises 42 folios in chapter 106 of the work. The National Library in Beijing houses this edition of the work, possibly the only extant example. The version does not include Ma Huan's foreword, his poem, or Gu Po's afterword. There is nothing known about the documents on which this version was based. There are a few copies made from the version in the ''Guochao Diangu'', but these may be contain differences from each other and the earlier version. For instance, the Columbia University Libraries in New York houses a copy, but there are indications that the copyist availed themselves to other documents as it contains the foreword, poem, and afterword, has corrected readings, and adds few additional words that do not appear in the earlier version.

The ''Jilu Huibian'' (紀錄彙編), published in circa 1617, contains another version of the ''Yingya Shenglan''. It was published by Shen Jiefu (沈節甫) and Chen Yuting (陳于廷). The version comprises 47 folios in chapter 62 of the work. It includes Ma Huan's foreword, his poem, and Gu Po's afterword. Examples of the work are housed at the Cambridge University Library, the Institut des Hautes Études Chinoises in Paris, the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., the Harvard Library in Cambridge, and the National Palace Museum in Taipei. Manuscript copies of the version can be found at the British Museum in London and the sinological institute in Leiden.

Zhang Sheng's (張昇) so-called " rifacimento" of the ''Yingya Shenglan'' appears in a posthumous edition of Zhang Sheng's works, published by his son in 1522. The version was also published in chapter 63 of the ''Jilu Huibian'' (circa 1617), comprising 22 folios, and was incorporated in various other collections. Zhang Sheng condensed and rewrote the ''Yingya Shenglan'' into a literary style of composition, while Ma Huan had originally written it in a colloquial style.

The ''Shengchao Yishi'' (勝朝遺事), published by Wu Miguang (吳彌光) in 1824, contains a version of the ''Yingya Shenglan''. The version comprises 48 folios in chapter 1 of the work. The Institut des Hautes Études Chinoises in Paris houses an example of the work. The version was based on a manuscript, of which nothing is known.

See also

* Fei Xin's '' Xingcha Shenglan''
* Gong Zhen's '' Xiyang Fanguo Zhi''

References

Bibliography

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Chinese history texts
15th-century history books
Travel books
Ming dynasty literature
Ming treasure voyages
Chinese non-fiction books
History books about India