Chia-ying Yeh
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Florence Chia-ying Yeh (July 2, 1924 – November 24, 2024), also known as Ye Jiaying ( zh, t=葉嘉瑩, s=叶嘉莹), Jialing ( zh, c=迦陵, labels=no), and by her married name Chia-ying Yeh Chao, was a Chinese-born Taiwanese-Canadian poet and
sinologist Sinology, also referred to as China studies, is a subfield of area studies or East Asian studies involved in social sciences and humanities research on China. It is an academic discipline that focuses on the study of the Chinese civilizatio ...
. She was a scholar of
classical Chinese poetry Classical Chinese poetry is traditional Chinese poetry written in Classical Chinese and typified by certain traditional forms, or modes; traditional genres; and connections with particular historical periods, such as the poetry of the Tang dy ...
. Yeh taught for 20 years at the
University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...
(UBC), and was a professor emerita from her retirement in 1989. She was a Fellow of the
Royal Society of Canada The Royal Society of Canada (RSC; , SRC), also known as the Academies of Arts, Humanities, and Sciences of Canada (French: ''Académies des arts, des lettres et des sciences du Canada''), is the senior national, bilingual council of distinguishe ...
. After retiring from UBC, she taught at
Nankai University Nankai University is a public university in Tianjin, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Nankai University was establ ...
in
Tianjin Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...
, where she was the founding Director of the Institute of Chinese Classical Culture.


Early life and education

Chia-ying Yeh was born in
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
on July 2, 1924. Her family was from the prominent
Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic peoples, Tungusic East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized Ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minority in China and the people from wh ...
clan of Yehe Nara, originally of
Tümed The Tümed (; ; "The many or ten thousands" derived from Tumen) are a Mongol subgroup. They live in Tumed Left Banner, district of Hohhot and Tumed Right Banner, district of Baotou in China. Most engage in sedentary agriculture, living in mixed ...
Mongol Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China (Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family of M ...
ethnicity. The famous
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
poet Nalan Xingde was from the same clan. Her grandfather was a Qing official, and her sinicized family shortened its surname to the
Han Chinese The Han Chinese, alternatively the Han people, are an East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the list of contemporary ethnic groups, world's la ...
Yeh after the fall of the Manchu Qing dynasty in 1911. Yeh began composing poetry at the age of ten. She was admitted to the Chinese department of
Fu Jen Catholic University Fu Jen Catholic University (FJU, FJCU or Fu Jen; or ) is a private education, private Catholic university in Xinzhuang District, Xinzhuang, New Taipei City, Taiwan. The university was founded in 1925 in Beijing at the request of Pope Pius XI and ...
(Beijing) in 1941, where she studied under the well known scholar of poetry . After graduating in 1945, she taught in the then capital
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
, and married Chao Chung-sun (赵钟荪), a navy employee, in March 1948. By the end of the year, the
Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...
government was losing the
Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led Nationalist government, government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Armed conflict continued intermitt ...
and began its retreat to
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
. Yeh also moved with her husband to Taiwan, and settled in
Changhua Changhua (Hokkien Pe̍h-ōe-jī, POJ: ''Chiong-hòa'' or ''Chiang-hòa''), officially known as Changhua City, is a county-administered city and the county seat of Changhua County in Taiwan. For many centuries the site was home to a settlement of ...
, where Yeh found a teaching job at a secondary school. She gave birth to her first daughter Chao Yen-yen (赵言言) in August 1949. During the White Terror period of Taiwan, numerous intellectuals were suspected of being Communist sympathizers and imprisoned without trial. In December 1949, Yeh's husband Chao Chung-sun was arrested on suspicion of being a Communist spy. In June 1950, Yeh was herself jailed, together with the principal and six other teachers at her school. She brought her daughter to the prison as the baby was less than a year old. She was released soon afterwards, but her husband was imprisoned for more than three years.


Career and later life

In the 1950s, Yeh taught classical Chinese poetry at
National Taiwan University National Taiwan University (NTU; zh, t=國立臺灣大學, poj=Kok-li̍p Tâi-oân Tāi-ha̍k, p=, s=) is a National university, national Public university, public research university in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in 1928 during Taiwan under J ...
,
Tamkang University Tamkang University (TKU; ) is a private university in Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. It was founded in 1950 as a junior college of English. Today it is a comprehensive university with 11 colleges that serves nearly 25,000 students ...
, and Fu Jen University in Taiwan. Writers
Pai Hsien-yung Kenneth Hsien-yung Pai ( zh, c=白先勇, poj=Pe̍h Sian-ióng, p=Bái Xiānyǒng, w=Pai Hsien-yung; born July 11, 1937) is a Taiwanese writer who has been described as a "melancholy pioneer". He was born in Guilin, Guangxi at the cusp of the Se ...
, Chen Yingzhen,
Xi Murong Xi Murong or Hsi Muren (; born 1943) is a writer and painter. She is most famous for her poetry, especially the collections ''Seven Miles of Fragrance'' (; ''Qīlǐ Xiāng'') and ''Unregrettable Youth'' (; ''Wúyuàn de Qīngchūn''). Pers ...
, and were some of her students. She is often honoured as "the teacher of masters." She moved to the United States in 1966, and taught at
Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...
and
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
. She then settled in
Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
,
British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
, Canada, where she taught at the
University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...
from 1969 until retiring in 1989. After Canada established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China, Yeh returned to China for the first time in 1974, and visited her brother who still lived in their old home. She composed a long poem to commemorate the visit. Starting in 1979, Yeh returned to China every summer to teach at numerous universities, including
Peking University Peking University (PKU) is a Public university, public Types of universities and colleges in China#By designated academic emphasis, university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of the Peop ...
,
Beijing Normal University Beijing Normal University (BNU) () is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education of China, and co-funded by the Ministry of Education and the B ...
,
Nankai University Nankai University is a public university in Tianjin, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Nankai University was establ ...
, Tianjin Normal University,
Fudan University Fudan University (FDU) is a public university, national public university in Yangpu, Shanghai, Yangpu, Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education and is co-funded with the Shanghai Municipal ...
,
Nanjing University Nanjing University (NJU) is a public university in Nanjing, Jiangsu, China. It is affiliated and sponsored by the Ministry of Education. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. The univers ...
,
Nanjing Normal University Nanjing Normal University (NJNU; zh, p=Nánjīng Shīfàn Dàxué, c=, s=南京师范大学) is a provincial public university in Nanjing, Jiangsu, China. It is affiliated with the Province of Jiangsu, and co-sponsored by the Ministry of Educati ...
,
Xinjiang University Xinjiang University (XJU) is a provincial public comprehensive university in Ürümqi, Xinjiang, China. It is a national key university affiliated with the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and co-funded by the Ministry of Education and the re ...
, and
Lanzhou University Lanzhou University () is a public university in Lanzhou, Gansu, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Founded in 1909, the ...
. She often paid for her own travel expenses and taught for free. She said that in mainland China there was a great desire to rediscover classical Chinese literature after the turmoil of the
Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...
. After Yeh retired from UBC in 1989, many Chinese universities invited her to teach in China full-time. She chose to teach at
Nankai University Nankai University is a public university in Tianjin, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. Nankai University was establ ...
in
Tianjin Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...
, because her nephew was an alumnus and it was near her hometown Beijing. Nankai established the China Comparative Literature Institute (later renamed to Institute of Chinese Classical Culture) in 1993, headed by Yeh. She returned to UBC every summer to teach and research. In May 2014, Nankai University held the Chinese Poetry International Seminar to commemorate Chia-ying Yeh's 90th birthday. For the occasion, former Chinese Premier
Wen Jiabao Wen Jiabao ( zh, s=温家宝, p=Wēn Jiābǎo; born 15 September 1942) is a Chinese retired politician who served as the 6th premier of China from 2003 to 2013. In his capacity as head of government, Wen was regarded as the leading figure behin ...
wrote a work of calligraphy of one of Yeh's poems. Yeh
turned 100 A centenarian is a person who has reached the age of 100. Because life expectancies at birth worldwide are well below 100, the term is invariably associated with longevity. The United Nations estimated that there were 316,600 living centenarian ...
on July 2, 2024, and died on November 24.


Scholarships

Yeh donated half of her pension fund from UBC to establish two scholarships at Nankai University. One is called the Yongyan (Yung-Yen; ) Scholarship, which combines the given names of her elder daughter Chao Yen-yen and son-in-law Chung Yung-t'ing (), who died together in a car accident in 1976. The other is called Tuo'an (), in memory of her teacher Gu Sui, whose ''
hao Hao or HAO may refer to: People * Hao (surname) (Chinese: ) * Hao (given name) * Hao (video gamer), Chinese professional ''Dota 2'' player * Heather O'Reilly, Professional soccer player Places * Hao (city), or Haojing (), capital of the Wes ...
'' was An-ming ().


Works

Chia-ying Yeh published many scholarly works, almost all in Chinese. Her only major publication in English was ''Studies in Chinese Poetry'' (1998), co-written with
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
scholar James Robert Hightower. Her ''Jialing Poetry Manuscript'', published in 2000 in
Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...
, includes 540 poems she composed between 1939 (when she was 15) and 1995. She has been called a modern
Li Qingzhao Li Qingzhao (; 1084 – ca. 1155), art name Yi'an Jushi (), was a Chinese poet and essayist of the Song dynasty. She is considered one of the greatest poets in Chinese history. Biography Early life Li Qingzhao was born in 1084 in Jinan, S ...
, the famous
Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...
Chinese poet. In 1997, Hebei Education Publishing House published ''The Collected Works of Jialing'' () in 10 volumes. In 2000, Guiguan Book Company of Taiwan published ''The Collected Works of Chia-ying Yeh'' in 24 volumes.


See also

*
Kang-i Sun Chang Kang-i Sun Chang (born Sun K'ang-i, ; 21 February 1944) is a Taiwanese-American sinologist. She is a scholar of classical Chinese literature. She is the inaugural Malcolm G. Chace Professor, and former chair of the Department of East Asian Langu ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yeh, Chia-ying 1924 births 2024 deaths Academic staff of Fu Jen Catholic University Academic staff of Nankai University Academic staff of Tamkang University Academic staff of the National Taiwan University Academic staff of the University of British Columbia Canadian people of Mongolian descent Canadian sinologists Canadian women centenarians Canadian women poets Catholic University of Peking alumni Chinese Civil War refugees Chinese emigrants to Canada Chinese literary theorists Chinese people of Mongolian descent Chinese women centenarians Chinese women poets Educators from Beijing Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada Harvard University faculty Historians from Beijing Manchu people Michigan State University faculty National University of Peking alumni People from Changhua County Taiwanese women centenarians Taiwanese people from Beijing Taiwanese people of Mongolian descent Women orientalists Writers from Beijing Poets from British Columbia