Liang Siyong (; 13 November 1904 2 April 1954) was a Chinese
anthropologist
An anthropologist is a scientist engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropologists study aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms, values ...
and
archaeologist
Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
. He was deputy director of the
Institute of Archaeology at the
Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...
. One of the first scholars to introduce the discipline of archaeology to China, Liang is regarded as one of China's "first-generation archaeologists". He was the second son of the scholar
Liang Qichao
Liang Qichao (Chinese: 梁啓超; Wade–Giles: ''Liang2 Chʻi3-chʻao1''; Yale romanization of Cantonese, Yale: ''Lèuhng Kái-chīu''; ) (February 23, 1873 – January 19, 1929) was a Chinese politician, social and political activist, jour ...
. Liang was married to Li Fuman, with whom he had one daughter. He died of a
heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
on 2 April 1954, at the age of 49.
Life and career
Liang was born on 13 November 1904 in
Macau
Macau or Macao is a special administrative regions of China, special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most List of countries and dependencies by p ...
, the fourth child and second son of journalist and scholar
Liang Qichao
Liang Qichao (Chinese: 梁啓超; Wade–Giles: ''Liang2 Chʻi3-chʻao1''; Yale romanization of Cantonese, Yale: ''Lèuhng Kái-chīu''; ) (February 23, 1873 – January 19, 1929) was a Chinese politician, social and political activist, jour ...
. He had eight siblings four brothers (
Sicheng, Sizhong, Sida, and Sili) and four sisters (Sishun, Sizhuang, Siyi, and Sining). He completed his primary education in
Yokohama
is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...
, where his family had been exiled to, and graduated from
Tsinghua University
Tsinghua University (THU) is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with and funded by the Ministry of Education of China. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Constructio ...
in 1924. He was enrolled into
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 ...
, at which he studied archaeology
and picked up English. At the time, the archaeology field in China was virtually nonexistent, thus Liang is considered as one of the "first-generation archaeologists" who introduced the discipline to the country.
In 1930 he began research at the Yingjin River and was the first Chinese to publish a survey on it. Likewise, in 1931, he performed what is thought to be "one of China's first scientific excavations" at
Qiqihar
Qiqihar (also spelled Tsitsihar) is the second-largest city in the Heilongjiang province of China, in the west central part of the province. The built-up (or metro) area made up of Longsha, Tiefeng and Jianhua districts had 959,787 inhabitants, w ...
, which led to the unearthing of artefacts thousands of years old. In January of that year, Liang wed his cousin Li Fuman (李福曼). Three years Liang's junior, Li was also a Tsinghua graduate. Liang's line of work was strenuous and often he had to "spend hours in the water" for field work, while having to forgo proper meals too. Praised for his disciplined work ethic, Liang was known for not letting discomfort or illness hinder his job. This, however, was not without its consequences; in 1932, Liang fell ill in the wilderness but refused to seek medical help until he ran an unbearably high fever. It was later found out that he had serious respiratory infection.
Liang published a comprehensive report on the
Chengziya site of the
Longshan culture
The Longshan culture, also sometimes referred to as the Black Pottery Culture, was a late Neolithic culture in the middle and lower Yellow River valley areas of northern China from about 3000 to 1900 BC. The first archaeological find of this cu ...
in 1934, titled ''Chengziya site excavation report'' (城子崖遺址發掘報告), which is regarded as one of his more notable publications as an archaeologist. His excavation of a tomb at Hougang (后岗) in the same year, as part of a project which had begun in 1928, provided groundbreaking evidence of "large burials anywhere at
Yinxu
Yinxu (; ) is a Chinese archeological site corresponding to Yin, the final capital of the Shang dynasty (). Located in present-day Anyang, Henan, Yin served as the capital during the Late Shang period () which spanned the reigns of 12 Shang ki ...
". Liang continued investigations at Yinxu till 1937, uncovering several other tombs, artefacts and worshipping structures dating back to the
Shang dynasty
The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty that ruled in the Yellow River valley during the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and followed by the Western Zhou d ...
. Liang was the first deputy director of the
Institute of Archaeology of the
Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...
, serving from 1948 until his death in 1954.
He was succeeded by Yin Da.
Death and legacy
While resuming the excavation of royal tombs at
Anyang
Anyang ( zh, s=安阳, t=安陽; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan, China. Geographical coordinates are 35° 41'~ 36° 21' north latitude and 113° 38'~ 114° 59' east longitude. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the eas ...
, Liang contracted
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
. He died on 2 April 1954 in Beijing, at age 49; the cause of death was a heart attack. He had been working on a report on animal remains found at the Anyang site. He was survived by Li and his only child Liang Baiyou (梁柏有), who likened her father to ''
Water Margin
''Water Margin'' (), also called ''Outlaws of the Marsh'' or ''All Men Are Brothers'', is a Chinese novel from the Ming dynasty that is one of the preeminent Classic Chinese Novels. Attributed to Shi Nai'an, ''Water Margin'' was one of the e ...
'' character
Shi Xiu, in reference to his determination and tirelessness.
An anthology of his anthropological papers, titled ''Papers on archaeology by Liang Siyong'' (梁思永考古论文集), was published in 1959.
In his 2015 book ''In Manchuria: A Village Called Wasteland and the Transformation of Rural China'', Michael Meyer writes of Liang with high esteem, underscoring his title of "father of Chinese archaeology", a label which had previously been reserved for Liang's peer
Li Ji.
Select publications
* ''Chengziya site excavation report'' (; 1934)
* ''Papers on archaeology by Liang Siyong'' (梁思永考古论文集; 1959)
including:
** ''(Report on Yingjin River)'' (1930)
** ''New Age stone pottery from the prehistoric site at Hsi-yin Tsun,
Shansi, China'' (1930)
** ''Problems with Far Eastern archaeology'' (远东考古学上的若干问题)
** ''Prehistorical sites at
Ang'angxi'' (昂昂溪史前遗址)
** ''Longshan one of China's earliest cultures'' (龙山文化 中国文明的史前期之一)
** ''New Age stone pottery and tools from
Rehe'' (热河查不干庙等处所采集之新石器时代石器与陶片)
References
Citations
Bibliography
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Liang, Siyong
1904 births
1954 deaths
Chinese anthropologists
Harvard University alumni
Macanese people
Members of Academia Sinica
Scientists from Beijing
Tsinghua University alumni
20th-century Chinese archaeologists
20th-century anthropologists
Disease-related deaths in the People's Republic of China
Burials at Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery