Wu Renchen (吳任臣, ) ( 1628 – 1689), with

courtesy name A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...

s of Zhiyi (志伊), Erqi (爾器) and Zhenghong (征鴻), and an

art name An art name (pseudonym or pen name), also known by its native names ''hào'' (in Mandarin Chinese), ''gō'' (in Japanese), ' (in Korean), and ''tên hiệu'' (in Vietnamese), is a professional name used by artists, poets and writers in the Sinosp ...

of Tuoyuan (託園), was a Chinese historian, mathematician, politician, and writer during the

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 ...

. Originally from Renhe (仁和; today's

Hangzhou Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...

Zhejiang ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = ( Hangzhounese) ( Ningbonese) (Wenzhounese) , image_skyline = 玉甑峰全貌 - panoramio.jpg , image_caption = View of the Yandang Mountains , image_map = Zhejiang i ...

), he gained recognition in the field of historical scholarship and was recommended in 1678 to take the special examination known as ''boxue hongci'' (博學鴻詞), which he passed in the following year. Thereafter, he became a corrector in the

Hanlin Academy The Hanlin Academy was an academic and administrative institution of higher learning founded in the 8th century Tang China by Emperor Xuanzong in Chang'an. It has also been translated as "College of Literature" and "Academy of the Forest of Pen ...

and contributed to the compilation of the official ''

History of Ming The ''History of Ming'' is the final official Chinese history included in the '' Twenty-Four Histories''. It consists of 332 volumes and covers the history of the Ming dynasty from 1368 to 1644. It was written by a number of officials commissio ...

'', focusing on the section dealing with the

calendar A calendar is a system of organizing days. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months and years. A calendar date, date is the designation of a single and specific day within such a system. A calendar is ...

, in which he made special contributions. He is best known for writing the ''

Spring and Autumn Annals of the Ten Kingdoms The ''Spring and Autumn Annals of the Ten Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese title ''Shiguo Chunqiu'' (), is a history of the Ten Kingdoms that existed in southern China after the fall of the Tang dynasty and before the reunification of China ...

'' on the 10th-century Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period history. This book, as well as his commentary on the ''

Classic of Mountains and Seas The ''Classic of Mountains and Seas'', also known as ''Shanhai jing'' (), formerly romanized as the ''Shan-hai Ching'', is a Chinese classic text and a compilation of mythic geography and beasts. Early versions of the text may have existed si ...

'', were later included in the ''

Siku Quanshu The ''Siku Quanshu'', literally the ''Complete Library of the Four Treasuries'', is a Chinese encyclopedia commissioned during the Qing dynasty by the Qianlong Emperor. Commissioned in 1772 and completed in 1782, the ''Siku quanshu'' is the lar ...

,'' imperial encyclopedia of the Qing dynasty.

Sources

* 17th-century births 17th-century Chinese historians 17th-century Chinese mathematicians 17th-century deaths Historians from Zhejiang Mathematicians from Zhejiang Qing dynasty historians Qing dynasty government officials Politicians from Hangzhou Writers from Hangzhou {{china-bio-stub