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Sima Qian is the son of court astrologer (太史令) Sima Tan, who is a descendant of Qin general Sima Cuo (司馬錯), the commander of Qin army in the state's conquest of Ba and Shu. Before his castration, Sima Qian was recorded to have two sons and a daughter.
Sima Qian was an astronomer, calendar expert, and the first great Chinese historian. He is most noted for his authorship of the Shiji (“Historical Records”), which is considered to be the most important history of China down to the end of the 2nd century.
Jul 6, 2020 · Sima Qian (l. 145/135-86 BCE) was a court scribe, astrologer, and historian of the Han Dynasty (202 BCE - 220 CE) of ancient China, famous for his historical work Records of the Grand Historian for which he is remembered as the Father of Chinese History.
Jan 13, 2020 · Sima Qian. PD Courtesy of Wikipedia. Born near Longmen ("Dragon Gate") on the Yellow River, around 145 B.C., during China's Han dynasty, Sima Qian (Ssu-ma Ch'ien) is "the father of Chinese history" (sometimes, historiography) -- like the late fifth century father of Greek history, Herodotus .
Jul 15, 2024 · Sima Qian, Chinese historian who honoured his father's dying wish. Listen to this article. How do we know so much about China's ancient past? Because one great man, Sima Qian (145-87BCE), put...
Oct 7, 2012 · In a nation obsessed by its history, Sima Qian was the first and some say the greatest historian. Wind back two millennia. It is 99 BC. On China's northern frontier, imperial forces have...
Sima Qian (c. 145 B.C.E. – 90 B.C.E.) was a prefect of the Grand Scribes of the Han dynasty. He is regarded as the father of Chinese historiography because of his highly praised work, Shiji ("History Record"), an overview of the history of China covering more than two thousand years from the Yellow Emperor to Emperor Han Wudi.
Sima Tan wanted to follow the Annals of Spring and Autumn - the first chronicle in the history of Chinese literature. Fueled by his father's inspiration, Sima Qian started to compile Shiji in 109 BC. In 105 BC, Sima was among the scholars chosen to reform the calendar.
A. Sima Qian (ca. 145–ca. 90 BCE), courtesy name Zichang, was from what is now Hancheng, Shaanxi province. He was a great historian, writer, and thinker of the Western Han dynasty (206 BCE–24 CE). His work Shi ji, or Records of the Historian, is the first book to present Chinese history in a series of biographies.
Overview. Sima Qian. (c. 145 bc — 185 ad) Quick Reference. ( c. 145–85 bc) Chinese historian, an official at the court of the Han emperor Wudi. His Historical Records is a history of China from earliest times to the days of Wudi, and is a model for later dynastic histories.
