Zhang Yinlin

Zhang Yinlin (1905–1942), styled Suchi, was a native of Dongguan, Guangdong, and a modern Chinese historian. He graduated from Tsinghua University and later studied philosophy and sociology at Stanford University in the United States. After returning to China, he taught at Tsinghua University, Peking University, Zhejiang University, and the National Southwestern Associated University. Known for his broad learning and hailed as a historical genius, Zhang is best known for An Outline of Chinese History, which traces the history from ancient times to the Qin and Han dynasties with clear structure and concise prose. The work has had a profound influence and remains a classic introduction to Chinese general history. His writings are mainly history readings that also touch on culture and traditional Chinese thought, marked by a rigorous yet readable style. He died of illness in Zunyi in 1942 at the age of thirty-seven. Public information is limited, and details of his life and a complete bibliography remain to be further compiled.