History of the Northern Dynasties
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Summary
A chronicle-style historical work and one of the Twenty-Four "Standard Histories." The term "standard history" is explained in the Monograph on Classics and Bibliography of the Book of Sui: "Writings produced in every age all imitated Ban [Gu] and Ma [Sima Qian] and were regarded as standard histories." The Qing-dynasty Complete Library of the Four Treasuries further stipulated that under the standard-history category, "any work not receiving imperial sanction shall not be admitted indiscriminately; for the standard history carries a dignified status, its principles rank with the classics, and without an express ordinance none may presume to add to it"—that is, no work could be listed among the standard histories without imperial approval. Most of the Twenty-Four Standard Histories comprise basic annals, biographical sections, tables, and treatises, interwoven and coherently connected, recording not only the general outline of each dynasty's history but also reflecting an extremely complex yet highly continuous historical process.
Editor's review
Along with the History of the Southern Dynasties, the History of the Northern Dynasties came from the hand of Li Yanshou. It is a comprehensive chronicle-style history covering the Northern Wei, Qi, Zhou, and Sui dynasties as well as several northern regimes, and it is counted among the Twenty-Four Histories. Its arrangement breaks with the compartmentalized approach of individual dynastic histories, presenting the process from the Northern Dynasties to Sui unification along a single thread; the Sui section in particular connects closely with what precedes it, making the arc from division to unification easy to follow. Its biographical sections often cover several generations of a single family, which is helpful for understanding Northern Dynasties aristocratic clans, Sino-barbarian integration, and institutional change. The prose is generally concise, but variant personal names and complex official titles mean first-time readers will need chronological tables and reference works. Suited to readers who already have a basic grasp of the Northern and Southern Dynasties and want a fuller picture of the overall trajectory of the Northern Dynasties and Sui, to be used as an overview rather than as a substitute for the original dynastic histories in detailed research.
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers who want an overview of the historical arc from the Northern Dynasties to the Sui and have basic classical Chinese
- Students of ancient Chinese history who need to grasp the connections between the Northern Dynasties and the Sui
- Readers interested in Sino-barbarian integration, aristocratic clans, and Northern Dynasties institutions
- Teachers of ancient history who want a concise comprehensive history as reference for lesson preparation
Not a good fit for
- Beginners with no classical Chinese who need sentence-by-sentence vernacular translation
- Researchers specializing in detailed textual study of a single Northern Dynasty who rely on primary sources
- Readers who only want Sui-Tang heroic stories and have no interest in Northern Dynasties background
Reading tips
- Begin with the basic annals of Wei, Qi, Zhou, and Sui to establish a timeline, then read biographies by figure or family rather than plowing through volume by volume.
- Read alongside chronological tables and maps from the Northern and Southern Dynasties through Sui; regime changes were frequent, and a sense of geography aids understanding.
- Key sections can be read against the Book of Wei, Book of Northern Qi, Book of Zhou, and Book of Sui to observe how the History of the Northern Dynasties integrates them.
- When reading combined family biographies, sketch simple genealogies; relationships become much clearer and are easier to revisit later.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 魏本纪第一
- 魏本纪第二
- 魏本纪第三
- 魏本纪第四
- 魏本纪第五
- 齐本纪（上）第六
- 齐本纪（中）第七
- 齐本纪（下）第八
- 周本纪（上）第九
- 周本纪（下）第十
- 隋本纪（上）第十一
- 隋本纪（下）第十二
- 列传第一：后妃（上）
- 列传第二：后妃（下）
- 列传第三：魏诸宗室
- 列传第四
- 列传第五
- 列传第六
- 列传第七
- 列传第八
- 列传第九
- 列传第十
- 列传第十一
- 列传第十二
- 列传第十三
- 列传第十四
- 列传第十五
- 列传第十六
- 列传第十七
- 列传第十八
- 列传第十九
- 列传第二十
- 列传第二十一
- 列传第二十二
- 列传第二十三
- 列传第二十四
- 列传第二十五
- 列传第二十六
- 列传第二十七
- 列传第二十八
- 列传第二十九
- 列传第三十
- 列传三十一
- 列传第三十二
- 列传第三十三
- 列传第三十四
- 列传第三十五
- 列传第三十六
- 列传第三十七
- 列传第三十八
- 列传第三十九：齐宗室诸王（上）
- 列传第四十：齐宗室诸王（下）
- 列传第四十一
- 列传第四十二
- 列传第四十三
- 列传第四十四
- 列传第四十五：周宗室
- 列传第四十六：周室诸王
- 列传第四十七
- 列传第四十八
- 列传第四十九
- 列传第五十
- 列传第五十一
- 列传第五十二
- 列传第五十三
- 列传第五十四
- 列传第五十五
- 列传第五十六
- 列传第五十七
- 列传第五十八
- 列传第五十九：隋宗室诸王
- 列传第六十
- 列传第六十一
- 列传第六十二
- 列传第六十三
- 列传第六十四
- 列传第六十五
- 列传第六十六
- 列传第六十七
- 列传第六十八：外戚
- 列传第六十九：儒林（上）
- 列传第七十：儒林（下）
- 列传第七十一：文苑
- 列传第七十二：孝行
- 列传第七十三：节义
- 列传第七十四：循吏
- 列传第七十五：酷吏
- 列传第七十六：隐逸
- 列传第七十七：艺术（上）
- 列传第七十八：艺术（下）
- 列传第七十九：列女
- 列传第八十：恩幸
- 列传第八十一：僭伪附庸
- 列传第八十二
- 列传第八十三
- 列传第八十四
- 列传第八十五
- 列传第八十六
- 列传第八十七
- 序传第八十八
FAQ
Which dynasties' histories does the History of the Northern Dynasties cover?
It mainly covers the Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, Western Wei, Northern Qi, Northern Zhou, and Sui dynasties, and touches on several northern regimes. It presents the course from the Northern Dynasties to Sui as a single comprehensive thread, and together with the History of the Southern Dynasties is known as the Histories of the North and South.
Which should be read first, the History of the Northern Dynasties or the History of the Southern Dynasties?
The two works follow a similar format, and there is no hard rule about order. If you are more interested in Southern Dynasties gentry and literature, start with the History of the Southern Dynasties; if you want to understand the process from the Northern Dynasties to Sui unification, start with the History of the Northern Dynasties. You can also read them in parallel by period.
What tools should I prepare for reading the History of the Northern Dynasties?
A chronological table from the Northern and Southern Dynasties through Sui, a historical atlas, and a general familiarity with variant personal names are recommended. Northern Dynasties personal and official names are complex and often appear in variant forms; reference works can significantly reduce obstacles.
Can the History of the Northern Dynasties replace the Book of Wei and Book of Sui?
Not entirely. The History of the Northern Dynasties is an integrated and abridged work, convenient for overview, but many details and original formulations survive in the dynastic histories. For research or rigorous citation, return to the Book of Wei, Book of Northern Qi, Book of Zhou, and Book of Sui to verify.
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About the author
Li Yanshou
Author · Chinese
Li Yanshou was a Tang-dynasty historian, courtesy name Xialing, a native of Xiangzhou (present-day Anyang, Henan) whose ancestral home was Longxi; his birth and death years are unknown, and available public information is limited. Carrying on the unfinished work of his father Li Dashi, he independently compiled the eighty-volume History of the Southern Dynasties (Nan Shi) and the one-hundred-volume History of the Northern Dynasties (Bei Shi), both included among the Twenty-Four Histories and important sources for the history of the Northern and Southern Dynasties. He also took part in the official compilation of the Book of Sui, the Monographs of the Five Dynasties, the Book of Jin, and the state history of his own time. His writing, in annal-biographical form, spans the successive northern and southern courts, trimming redundancy and keeping events coherent, and shows a broad historical vision that offers later readers a relatively complete account of politics, people, and society in that era, with a lasting influence on Chinese historiography.
