Bibliographic Details
| Title: |
The Noble Rank (Lie hou) and the Changing Definitions of Merit (Gong) during the Han Dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE). |
| Authors: |
Li, Yunxin1 (AUTHOR) yunxin.li@simmons.edu |
| Source: |
Journal of Chinese History. Jan2026, Vol. 10 Issue 1, p23-48. 26p. |
| Subject Terms: |
*Meritocracy, *Achievement, *Manuscripts, *Nobility (Social class), *Historical source material, Han dynasty, China, 202 B.C.-220 A.D. |
| Abstract: |
The founding emperor of the Han envisioned the noble rank (lie hou) as a system rewarding "merit" (gong) that mainly referred to military achievements. However, the criteria for granting the noble rank changed considerably throughout the Han. This is reflected by the various categories of nobles in the Han shu tables: meritorious ministers (gongchen hou), the kings' sons (wangzi hou), and the imperial affines and favorites (waiqi enze hou), as well as the new category of eunuch nobles (huanzhe hou) in the Eastern Han. This article argues that the Han shu tables should be read as one of the multiple narratives about the noble rank and merit during the Han rather than an objective statistical summary. Whereas the Han shu tables emphasize Gaozu's original definition of merit, the imperial edicts granting the noble rank kept reinterpreting merit to serve the court's contemporary needs. Recently excavated Han manuscripts provide a third way of viewing merit based on the length of service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Database: |
Academic Search Index |