Records of the Grand Historian
Also known as: Records of the Grand Historian, Shi ji, Shih chi, Taishigong shu, Historical Records
A vast Western Han chronicle of Chinese antiquity to Sima Qian’s time, organizing mythic origins, dynastic annals, treatises, and biographies into 130 chapters that shaped East Asian historiography.
Description
The *Shiji* (Records of the Grand Historian) is Sima Qian’s comprehensive history from legendary sage rulers to the Western Han. Structured into Basic Annals, Tables, Treatises, Hereditary Houses, and Biographies, it blends political narrative, documents, and vivid character studies. Sima Qian synthesizes archival records and transmitted texts, preserving mythic origins (Huangdi, Yao, Shun, Yu) alongside detailed portraits of statesmen, generals, philosophers, merchants, and assassins. Its literary craft—dialogue, set-piece speeches, moral judgments—made it both a sourcebook and a model of prose. The work established conventions of Chinese historiography (annals-biography form), debated rulership through exempla, and transmitted core stories of the Warring States and Qin-Han transitions, including the rise of Liu Bang and the downfall of Xiang Yu.
Historiography
Surviving tradition derives from early Han copies and later commentaries (notably by Pei Yin, Zhang Shoujie, and Sima Zhen’s *Suoyin*), which clarified sources and chronology. The text’s 130 juan reflect Sima Qian’s plan; later editions standardized chapter order and punctuation. Transmission through the medieval period produced variant readings, with Qing philologists collating editions. Modern critical translations and studies (e.g., Nienhauser) assess sources, speeches, and Sima’s authorial voice.
Date Notes
Compiled under the Western Han; traditionally completed late in Emperor Wu’s reign. Incorporates earlier texts and archival materials.
Symbols
Major Characters
- Sima Qian
- Qin Shi Huang
- Liu Bang
- Xiang Yu
- Emperor Wu of Han
- Zhang Qian
Myths
- The Yellow Emperor and Chi You
- Yu the Great Controls the Flood
- The Virtues of Emperor Shun
- The Mandate of Heaven and Zhou Foundations
Facts
- Structured into 130 chapters: 12 Basic Annals, 10 Tables, 8 Treatises, 30 Hereditary Houses, and 70 Biographies.
- Established the annals–biography model influential on later standard histories (zhengshi).
- Draws on archives, inscriptions, and transmitted texts from pre-Qin states and Qin-Han court.
- Sima Qian states his personal voice and judgments, unusual for later official histories.
- Covers legendary sage rulers through Emperor Wu of Han, integrating mythic and historical material.
- Biographical sections include philosophers, diplomats, merchants, and assassins, not only rulers and generals.
- Influenced later works such as the *Hanshu* and the entire Twenty-Four Histories tradition.
- Contains key narratives of the Chu–Han struggle, including Xiang Yu and Liu Bang.
- Treatises analyze institutions: ritual, calendar, economy, waterways, and more.
- Transmission stabilized through medieval commentaries; modern editions collate variant readings.