Historical Records
The Historical Records is a biographical historical book written by Sima Qian (about 87 B.C. -?), a famous historian in the Western Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-A.D 25). It records the legendary era of the Yellow Emperor from the ancient times to the fourth year (101 B.C.) of Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty (206 B.C-A.D 220), covering a history of more than 3000 years, hence considered as the primary piece among twen- ty-four Histories. The Historical Records focuses on emperors and other political central figures in history, containing 12 Benji (the achievements of emperors in previous dynasties), 30 aristocratic families (the rise and fall of the vassals, princes and the nobility in the Han Dynasty), 70 biographies (the words and deeds of important figures), ten chronicles (the chronology of events), and eight books (various rules and regulations), with a total of 130 articles and more than 520,000 words.
The Historical Records is the earliest general history of China. Its method of compiling history in the form of biography has been inherited by the "official history" of later dynasties and generates a long-lasting impact on the development of later historiography. The Historical Records is also well- known in the history of Chinese literature. It vividly shows the ups and downs of the fate of historical figures and the vicissitudes of the world. Its author Sima Qian is honored as "Shi Qian"(History Qian) and "Shi Sheng" (History Sage) by later generations. The viewpoint that the purpose of this book is to scrutinize relationship between the laws of nature and human beings, the laws of social changes in ancient and modern times and, hopefully establish a school, has an intense impact on Chinese historiography. The proactive and enterprising spirits displayed by many figures in the book were examples for the larger Chinese population and affected the values and characters of such to a great extent.
《史记》
《史记》是西汉著名史学家司马迁（约前87年—？）撰写的一部纪传体史书，记载了上至上古传说的黄帝时代，下至汉武帝太初四年（前101年）间共3000多年历史，被列为“二十四史”之首。《史记》以历史上的帝王等政治中心人物为史书编撰的主线，包括十二本纪（历代帝王政绩）、三十世家（诸侯国和汉代诸侯、勋贵兴亡）、七十列传（重要人物的言行事迹）、十表（大事年表）、八书（各种典章制度），共130篇，52万余字。
《史记》是中国最早的通史，其首创的纪传体编史方法为后来历代“正史”所传承，对后世史学发展产生深远影响。《史记》在中国文学史上具有重要地位，书中生动展现了历史人物命运起伏，世事变迁，其作者司马迁更被后世尊称为“史迁”“史圣”。《史记》提出著书目的是研究自然规律与人的关系、古今社会变化规律，成一家之说的观点，对中国历史学影响深远，书中许多人物积极进取等精神品质， 深刻影响了中国人的价值取向和精神气质。
