May I ask when Sima Qian s book Historical Records was born in ?

The Records of the Historian is the first general history in Chinese history, written by Sima Qian in the Western Han Dynasty. Recording the history of China for more than 3,000 years (from the Yellow Emperor to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty), the "Historical Records" has a total of 130 chapters, a total of 526,500 words, divided into five parts: the book, the book, the table, the family, and the biography. "Historical Records" was written from 104 BC to 91 BC, originally there was no title, Sima Qian completed this masterpiece and had read it to the then scholar Dongfang Shuo, Dongfang Shuo was very admired, so he added the word "Taishi Gong" to the book.

"Taishi" is Sima Qian's official position, "Gong" is a good name, and "Taishi Gong" is just a work that indicates whose work it is. The "Records of the Historians" originally did not have a fixed title, and was generally called "Taishi Gongshu", or "Taishi Gongji", also known as "Taishi Gong". "Historical Records" was originally a common name for ancient history books, and since the Three Kingdoms, "Historical Records" has gradually become the special name of "Taishi Gongshu".

Liang Qichao, a close friend, praised this masterpiece as "a masterpiece of the ages" ("On the General Trend of Changes in Chinese Academic Thought"). Lu Xun praised it as "the swan song of the historian, the rhymeless "Lisao" (Outline of the History of Chinese Literature).

The Records of the Historian is a great work of historiography in Chinese history, and it is also a great biographical literary masterpiece, which has a profound impact on the historiography and literature of later generations of China. Born in the 1st century B.C., the Records of the Historian records the political, economic, cultural, and historical records of 3,000 years from ancient China to the Western Han Dynasty. The Records of the Historian is China's first general history centered on writing characters, and it also pioneered Chinese biographical literature.

Lu Xun praised the "Historical Records" as well"The swan song of the historian, the rhyme of the separation"。

The Records of the Historians is the first general history of China in the form of a biography, written by Sima Qian. Sima Qian's writing of historical records is rigorous and serious, and the spirit of the record is his greatest feature. Every historical figure or event he wrote about has gone through a lot of investigation and research, and the historical facts have been repeatedly checked.

As early as the age of 20, Sima Qian left the capital Chang'an to visit the famous mountains and rivers, inspected historical sites on the spot, learned about the relics of many historical figures, as well as the folk customs and economic life of many places, and broadened his horizons and mind. Ban Gu, a historian of the Han Dynasty, said that Sima Qian"Its text is straightforward, its matter is core, not false beauty, not hidden evil, so it is called a real record"。In other words, his articles are fair, historical facts are reliable, and he does not empty good words and does not hide bad things.

This spoke highly of Sima Qian's scientific attitude and the detailed historical records.

During the reign of Emperor Jing and Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty, Sima Dan, who was in charge of astronomy, calendars and historical documents, was determined to revise a general history after Confucius's "Spring and Autumn". But he didn't write about his illness anymore. Before he died, he called his son Sima Qian to the sickbed and handed over his unfulfilled wish to his son to fulfill.

Sima Qian tearfully agreed to his father's request.

After Sima Dan's death, Sima Qian did not immediately begin writing. In 108 BC, Sima Qian made the Taishi Order, which allowed him to make full use of the books and archives collected by the imperial court. In 104 B.C., Sima Qian began his extensive work of writing the Records of the Historians.

By this time, he was already entering middle age.

In order to complete this historical book as soon as possible, Sima Qian wrote selflessly day and night, and almost cut off all social interactions. In 99 B.C., just as Sima Qian devoted all his body and mind to the writing of the "Historical Records", a catastrophe fell from the sky, that is, the "Li Ling Incident", which put Sima Qian in prison and sentenced him to death. At this time, it was the sixth year that Sima Qian officially began to write the "Historical Records".

In order to continue to compile the "Historical Records", in order to use his writings to defend good and evil, and to benefit the world, Sima Qian decided to accept the palace punishment to save his life.

By 91 BC, when Sima Qian finally completed the historical masterpiece "Historical Records", he was already an old man who was close to his sixtieth birthday.

Sima Qian spent almost all his life's energy, and on the basis of extensive possession of materials, after careful examination and thorough understanding, wrote the first general history of our country, thus advancing the study of history to an unprecedented new stage and erecting an immortal monument in the history of Chinese historiography.