Biographical Dictionary of Tang Dynasty Literati

The Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE) is regarded as the golden age of classical Chinese literature. Compiled by award-winner author William H. Nienhauser, Jr., and Michael E. Naparstek, this is the first English-language biographical dictionary on this critical era in Chinese literary culture. The Biographical Dictionary of Tang Dynasty Literati contains 140 entries, including major figures like Du Fu and Li Bo, as well as entries on lesser-studied figures including Buddhist, Daoist, and women writers. To provide a complete sense of these men and women, each piece contains an overview of the subject’s life, supported by translations and close readings of their writing and concludes with a bibliography of original sources, critical editions, translations, and studies in multiple languages. Appended are a literary timeline of the Tang and a glossary of official titles making the Dictionary an indispensable resource for all interested in classical Chinese literature.