Historical Dictionary Of Modern China (18001949) (Volume 25) (Historical Dictionaries Of Ancient Civilizations And Historical E,Used

Product DescriptionThe Historical Dictionary of Modern China (18001949) offers a concise but comprehensive examination of the political, military, economic, social, and cultural development of modern China. Instead of focusing merely on the political elites of China, this reference covers a variety of significant persons, including women and ethnic minorities; new historical concepts; cultural and educational institutions; and economic activities.Drawing on newlyavailable records, including a large mass of governmental and family archives, the narratives presented reveal new facts, offer a new interpretation in accordance with China's modernization process during the late Qing period, and a revisionist perspective on the Republican history. The chronology records not only political and military events but also other experiences of the Chinese people. The bibliography gives prominence to current literature on China's drive towards modernization and appendixes provide the reader with detailed information on China's cultural and economic transformation.From BooklistThis volume, number 25 in Scarecrows Historical Dictionaries of Ancient Civilizations and Historical Eras series, follows the basic format of the same publishers favorably reviewed Historical Dictionary of the Chinese Cultural Revolution (2006) and Historical Dictionary of the Peoples Republic of China (2d ed., 2007). The author, a native of China, received degrees from Peking and Yale universities and is associate professor of history at the University of Maryland at College Park. The heart of the dictionary is the 451page AZ section beginning with entries on the AB League (AntiBolshevik League) and ending with Zuo Zongtang (18121885), late Qing dynasty statesman. In between are hundreds of entries on movements, policies, slogans, committees and councils, battles and wars, universities, and many other categories. The entry for the National Library of Beiping (founded in 1909 and renamed the Beijing Library in 1950) informs us that it was open to the public but that all books and materials were not in circulation and it had a strict dress codeonly neatly dressed readers could enter. Biographical entries are especially numerous and include military and political leaders, journalists and other writers, educators, and missionaries. Did you know that Soong MayLing (Madame Chiang Kaishek) lived during three centuries? She died in her Manhattan apartment in 2003 at the age of 106! Preceding the dictionary section are acronyms and abbreviations, two small and hardtoread maps of China, a useful chronology, and the authors introduction. Following the dictionary section are six appendixes (identifying leaders, universities, and newspapers and journals and comparing a variety of economic and industrial statistics); a brief glossary; and an impressive and extensively subdivided bibliography of print resources. Recommended for academic and larger public libraries. Craig BunchReviewRecommended for academic and larger public libraries. Booklist, January 2010This wellorganized and welldocumented dictionary is recommended for all libraries. American Reference Books AnnualThe dictionary is a valuable contribution. K.C. Fraser Reference Reviews, Summer 2010In this very impressive compendium, Gao examines political, military, social, cultural, educational, and economic development in China during the 19th century and first half of the 20th. Unlike other English dictionaries on modern China that tend to focus on revolutionary movements, Gao's work deals with almost every aspect of Chinese society during the 150year 'modern China' period. ...The appendixes provide important facts and statistics about the political, cultural, and economic transformation that drives China towards modernization. The bibliography presents classic and recent Englishlanguage writings on modern China that are tremendously useful for readers interested in further