1.
Traditional Chinese characters
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Traditional Chinese characters are Chinese characters in any character set that does not contain newly created characters or character substitutions performed after 1946. They are most commonly the characters in the character sets of Taiwan, of Hong Kong. Currently, a number of overseas Chinese online newspapers allow users to switch between both sets. In contrast, simplified Chinese characters are used in mainland China, Singapore, the debate on traditional and simplified Chinese characters has been a long-running issue among Chinese communities. Although simplified characters are taught and endorsed by the government of Mainland China, Traditional characters are used informally in regions in China primarily in handwriting and also used for inscriptions and religious text. They are often retained in logos or graphics to evoke yesteryear, nonetheless, the vast majority of media and communications in China is dominated by simplified characters. Taiwan has never adopted Simplified Chinese characters since it is ruled by the Republic of China, the use of simplified characters in official documents is even prohibited by the government in Taiwan. Simplified characters are not well understood in general, although some stroke simplifications that have incorporated into Simplified Chinese are in common use in handwriting. For example, while the name of Taiwan is written as 臺灣, similarly, in Hong Kong and Macau, Traditional Chinese has been the legal written form since colonial times. In recent years, because of the influx of mainland Chinese tourists, today, even government websites use simplified Chinese, as they answer to the Beijing government. This has led to concerns by residents to protect their local heritage. In Southeast Asia, the Chinese Filipino community continues to be one of the most conservative regarding simplification, while major public universities are teaching simplified characters, many well-established Chinese schools still use traditional characters. Publications like the Chinese Commercial News, World News, and United Daily News still use traditional characters, on the other hand, the Philippine Chinese Daily uses simplified. Aside from local newspapers, magazines from Hong Kong, such as the Yazhou Zhoukan, are found in some bookstores. In case of film or television subtitles on DVD, the Chinese dub that is used in Philippines is the same as the one used in Taiwan and this is because the DVDs belongs to DVD Region Code 3. Hence, most of the subtitles are in Traditional Characters, overseas Chinese in the United States have long used traditional characters. A major influx of Chinese immigrants to the United States occurred during the half of the 19th century. Therefore, the majority of Chinese language signage in the United States, including street signs, Traditional Chinese characters are called several different names within the Chinese-speaking world
2.
Simplified Chinese characters
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Simplified Chinese characters are standardized Chinese characters prescribed in the Table of General Standard Chinese Characters for use in mainland China. Along with traditional Chinese characters, it is one of the two character sets of the contemporary Chinese written language. The government of the Peoples Republic of China in mainland China has promoted them for use in printing since the 1950s and 1960s in an attempt to increase literacy and they are officially used in the Peoples Republic of China and Singapore. Traditional Chinese characters are used in Hong Kong, Macau. Overseas Chinese communities generally tend to use traditional characters, Simplified Chinese characters may be referred to by their official name above or colloquially. Strictly, the latter refers to simplifications of character structure or body, character forms that have existed for thousands of years alongside regular, Simplified character forms were created by decreasing the number of strokes and simplifying the forms of a sizable proportion of traditional Chinese characters. Some simplifications were based on popular cursive forms embodying graphic or phonetic simplifications of the traditional forms, some characters were simplified by applying regular rules, for example, by replacing all occurrences of a certain component with a simplified version of the component. Variant characters with the pronunciation and identical meaning were reduced to a single standardized character. Finally, many characters were left untouched by simplification, and are identical between the traditional and simplified Chinese orthographies. Some simplified characters are very dissimilar to and unpredictably different from traditional characters and this often leads opponents not well-versed in the method of simplification to conclude that the overall process of character simplification is also arbitrary. In reality, the methods and rules of simplification are few, on the other hand, proponents of simplification often flaunt a few choice simplified characters as ingenious inventions, when in fact these have existed for hundreds of years as ancient variants. However, the Chinese government never officially dropped its goal of further simplification in the future, in August 2009, the PRC began collecting public comments for a modified list of simplified characters. The new Table of General Standard Chinese Characters consisting of 8,105 characters was promulgated by the State Council of the Peoples Republic of China on June 5,2013, cursive written text almost always includes character simplification. Simplified forms used in print have always existed, they date back to as early as the Qin dynasty, One of the earliest proponents of character simplification was Lubi Kui, who proposed in 1909 that simplified characters should be used in education. In the years following the May Fourth Movement in 1919, many anti-imperialist Chinese intellectuals sought ways to modernise China, Traditional culture and values such as Confucianism were challenged. Soon, people in the Movement started to cite the traditional Chinese writing system as an obstacle in modernising China and it was suggested that the Chinese writing system should be either simplified or completely abolished. Fu Sinian, a leader of the May Fourth Movement, called Chinese characters the writing of ox-demons, lu Xun, a renowned Chinese author in the 20th century, stated that, If Chinese characters are not destroyed, then China will die. Recent commentators have claimed that Chinese characters were blamed for the problems in China during that time
3.
Pinyin
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Pinyin, or Hànyǔ Pīnyīn, is the official romanization system for Standard Chinese in mainland China, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan. It is often used to teach Standard Chinese, which is written using Chinese characters. The system includes four diacritics denoting tones, Pinyin without tone marks is used to spell Chinese names and words in languages written with the Latin alphabet, and also in certain computer input methods to enter Chinese characters. The pinyin system was developed in the 1950s by many linguists, including Zhou Youguang and it was published by the Chinese government in 1958 and revised several times. The International Organization for Standardization adopted pinyin as a standard in 1982. The system was adopted as the standard in Taiwan in 2009. The word Hànyǔ means the language of the Han people. In 1605, the Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci published Xizi Qiji in Beijing and this was the first book to use the Roman alphabet to write the Chinese language. Twenty years later, another Jesuit in China, Nicolas Trigault, neither book had much immediate impact on the way in which Chinese thought about their writing system, and the romanizations they described were intended more for Westerners than for the Chinese. One of the earliest Chinese thinkers to relate Western alphabets to Chinese was late Ming to early Qing Dynasty scholar-official, the first late Qing reformer to propose that China adopt a system of spelling was Song Shu. A student of the great scholars Yu Yue and Zhang Taiyan, Song had been to Japan and observed the effect of the kana syllabaries. This galvanized him into activity on a number of fronts, one of the most important being reform of the script, while Song did not himself actually create a system for spelling Sinitic languages, his discussion proved fertile and led to a proliferation of schemes for phonetic scripts. The Wade–Giles system was produced by Thomas Wade in 1859, and it was popular and used in English-language publications outside China until 1979. This Sin Wenz or New Writing was much more sophisticated than earlier alphabets. In 1940, several members attended a Border Region Sin Wenz Society convention. Mao Zedong and Zhu De, head of the army, both contributed their calligraphy for the masthead of the Sin Wenz Societys new journal. Outside the CCP, other prominent supporters included Sun Yat-sens son, Sun Fo, Cai Yuanpei, the countrys most prestigious educator, Tao Xingzhi, an educational reformer. Over thirty journals soon appeared written in Sin Wenz, plus large numbers of translations, biographies, some contemporary Chinese literature, and a spectrum of textbooks
4.
Jyutping
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Jyutping is a romanisation system for Cantonese developed by the Linguistic Society of Hong Kong, an academic group, in 1993. Its formal name is The Linguistic Society of Hong Kong Cantonese Romanisation Scheme, the LSHK promotes the use of this romanisation system. The name Jyutping is a contraction consisting of the first Chinese characters of the terms Jyut6jyu5, only the finals m and ng can be used as standalone nasal syllables. ^ ^ ^ Referring to the pronunciation of these words. There are nine tones in six distinct tone contours in Cantonese, however, as three of the nine are entering tones, which only appear in syllables ending with p, t, and k, they do not have separate tone numbers in Jyutping. Jyutping and the Yale Romanisation of Cantonese represent Cantonese pronunciations with the letters in, The initials, b, p, m, f, d, t, n, l, g, k, ng, h, s, gw, kw. The vowel, aa, a, e, i, o, u, the coda, i, u, m, n, ng, p, t, k. But they differ in the following, The vowels eo and oe represent /ɵ/ and /œː/ respectively in Jyutping, the initial j represents /j/ in Jyutping whereas y is used instead in Yale. The initial z represents /ts/ in Jyutping whereas j is used instead in Yale, the initial c represents /tsʰ/ in Jyutping whereas ch is used instead in Yale. In Jyutping, if no consonant precedes the vowel yu, then the initial j is appended before the vowel, in Yale, the corresponding initial y is never appended before yu under any circumstances. Jyutping defines three finals not in Yale, eu /ɛːu/, em /ɛːm/, and ep /ɛːp/ and these three finals are used in colloquial Cantonese words, such as deu6, lem2, and gep6. To represent tones, only tone numbers are used in Jyutping whereas Yale traditionally uses tone marks together with the letter h. Jyutping and Cantonese Pinyin represent Cantonese pronunciations with the letters in, The initials, b, p, m, f, d, t, n, l, g, k, ng, h, s, gw, kw. The vowel, aa, a, e, i, o, u, the coda, i, u, m, n, ng, p, t, k. But they have differences, The vowel oe represents both /ɵ/ and /œː/ in Cantonese Pinyin whereas eo and oe represent /ɵ/ and /œː/ respectively in Jyutping. The vowel y represents /y/ in Cantonese Pinyin whereas both yu and i are used in Jyutping, the initial dz represents /ts/ in Cantonese Pinyin whereas z is used instead in Jyutping. The initial ts represents /tsʰ/ in Cantonese Pinyin whereas c is used instead in Jyutping. To represent tones, the numbers 1 to 9 are usually used in Cantonese Pinyin, however, only the numbers 1 to 6 are used in Jyutping
5.
Run Run Shaw
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Sir Run Run Shaw, GBM, CBE, also known as Shao Yifu and Siu Yat-fu, was a Hong Kong entertainment mogul and philanthropist. He was one of the most influential figures in the Asian entertainment industry and he founded the Shaw Brothers Studio, one of the largest film production companies in Hong Kong, and TVB, the dominant television company in Hong Kong. A well-known philanthropist, Shaw donated billions of Hong Kong dollars to educational institutions in Hong Kong, more than 5,000 buildings on Chinese college campuses bear his name, as does Shaw College of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He also established the Shaw Prize for Astronomy, Life Science & Medicine, Run Run Shaw was born in Ningbo, Zhejiang, Qing China, and moved to Shanghai as a child. He was the youngest of the six sons of Shanghai textile merchant Shaw Yuh Hsuen and his name at birth was Shao Renleng, which was later changed to Shao Yifu because he thought that the average Chinese person would not know how to pronounce the character 楞. There is some confusion surrounding Run Run Shaws exact date of birth and he celebrated his birthdays on the 14th day of the 10th month of the Chinese calendar, which fell on 23 November in 2007, his 100th birthday. Many sources use 23 November 1907 as his birthdate, however, the 14th day of the 10th month of the Chinese calendar in 1907 corresponds to 19 November 1907 on the Gregorian calendar, which, according to China Daily was his birthdate. He graduated from the Shanghai YMCA School, where he learned English, in 1925, Shaws brothers, led by the eldest brother Runje Shaw, established Tianyi Film Company in Shanghai, and Run Run began his film career doing odd jobs for the company. In 1927, Shaw, then 19 years old, went to Singapore to assist his elder brother Runme Shaw in their business venture there. They established the company that would become the Shaw Organisation. Tianyi produced what is considered the first sound-on-film Chinese talkie in 1931 and it was highly successful, and Tianyi established a branch in Hong Kong in 1934. Just before the Japanese invasion of Shanghai in 1937, Tianyi moved its operation to Hong Kong, shipping its equipment from Shanghai and its studio in Shanghai was destroyed when the Japanese occupied the city. In Hong Kong, Tianyi was reorganised as Nanyang Studio, which later became Shaw Brothers Studio, Shaw was credited with scripting and directing the 1937 comedy film Country Bumpkin Visits His In-laws. In his early days in Singapore, Run Run Shaw supervised the business while Runme travelled north to Malaya to establish ties with local theatre owners. In 1927, having noticed that there were few cinemas in Malaya, by 1939, the brothers owned a chain of 139 cinemas across the region, the chain would later include Singapores first air-conditioned cinema, at Beach Road. They also established a number of amusement parks throughout the region, including Borneo, Thailand and Java, the brothers began to make Malay films in Singapore in 1937. Inspired by the success of films intended for Malay audiences, for example Leila Majnun in 1934, and other films from the Dutch East Indies, the brothers established Malay Film Productions. This company would produce over 160 Malay films, many of them starring and directed by P. Ramlee
6.
Lisa Lu
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Lisa Lu is a Chinese-born American actress and singer. She won the Golden Horse Awards three times in the 1970s, Lu was born in Peking, China. Beginning in her teens, she was active in Chinese opera, or Kunqu, beginning in the 1950s, she enjoyed a long career in television in the United States. During the 1958-1959 television season, she had a role as Miss Mandarin on the cult western show Yancy Derringer. In 1961 she had a role as Hey Girl on the television series Have Gun – Will Travel. She made numerous appearances on television, with guest starring roles on Bonanza, The Big Valley, The Richard Boone Show, The Virginian, Hawaiian Eye. Her film career took off in the 1970s with supporting roles in films like Demon Seed, during this time, she received three Best Actress Golden Horse Awards for her Chinese-language films The Arch, The Empress Dowager, and The Fourteen Amazons. For the remainder of her career, Lu alternated between theater and film and she may be best known by English-speaking audiences for her roles in The Last Emperor, Noble House, and The Joy Luck Club. In addition to her work in film, theater, and television, Lu attempted to popularize Chinese opera in the United States, touring universities and performing in English
7.
Shaw Brothers Studio
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Shaw Brothers Ltd. was the largest film production company of Hong Kong. Runme and Run Run took over the film business of its Hong Kong-based sister company, Shaw & Sons Ltd. and in 1958. In the 1960s, Shaw Brothers established what was once the largest privately owned studio in the world, over the years the film company produced some 1,000 films, some of them being the most popular and significant Chinese-language films of the period. It also popularized the genre of films. In 1987, the company suspended production in order to concentrate on the television industry through its subsidiary TVB. Film production resumed in limited capacity in 2009, in 2011 Shaw Brothers was reorganized into the Clear Water Bay Land Company Limited, its film production business being taken over by other companies within the Shaw conglomerate. Prior to their involvement in the business, the Shaw brothers were interested in opera and owned a theatre in Shanghai. One of the plays in their theatre, The Man from Shensi, was very popular, the Shaw brothers then bought their first camera, and Runje Shaw made this play into a silent film which turned out to be a success. Runje Shaw and his brothers Runde and Runme formed a production company in 1924 in Shanghai called the Tianyi Film Company. The companys earliest films, New Leaf and Heroine Li Feifei, were shown in Shanghai in 1925, Runme incorporated the Hai Seng Co. to distribute films made by Tianyi and other studios. In 1927, they operated their own cinema in Tanjong Pagar in Singapore, expanded in Malaya, the number of cinemas owned by the Shaw chain in South East Asia would eventually reach 200 by the 1970s before it declined. In 1928 Run Run Shaw moved to Singapore to assist Runme, in 1931, the Tianyi Studio in Shanghai produced what is considered by some to be the very first sound-on-film Chinese talkie, Spring on Stage. In 1932, they teamed up with Cantonese opera singer Sit Gok-Sin to make the first Cantonese talkie and this film proved to be very successful, and in 1934, they established the Tianyi Studio in Kowloon to make Cantonese films. Tianyi was reorganized into Nanyang Productions with Runde Shaw as the studio head and they also started making Malay films in 1937 in Singapore under the studio named Malay Film Productions which, apart from a period of interruption due to the Japanese invasion, lasted until 1967. The most prominent Malay actor, director and producer of this period was P. Ramlee, the Shaw Brothers continued to expand but suffered a setback during the Second World War when the Japanese occupied Malaya and Singapore. They began rebuilding after the war, in the 1950s, Nanyang began to switch film production from Cantonese to Mandarin as Communist takeover in mainland China cut off the supply of Mandarin films to overseas Chinese communities. In this period, Nanyang Studio operated under the name of Shaw. In 1957, Run Run Shaw moved to Hong Kong, set up a new company, Shaw Brothers Ltd. and built a new studio at Clearwater Bay, which officially opened in 1961 as Movietown
8.
Wuxia
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Wuxia, which literally means martial hero, is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although wuxia is traditionally a form of literature, its popularity has caused it to spread to art forms such as Chinese opera, manhua, films, television series. It forms part of culture in many Chinese-speaking communities around the world. The word wuxia is a composed of the elements wu. A martial artist who follows the code of xia is often referred to as a xiake or youxia, in some translations, the martial artist is referred to as a swordsman or swordswoman even though he or she may not necessarily wield a sword. The heroes in wuxia fiction typically do not serve a lord and they often originate from the lower social classes of ancient Chinese society. A code of chivalry usually requires wuxia heroes to right and redress wrongs, fight for righteousness, remove oppressors, Chinese xia traditions can be compared to martial codes from other cultures such as the Japanese samurais bushido tradition. Even though the term wuxia as the name of a genre is a recent coinage, Wuxia stories have their roots in some early youxia tales from 300–200 BCE. The Legalist philosopher Han Fei spoke disparagingly of youxias in his book Han Feizi in the chapter On Five Maggot Classes about five classes in the Spring. Some well-known stories include Zhuan Zhus assassination of King Liao of Wu and these assassins were known as cike. They usually rendered their loyalties and services to feudal lords and nobles in return for such as riches. In Volume 124 of the Shi Ji, Sima Qian detailed several embryonic features of xia culture from his period and these popular phenomena were also documented in other historical records such as the Book of Han and the Book of the Later Han. Xiake stories made a point in the Tang dynasty and returned in the form of chuanqi. Stories from that era, such as Nie Yinniang, The Kunlun Slave, Thirteenth Madame Jing, Red String and The Bearded Warrior and they featured fantasies and isolated protagonists – usually loners – who performed daring heroic deeds. During the Song dynasty, similar stories circulated in the huaben, the genre of the martial or military romance also developed during the Tang dynasty. In the Ming dynasty, Luo Guanzhong and Shi Naian wrote Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Water Margin respectively, Romance of the Three Kingdoms is also seen as a possible early antecedent, and contains classic close-combat descriptions that were later borrowed by wuxia writers in their works. In the Qing dynasty, further developments were the gongan and related detective novels, the Justice Bao stories from Sanxia Wuyi and Xiaowuyi, incorporated much of social justice themes of later wuxia stories. Xiayi stories of romance, which frequently featured female heroes and supernatural fighting abilities
9.
Generals of the Yang Family
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Generals of the Yang Family is a collection of Chinese folklore, plays and novels on a military family from the earlier years of imperial Chinas Song Dynasty. Spanning the century from 950 to 1050, the fictional saga was based on the lives of historical characters Yang Ye, Yang Yes son Yang Yanzhao. As Yang Yanzhao was nicknamed 6th son in history, the stories made him Yang Yes 6th eldest son, also, as Yang Wenguang was close to 2 generations younger than his father, the stories made him Yang Yanzhaos grandson instead. In 907, when the once-glorious Tang Dynasty officially ended, imperial China entered the chaotic and fragmented phase known as the Five Dynasties, the decades that followed were marked by regional warlords, many legitimizing themselves as emperors, fighting amongst one another for power and territories. The year 907 also marked the beginning of such a militaristic state — officially called the Liao after 947 — established by Khitan people in roughly todays Liaoning and Inner Mongolia. The Khitans were largely nomadic people and frequently engaged in raids of the more affluent agricultural Han Chinese, Yang Ye, a general of the Northern Han Kingdom, was nicknamed Invincible due to his tactical prowess and unmatched gallantry in battle. He came to serve Song Dynasty after Liu Jiyuan, the ruler of Northern Han surrendered, Emperor Taizong of Song placed great faith in Yang Ye and commissioned him to defend Songs northern border from the Khitan-ruled Liao Dynasty. Yang Ye proved his capability by defeating the Khitans in a battle at Yanmenguan, instilling fear in the enemy, in 986, during a northern campaign against the Liao forces, the Song force commanded by general Pan Mei was attacked by the main enemy force along the way. Pan Mei and others forced Yang Ye to lead an army to resist the larger enemy despite Yang Yes opposition. Yang Ye engaged the Liao forces in a battle at Chenjiagu. Surrounded by the larger army, Yang Ye was captured by Liao forces. One of Yang Yes seven sons was killed, Pan Mei was later relegated by Emperor Taizong for Yang Yes death. The most outstanding of Yang Yes seven sons was Yang Yanzhao, Yang Yanzhaos son Yang Wenguang also became an important general and followed Di Qing on a southern campaign against Nong Zhigao. He also defended Songs western borders from Western Xia, legends on the Yang family began very early. In 1051, even before Yang Wenguang distinguished himself in the military and he was clearly referring to Yang Ye and Yang Yanzhao, Father and son were both famous generals, and their tactical knowledge and bravery are known as being without equal. To this day throughout the empire and even village kids. The two that have survived to this day both appeared during Wanli Emperors reign, Liang Song Nanbei Zhizhuan, the earliest extant version was from 1593, but it was probably written during Jiajing Emperors reign. The author was almost certainly Xiong Damu, a bookstore owner, Yang Jia Fu Shidai Zhongyong Tongsu Yanyi
10.
Song dynasty
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The Song dynasty was an era of Chinese history that began in 960 and continued until 1279. It succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, coincided with the Liao and Western Xia dynasties and it was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or true paper money nationally and the first Chinese government to establish a permanent standing navy. This dynasty also saw the first known use of gunpowder, as well as the first discernment of true north using a compass, the Song dynasty is divided into two distinct periods, Northern and Southern. During the Northern Song, the Song capital was in the city of Bianjing. The Southern Song refers to the period after the Song lost control of its half to the Jurchen Jin dynasty in the Jin–Song Wars. During this time, the Song court retreated south of the Yangtze, the Southern Song dynasty considerably bolstered its naval strength to defend its waters and land borders and to conduct maritime missions abroad. To repel the Jin, and later the Mongols, the Song developed revolutionary new military technology augmented by the use of gunpowder, in 1234, the Jin dynasty was conquered by the Mongols, who took control of northern China, maintaining uneasy relations with the Southern Song. Möngke Khan, the fourth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire and his younger brother Kublai Khan was proclaimed the new Great Khan, though his claim was only partially recognized by the Mongols in the west. In 1271, Kublai Khan was proclaimed the Emperor of China, after two decades of sporadic warfare, Kublai Khans armies conquered the Song dynasty in 1279. The Mongol invasion led to a reunification under the Yuan dynasty, the population of China doubled in size during the 10th and 11th centuries. The Northern Song census recorded a population of roughly 50 million, much like the Han and this data is found in the Standard Histories. However, it is estimated that the Northern Song had a population of some 100 million people and this dramatic increase of population fomented an economic revolution in pre-modern China. The expansion of the population, growth of cities, and the emergence of a national economy led to the withdrawal of the central government from direct involvement in economic affairs. The lower gentry assumed a role in grassroots administration and local affairs. Appointed officials in county and provincial centers relied upon the gentry for their services, sponsorship. Social life during the Song was vibrant, citizens gathered to view and trade precious artworks, the populace intermingled at public festivals and private clubs, and cities had lively entertainment quarters. The spread of literature and knowledge was enhanced by the expansion of woodblock printing. Technology, science, philosophy, mathematics, and engineering flourished over the course of the Song, although the institution of the civil service examinations had existed since the Sui dynasty, it became much more prominent in the Song period
11.
Western Xia
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The early capital was established at Ningxia. Therefore, its founders and history remained obscure until 20th-century research in the West, the Western Xia occupied the area round the Hexi Corridor, a stretch of the Silk Road, the most important trade route between North China and Central Asia. They made significant achievements in literature, art, music, and architecture, the region was known to the Tanguts and the Tibetans as Minyak. Western Xia is the translation of the states Chinese name. It is derived from its location on the side of the Yellow River, in contrast to the Liao and Jin dynasties on its east. The English term Tangut comes from the Mongolian name for the country, Tangghut, the Tuoba clan of the Xianbei of Tuyuhun founded the Western Xia. After the Tibetans destroyed the Tuyuhun in 670, its famous prince, Tuoba Chici, who controlled the Dangxiang Qiang submitted to the Tang, which bestowed upon him the imperial surname of Li. Towards the end of the Tang, the Tuoba brought troops to suppress the Huang Chao Rebellion on behalf of the Tang court and took control of the Xia State, or Xia Zhou, in northern Shaanxi in 881. After the Tang fell in 907, the Tuoba descendants formally declared resistance against the expanding Northern Song in 982, the foundation of Western Xia goes back to the year 982 under Li Jiqian. However, only in 1038 did the Tangut chieftain Li Yuanhao named himself emperor of Da Xia, the Song court recognised Li Yuanhao as governor but not as emperor, a title it regarded as exclusive to the Song emperor. After Jingzongs death, Yizong became the emperor at the age of two and his mother became the regent and during Yizongs reign, the Liao dynasty launched an invasion of Western Xia, causing Western Xia to submit to the Liao dynasty as a vassal state. After Yizongs death, Huizong was put under house arrest by his mother, the invasion was a failure, and Huizong took back power from his mother. After Chongzong became emperor, his grandmother became regent again and launched invasions of the Liao dynasty, again, both campaigns ended in defeat and Chongzong took direct control of Western Xia. He ended wars with both Liao and Song and focused on domestic reform, in 1115, the Jürchen Jin dynasty was established and the Liao emperor fled to Western Xia in 1123. Chongzong submitted to the Jin demand of the Liao emperor and Western Xia became a state of Jin. Immediately following Renzongs coronation, many natural disasters occurred, yet Renzong worked to stabilize the economy, the kingdom developed a Tangut script to write its own Tibeto-Burman language. Tibetans, Uyghurs, Han Chinese, and Tanguts served as officials in Western Xia, the practice of Tantric Buddhism in Western Xia led to the spread of some sexually related customs. After Renzongs death, Emperor Huanzong of Western Xia came into power, after Genghis Khan unified the northern grasslands of Mongolia, the Xianbei who resided near Mt. Yin self-proclaimed to be White Mongols and joined them
12.
Yang Zongbao
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Yang Zongbao is a character in the Generals of the Yang Family legends. In these largely fictionalized stories, he is the son of general Yang Yanzhao and Princess Chai, the husband of Mu Guiying and the father of Yang Wenguang. A soul-resting stele discovered in 1985 in Xinan County, Henan province suggest that a Yang Zongbao was indeed a grandchild of Yang Yes - except a rather than a grandson. In fiction, Yang Zongbao met his eventual wife Mu Guiying when he was ordered to acquire the Dragon-Taming Wood at the Muke Fortress where Mu ruled and he was captured by Mu Guiying but married her when she made a marriage proposal. He died very young in a battle against Western Xia, where he was shot to death by arrows, after his death, Mu Guiying led the other widows in a western expedition against Western Xia. History of Song, vol.272 Xia Rixin and Yi Xuejin, Major Historical Cases of China, Wuhan, Changjiang Literature & Art Press,2003
13.
Mu Guiying
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Mu Guiying is a legendary heroine from ancient Chinas Northern Song Dynasty and a prominent figure in the Generals of the Yang Family legends. She is the wife of Yang Zongbao and mother of Yang Wenguang, brave, resolute and loyal, Mu is the cultural symbol of a steadfast woman. Mu Guiying practiced martial arts from an age after her bandit father Mu Yu who ruled the Muke Fortress. One day Yang Zongbao, the youngest warrior of the illustrious Yang clan, came to the fortress demanding the Dragon-Taming Wood on the order of his father, Mu refused so they fought in a duel which resulted in Yang Zongbao being captured. While Yang Zongbao refused to surrender and demanded death, Mu found herself attracted to her prisoner and boldly made a marriage proposal, after Yang Zongbao returned and reported the events, an infuriated Yang Yanzhao ordered the disgraced son executed. To save Yang Zongbao, Mu came out of the fortress and engaged in a battle with Yang Yanzhao, Mu apologized to her father-in-law and finally Yang Yanzhao agreed to the marriage and welcomed Mu to his family and troops. Mu played a part in the following battle against the Khitan forces. Mu Guiying had 2 children with Yang Zongbao, son Yang Wenguang, Mu Guiying is sometimes venerated as a door goddess, usually in partnership with Qin Liangyu. The Mu Guiying crater on Venus is named after her, during Chinas Great Leap Forward period, Mu Guiying was widely praised and a women-led Mu Guiying Brigade was established. Notable Women of China, Shang Dynasty to the Early Twentieth Century, M. E. Sharpe, Inc. Yang Jia Jiang
14.
She Saihua
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She Saihua is a legendary heroine from ancient Chinas Northern Song Dynasty. The wife of Yang Ye and the mother of their 7 sons, the elderly and widowed She Saihua is also commonly known as She Taijun and is usually depicted with a dragon-head cane. She allegedly lived past the age of 100 and she Saihuas father She Hong had already arranged for his daughter to marry Yang Ye, but changed his mind and betrothed her to Cui Long from the more powerful Cui family instead. When the Yang family requested marriage, She Hong sent for Cui Long to come quickly to marry his daughter and she Saihua did not like the ugly and untalented Cui Long and sent a messenger for Yang Ye. After Yang Yes arrival and at the request of She Saihua, She Hong had no choice, Yang Ye killed Cui Long in the battle but accidentally injured She Hong who tried to help Cui Long. Angry, She Saihua fought Yang Ye who retreated to the Seven-Star Temple, inside the temple, Yang Ye clarified the misunderstanding and they married. The Seven-Star Temple where they allegedly married is located in todays Fugu County and she Saihua had 7 sons and 2 daughters with Yang Ye, the Song commander-in-chief. With Pan Mei refusing to aid, Yang Ye and several sons died during the battles of Golden Beach. Lady She made sure Pan Meis crimes did not go unnoticed, trusting her loyalty and judgment, Emperor Taizong made her the commander-in-chief and awarded her a Dragon Head Cane, a symbol of the emperor, for absolute control of the male-dominated army. She Taijun Temple is located in Baiwangshan Forest Park in Haidian District, Beijing, notable Women of China, Shang Dynasty to the Early Twentieth Century. M. E. Sharpe, Inc. Yang Jia Jiang
15.
Yang Wenguang
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Yang Wenguang was a general in ancient Chinas Northern Song Dynasty. In history, Yang Wenguang was the son of Yang Yanzhao, however, in 1044, Fan Zhongyan was dispatched to the Shaanxi area and met with Yang Wenguang. He was impressed and took Yang as his subordinate, in 1052, Yang Wenguang followed Di Qing in the expedition to Guangxi and helped defeat Nong Zhigaos rebellion. Afterwards he was promoted by Emperor Yingzong, later, he built several forts in Shaanxi and successfully resisted several Western Xia invasion attempts. During Emperor Shenzongs reign, he was stationed in Dingzhou and he offered the emperor his strategy on recovering lost territories from the Khitans shortly before he died at the frontier. In fiction, Yang Wenguang is the son of Yang Zongbao, history of Song, vol.272 Mei Yi, The Unknown Generals of the Yang Family, Nanchang, Jiangxi Peoples Press,2011
16.
Lo Lieh
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Wang Lap Tat, better known by his stage name Lo Lieh, was an Indonesian-born Hong Kong actor. Lo was perhaps best known as Chao Chih-Hao in the 1972 film King Boxer, Miyamoto in the 1977 film Fist of Fury II, in the 1970s, Lo played Kao Hsia in the 1970 film Brothers Five, alongside Cheng Pei-pei. Lo played Ho Chiang in the 1974 film The Stranger and the Gunfighter, Lo starred in the 1972 cult classic King Boxer a. k. a. In 1977, Lo portrayed Pai Mei in the Executioners from Shaolin and Miyamoto in Fist of Fury II, Lo played General Tien Ta in the 1978 film The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, alongside Gordon Liu and Lee Hoi San. In the 1980s, Lo directed and starred in the 1980 film Clan of the White Lotus, Lo played Triad Gangster Boss in the 1988 film Dragons Forever, alongside Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao. Lo played Fei in the 1989 film Miracles along with Jackie Chan, Richard Ng, in the 1990s, Lo played Chor Kun-lun in the 1991 film Sex and Zen alongside Lawrence Ng, Kent Cheng and Elvis Tsu. Lo played The General in the 1992 film Police Story 3, Super Cop alongside Jackie Chan, in the 2000s, Lo played Wei Tungs Uncle in the 2001 film The Vampire Combat, with Collin Chou and Valerie Chow. Los last film was 2001s Glass Tears, before retiring from acting at the age of 62, Lo married Grace Tang Chia-li on April 15,1976. Lo and his wife later divorced, on November 2,2002, Lo died of heart attack, he was 63 years old. Lo Lieh - Fan Website Lo Lieh Filmography Lo Lieh at the Internet Movie Database
17.
Kou Zhun
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Kou Zhun, courtesy name Pingzhong, was a much-praised official in ancient Chinas Northern Song Dynasty. He was the chancellor from 1004 to 1006 during Emperor Zhenzongs reign, Kou Zhun became a jinshi after passing the imperial examination in 979. Kou Zhun was a speaker and had a reputation of offering criticism as he saw fit. Once, Emperor Taizong got offended and decided to leave, but Kou Zhun grabbed his robe and forced him to sit down, Emperor Taizong remarked, Having Kou Zhun is like Emperor Taizong of Tang having Wei Zheng. In 1004, during Emperor Zhenzongs reign, the Liao forces from the North initialized a major invasion, Emperor Zhenzong listened to Kou Zhuns suggestion, and the Song forces successfully resisted the Liao invasion, ending in the Chanyuan Treaty. Wang Qinruo, another Song official, was jealous of Kou Zhun. When gamblers are about to lose everything, they take out all of their money for a last gamble, Kou Zhun was using your majesty as his stake, which was incredibly dangerous. Soon Kou Zhun was banished from his post
18.
IMDb
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In 1998 it became a subsidiary of Amazon Inc, who were then able to use it as an advertising resource for selling DVDs and videotapes. As of January 2017, IMDb has approximately 4.1 million titles and 7.7 million personalities in its database, the site enables registered users to submit new material and edits to existing entries. Although all data is checked before going live, the system has open to abuse. The site also featured message boards which stimulate regular debates and dialogue among authenticated users, IMDb shutdown the message boards permanently on February 20,2017. Anyone with a connection can read the movie and talent pages of IMDb. A registration process is however, to contribute info to the site. A registered user chooses a name for themselves, and is given a profile page. These badges range from total contributions made, to independent categories such as photos, trivia, bios, if a registered user or visitor happens to be in the entertainment industry, and has an IMDb page, that user/visitor can add photos to that page by enrolling in IMDbPRO. Actors, crew, and industry executives can post their own resume and this fee enrolls them in a membership called IMDbPro. PRO can be accessed by anyone willing to pay the fee, which is $19.99 USD per month, or if paid annually, $149.99, which comes to approximately $12.50 per month USD. Membership enables a user to access the rank order of each industry personality, as well as agent contact information for any actor, producer, director etc. that has an IMDb page. Enrolling in PRO for industry personnel, enables those members the ability to upload a head shot to open their page, as well as the ability to upload hundreds of photos to accompany their page. Anyone can register as a user, and contribute to the site as well as enjoy its content, however those users enrolled in PRO have greater access and privileges. IMDb originated with a Usenet posting by British film fan and computer programmer Col Needham entitled Those Eyes, others with similar interests soon responded with additions or different lists of their own. Needham subsequently started an Actors List, while Dave Knight began a Directors List, and Andy Krieg took over THE LIST from Hank Driskill, which would later be renamed the Actress List. Both lists had been restricted to people who were alive and working, the goal of the participants now was to make the lists as inclusive as possible. By late 1990, the lists included almost 10,000 movies and television series correlated with actors and actresses appearing therein. On October 17,1990, Needham developed and posted a collection of Unix shell scripts which could be used to search the four lists, at the time, it was known as the rec. arts. movies movie database
19.
Hong Kong Movie DataBase
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The database was initially populated with data on over 6000 films, and reviews from the defunct database hosted at egret0. stanford. edu. In subsequent years it has expanded to contain information on more than 18,000 films and 71,000 people, the database can be searched by movie title or by persons name. HKMDB contains credits for cast and crew members, image and portrait galleries as well as user-contributed reviews, additional information about individual films such as production company, release date, box office gross and languages spoken is included where known. Information about cast and crew members may include gender, birth dates, there are over 13,000 reviews on the site, and more than 250,000 images. Images can be associated with a movie and with one or more people, reviews can be submitted by any registered member, but cast and crew information can only be entered by an authorised editor. The database has a forum in which proposed additions or modifications can be raised by any member for consideration by the editorial team, the database was initially fully open to the general public, but in 2004 the system was changed so that only registered members could view information. Membership was free but required a commitment to contribute to the site in some way and this decision created controversy amongst the internet community, but led to an expansion of the editorial team and a large increase in the quantity and quality of data. In 2006, access to the database was changed again to nearly full access to all areas of the database. Posting in the forum and submission of reviews still requires registration, Hong Kong Cinemagic Hong Kong Movie DataBase
20.
Hong Kong Cinemagic
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The website contains news, interviews, film reviews and a database of people, films and film studios as well as an illustrated glossary of terms. The web magazine has existed in various forms for over a decade, as of March 2009, the database contains over 10,000 films. The site was designed and is maintained by Marc Delcambre, Jean-Louis Ogé, the key staff and editors are Stéphane Jaunin, Arnaud Lanuque, Van-Thuan Ly, Philippe Quevillart and David-Olivier Vidouze. As the site expanded with new contributors coming on board and more articles being written, a database of filmographies, identity photos and biographies was soon put in place by team member Jean-Louis Ogé. In February 2003, along with editors Arnaud Lanuque, Stéphane Jaunin, Philippe Quevillart and David-Olivier Vidouze, Ogé created HKCinemagic2, an encyclopedia of Hong Kong cinema. The site containing photo galleries of casts and crew members focuses on the films of Shaw Brothers Studio, the content on the two sites continued to increase and a French forum was installed, initially on Hiwit. com in June 2003. In May 2004, a bilingual French and English board was installed on Invision, as of March 2009, the Invision forum has more than 4,000 registered users. After Laurent Henry left the project, HKCinemagic1 and HKCinemagic2 were merged, the new site was designed by Marc Delcambre, Jean-Louis Ogé and Thomas Podvin and was launched in November 2004. Similar to HKMDB, the database can be searched by title or by persons name. For the 6 months up to February 2009, the site attracted an average of 17,700 visitors per month from the US alone. Hong Kong Cinemagic contains credits for cast and crew members, portrait galleries, screenshots and trailers, as well as reviews written in-house, information about cast and crew members may include gender, birth dates and biographies. In addition to browsing with the websites own search engines, film can be browsed by date, name and genre, a persons filmography can be displayed by date, genre, and activity and/or by selecting solely Hong Kong productions or productions from all countries. The site also provides information on companies and studios, the dates companies were founded and by whom. A glossary of terms specific to Chinese cinema and Chinese culture is also available, as of March 2009, there are over 10,000 films and over 17,000 people in the database, as well as information on 1,300 studios. There are 26,500 images and 2,000 trailers, in addition, the site contains biographies, film reviews, interviews, feature articles, and reports. Hong Kong correspondents and editors have interviewed many key figures of the Hong Kong film industry, in-depth interviews of actors, directors, and film technicians are available in English and/or in French. Past interviewees have included Johnnie To, Patrick Tam, Wong Jing, Anthony Wong, Eric Tsang, Peter Chan, Lawrence Ah Mon, Gordon Liu, Ti Lung, Stanley Kwan and Chen Kuan Tai. In contrast to such as HKMDB and IMDb, Hong Kong Cinemagic does not include the names of the characters that actors played in their films
21.
Yang Ye
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While at Northern Han, he took on the surname Liu, having been adopted by Northern Hans founding emperor Liu Chong as a grandson. Nicknamed Invincible Yang, he was feared by the Liao military, Yang Chonggui was born in a military family. Growing up, his father Yang Xin was named the Linzhou prefect during the Later Han, at a young age, Yang Chonggui was a very good horse archer, always returning with several times more game than others on hunting trips. He used dogs and falcons to hunt and saw it as a way to prepare for a career commanding soldiers as a military general. In his 20s, he joined warlord Liu Chong, quickly becoming a director of defense after Liu established the Northern Han state in Jinyang in 951. Yang showed enough gallantry in battles, some against the neighboring Khitan-ruled Liao Dynasty, Liu Jiyuan refused the proposal, and eventually the Song forces withdrew. Liu Jiye was already the Jianxiong Command military governor when the Song forces invaded again in 979, with Emperor Taizong of Song personally leading the troops, Song forces quickly reached Jinyang. Liu Jiyuan came out to surrender, but Liu Jiye continued fighting and defending the capital city, impressed by his bravery, Emperor Taizong ordered Liu Jiyuan to persuade him to surrender. Having received Liu Jiyuans message, Liu Jiye cried and bowed to the north, a pleased Emperor Taizong rewarded him very well, and he changed his name to Yang Ye. Previously Yang was also named a defense commissioner, Yang was illiterate but knew military strategies well. He would join his soldiers in military exercises, enduring the same hardship as his inferiors, winters were very frigid in the area, but Yang never asked anyone to start a fire for him as he handled military matters outdoors. His soldiers were very loyal to him, in 980, the Liao invasion started with roughly 100,000 Liao soldiers arriving before Yanmenguan, a pass on the Great Wall in Daizhou and a strategic choke point. After the arrival of Song army commander Pan Mei in Daizhou, Yang and a few hundred cavalrymen took a route on the west. Song forces acquired countless horses, saddles and armor, following this battle, the Liao army would retreat immediately whenever they saw Yes flag, according to History of Song. Within two years of his surrender, Yang was promoted to the nominal post of commissioner of Yunzhou, while retaining his appointments in Daizhou. Several Song border generals became jealous, some sent letters to Emperor Taizong listing Yangs shortcomings. Emperor Taizong allegedly forwarded the letters to Yang to show his trust, in 986, the Song armies embarked on a large-scale northern campaign to take the Sixteen Prefectures from Liao. One of the three forces was led by Pan Mei, assisted by Yang Ye, along with military supervisors Wang Shen and Liu Wenyu
22.
Yang Yanzhao
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Yang Yanzhao, named Yang Yanlang before 1012 and Liu Yanlang before 979, was a military general in ancient Chinas Northern Song Dynasty. For over 2 decades he defended Songs northern border against the Khitan-ruled Liao Dynasty and he was one of Yang Yes 7 sons. History of Song mentions that he was called Yang Liulang by the Khitans who feared him, Yang Yanzhaos given name was originally Yanlang. As a child, he was quiet but enjoyed playing strategy games. His father Yang Ye, a general, had commented that Yanlang resembled him. In 986, the Song Dynasty armies embarked on a northern campaign to take the Sixteen Prefectures from Khitan-ruled Liao Dynasty. Yang was the general for his father Yang Yes troops during the attacks on the prefectures Yingzhou and Shuozhou. He fought on despite an arrow piercing his arm in the attacks of Shuozhou, after his fathers death, he was named a vice-commissioner of honor ceremony and sent to Jingzhou. At the border, Yang continued his fathers tradition of instilling discipline in his troops by setting good examples. He had few servants and associates for his position and would endure the same hardship as his soldiers and he befriended Yang Si, another brave general at the border, and commoners would gradually call the duo the two Yangs. In the winter of 999, Yang was guarding the city of Suicheng when the invading Liao army laid siege. Xiao Chuo, Liaos charismatic empress dowager, personally oversaw the attacks, with little resources in the city, Yangs outnumbered soldiers became more frightened by day. Yang quickly recruited fit men from the population to strengthen the troops defending the city, providing them with weapons. He also ordered his men to water on the outside of the citys defensive walls. Since the temperature was freezing, water quickly turned into ice, finally the Liao forces had no choice but to retreat, and Yang chased after them and obtained a lot of armor. News of the victory was not reported to Emperor Zhenzong of Song by Fu Qian. For fear of suffering a defeat, Fu Qian had tried hard to avoid confronting the invading Liao army, previously, when the two Yangs and other generals repeatedly requested for soldiers and orders to attack, Fu always scolded them rudely. Once Emperor Zhenzong found out, he removed Fu from the post, Yang described the situation at the border and answered all questions to the emperors satisfaction
23.
Yang Qilang
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Yang Qilang is the 7th eldest and youngest son of Song Dynasty general Yang Ye in the Generals of the Yang Family legends. Qilang which means 7th son is a rather than an official given name. His official name is given as Yang Yansi. Born in a family, Yang Qilang practiced martial arts from an early age after his parents Yang Ye and She Saihua. He was ambushed and returned only half the men, and was ordered to be executed by his father. He eventually received a beating of 40 blows which left him bloodied. One day a martial arts competition was held in the Tianqi Temple in the Song Dynasty capital Kaifeng, featuring Pan Bao from the powerful Pan family, realizing what he had done, Yang Qilang voluntarily submitted to the local police. A grief-stricken Pan Renmei pleaded to Emperor Taizong to have the entire Yang family executed, however, realizing the competition rules set by Pan Bao, Emperor Taizong merely sentenced Yang Qilang to 3 years in prison. Facing an invading Liao Dynasty army, commander-in-chief Pan Renmei still focused on revenge against the Yangs, during the battle of Golden Beach, only Yang Qilang, his 6th brother Yang Yanzhao, their father and a few soldiers were left, as the enemy forces closed in. Yang Liulang asked his brother to fight a way out to the headquarters for aid. When a badly injured and tired Yang Qilang finally arrived, Pan Renmei had him arrested, tied up on a pole, for whatever reason, the first round of arrows all missed, so Pan Renmei picked up a bow and did the job himself. With dozens of arrows piercing his chest, Yang Qilang kept cursing at Pan Renmei until his death, Pan Renmei had the corpse thrown into the Yellow River which was later discovered by Yang Yanzhaos remaining men downstream. Since he was the only son whose appointment was delayed, historians believe he was less than 15 years old that year, nothing is known about him otherwise. Despite sharing the surname, he came from a different hometown than Yang Yanzhao, Yang Qilangs tomb was built in 1755 in todays Dai County, Shanxi along with the Yang family ancestral hall, and the name on the headstone is Yang Yanxing. Yang Jia Fu Shidai Zhongyong Tongsu Yanyi
24.
Pan Mei
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Pan Mei was a military general and statesman in the early years of imperial Chinas Song Dynasty. In the 970s, he was the commander in Songs conquest of Southern Han and also played pivotal roles in the conquest of Southern Tang. Afterwards he fought the Khitan-ruled Liao Dynasty on Songs northern border, in 986 he was demoted by 3 ranks for contributing to the death of fellow Song general Yang Ye during battles against Liao. At this time one of his daughters had married into the imperial House of Zhao, the antagonist Pan Renmei in the largely fictional Generals of the Yang Family legends is based on Pan Mei from this episode. Pan Meis father Pan Lin was a militia captain in Changshan. After the establishment of Later Zhou in 951, Pan Mei served Chai Rong, when Chai became the emperor in 954, Pan was named a court official. He followed Chai on campaigns against the Northern Han kingdom, and after playing a part in the victory at Gaoping, Later he became the military inspector of an expeditionary army preparing to invade the Later Shu kingdom. In 960, general Zhao Kuangyin overthrew Later Zhou to found the Song Dynasty, as a former friend, Pan was given important tasks by the new emperor and he did not disappoint. First, Pan persuaded military governor Yuan Yan to submit to Song, staying behind in Yangzhou after the victory, he was later sent to Qinzhou where he became the imperial commissioner of the local militia. In 963, Pan Mei was named the imperial commissioner of Tanzhou and sent to Hunan to help control the newly conquered province. During the next 7 years, Pan pacified rebellious tribes in the half of the province and fought off Southern Han incursions in Guiyang. In 970, Pan was named the commander of the force to invade Southern Han. In Fuchuan, he defeated the 10, 000-men strong Southern Han army, quickly the Song army conquered Zhaozhou, Guizhou and Lianzhou, resulting in the surrender of other prefecture leaders along the Xi River. Pan Meis forces killed more than 10,000 enemy soldiers in Shaozhou to advance to 120 li north of Guangzhou, around 150,000 Southern Han soldiers were stationed on a hill for a last battle. Pan Mei rested his soldiers and mentioned to his generals that the enemys bamboo fences could best be attacked by fire. On a windy night, he dispatched a few brave men to the enemys gate. Soon great flames engulfed the camps, and as the Song forces attacked from both sides, tens of thousands of Southern Han soldiers perished, the Southern Han ruler Liu Chang was captured in Guangzhou, and the invasion ended 5 months after it began. Pan would remain to pacify the Lingnan territory for three years as the joint prefect of Guangzhou and commissioner of foreign trade, in 974, Pan Mei led his troops north to Jiangling during the fresh campaign against the Southern Tang kingdom
25.
Empress Xiao Yanyan
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Xiao Yanyan was a Khitan empress of imperial Chinas Liao dynasty. Her Chinese name was Xiao Chuo and she married Emperor Jingzong of Liao. At his death in 982, she became regent for her son Emperor Shengzong and she was formally referred to as Empress Dowager Chengtian. She commanded her own army of 10,000 cavalry which she stayed at the head of until she was over the age of sixty, song dynasty troops attacked the Liao in 986, but they were pushed back and later defeated in 989. She was known for her skills in civil administration and retained great influence until her death. Xiao Chuo was the 3rd child of Xiao Siwen, Liaos chancellor, at a young age, she distinguished herself from her sisters by being very thorough sweeping the floors. Impressed, her father chose her to marry the new Emperor Jingzong as a consort, soon afterward, she was given the title of empress, she later gave birth to Emperor Shengzong. She is one of the greatest women in Liao history and it is said that she have a marriage promise with Han Derang who is the important man in the Liao history. A1995 Chinese movie Great Liaos Empress Dowager produced by Liaoning Film Studio stars Mu Qing as Xiao Yanyan and she is also portrayed as an antagonist in many Generals of the Yang Family adaptations, as well as one in the 2009 Korean television series Empress Cheonchu. Women in power 750-1000 from Guide2womenleaders. com, last accessed January 13,2007
26.
The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter
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The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter is a 1983 Hong Kong film by Shaw Brothers, directed by Lau Kar-leung and starring Gordon Liu and Alexander Fu. It was released as The Invincible Pole Fighters outside of Hong Kong, Alexander Fu died in a car accident before the filming of The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter was finished and does not appear in the final showdown as originally written in the script. The film is based on the Generals of the Yang Family legends, with help from the treacherous Song dynasty general Pun Mei, the Khitan-ruled Liao dynasty army succeeded in trapping the loyal Song general Yeung Yip and his seven sons at Golden Beach. Yeung Yip and his sons were all killed or captured in the ambush, except for the 5th son, the 6th son returned home, but was severely traumatised by the events. Meanwhile, the 5th son sought refuge in a monastery in Mount Wutai, as blades were not allowed inside a monastery, he used his training in spears to practice with a pole, eventually developing the unique eight diagram pole fighting technique. When he finally appeared to have put his anger and past behind him, news broke that the Khitans had captured his sister, Yeung Baat-mui. Now he must break Buddhist vows to save Baat-mui and exact his revenge, note, The characters names are in Cantonese romanisation
27.
Legendary Amazons
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Legendary Amazons is a 2011 Chinese film based on the stories of the Yang Clan Generals. The film was directed by Frankie Chan and starred Richie Jen, Cecilia Cheung, Cheng Pei-pei, Liu Xiaoqing, the film is based on the same source material as the 1972 Hong Kong film The 14 Amazons. The film is set in early 11th century China during the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song dynasty, the emperor neglects state affairs and indulges in personal pleasures, while the government sinks into corruption and war continues to rage on at the borders of the Song dynasty. He apparently dies in battle tragically when the treacherous Imperial Grand Tutor Pang refuses to send reinforcements to aid him, Yang Zongbaos widowed wife, Mu Guiying, leads the other widows of the Yang clan into battle to continue the legacy of their husbands
28.
Saving General Yang
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Saving General Yang is a 2013 Hong Kong film directed by Ronny Yu. The story is based on the legendary Generals of the Yang Family, the film was selected as part of the 2013 Hong Kong International Film Festival. The film is set in the early Northern Song dynasty, AD986, former Northern Han general and the patriarch of the Yang clan Yang Ye pledges allegiance to the new Han Chinese-ruled Song regime after Northern Hans fall. The following morning Yang and Pan meet with the emperor about the issue, later, Songs border stations are burned, signaling an invasion from the Khitan-ruled Liao regime. The Khitan army hopes to take its revenge on the Yang Clan and it was noted that the leader of the invading Khitan army is Yelü Yuan, son of the deceased Khitan general. Due to politics and Pan Baos death, Pan Renmei is awarded with 50,000 troops to repel the Khitan army, as punishment, Gen. Yang is given a lesser task--to lead the charge and be the scout. When the two meet, Pan Renmeis lack of experience and inept leadership causes chaos among the Song army. All the while Gen. Yang is trapped behind enemy lines in a town in front of Wolf Mountain. The Khitan army surrounds the town, allowing no one to leave, Pan, however, refuses to send troops to rescue Yang as revenge. This leaves Yang Yes wife, She Saihua, devastated as she sends her seven sons to rescue him and it is later revealed that this is exactly what Yelü Yuan wanted, and the sons fall into his deadly trap. When they finally arrive in the town, the Khitan army starts bombarding it with catapults, the seven escape with their father, but are the only ones of the clan to survive, all the soldiers with them are killed. In the escape the father is wounded with a poisoned arrow. the sons decide to bring their fathers body home for a proper burial and to allow their mother to see her beloved husband one last time. Before sending off the seven sons, She Saihua visits a fortune teller, however, Yang Yanzhao alone defeats and kills Yelü in combat, seemingly proving the prediction wrong. It turns out, though, that the message was correct, what it meant was that Yang Yanzhao. He returned with his fathers body, the weapons and Yelü Yuans severed head. Although four of Yang Yes sons bodies were recovered, two had never been found, after his fathers and brothers funerals, Yang Yanzhao marries Chai Meirong. His victory over Yelü Yuan redeemed his fathers failure to stop the Khitan army, because of the sons courageous actions, Yang Yanzhao rises to his late fathers position as general and the Yang Clan developed a legendary reputation in China. Adam Cheng as Yang Ye - Gen. Yang Xu Fan as She Saihua - Gen
29.
The Yang's Saga
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The Yangs Saga is a 1985 Hong Kong historical action miniseries based on a series of novels and plays titled Generals of the Yang Clan. The series is a production by the television station TVB. The original broadcast period on TVB Jade was from 23 to 28 September 1985, note, Some of the characters names are in Cantonese romanisation. The Yangs Saga on Hong Kong Cinemagic The Yangs Saga page on TVB website The Yangs Saga on Baidu Baike
30.
The Great General
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The Great General is a 30-episode 1994 Hong Kong TV series produced by ATV. It is the sequel to the series Heroic Legend of the Yangs Family, long existed the legend that one can overlord the world with the help of the Banner of Hegemony. At this moment, the Banner of Hegemony appears in Western Xia, on their way, they met Lei Jyun-hou, Emperor of Western Xia who is suffering temporary amnesia and they become sworn brothers with him. Later, Lei Jyun-hou recovers from amnesia and turns back against his brothers to strive for the banner, a bloody war is about to begin. Note, The characters names are in Cantonese romanisation, product on Amazon. com The Great General on Baidu Baike
31.
The Heroine of the Yangs
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The Heroine of the Yangs is a 2-season ATV series aired in Hong Kong in 1998, starring Amy Chan as the titular heroine Muk Gwai-ying of the Yang family. It is an adaptation of the Generals of the Yang Family legends, the story is about the women generals of the Yang Family going to wars and the power struggle between two countries Song and the Liu. Amy Chan stars as the historical character Mui Gui-ying from the ancient story of Yangs saga, many variations of dramas, films and Chinese Opera have been made in relation to the Yang saga stories between Hong Kong, mainland China and other Chinese speaking regions. The opening song Riding handsomely was sung by Amy Chan, while the song, Everlasting Love was performed by both Amy Chan and Johnny Yip. Note, The characters names are in Cantonese romanisation
32.
Warriors of the Yang Clan
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Warriors of the Yang Clan is a 2004 Chinese costume drama, based on the Generals of the Yang Family legends. Though full of ideas and passion, the 4th son of the Song Dynasty general Yang Ye never seemed capable to satisfy his father, after a chance encounter, he fell deeply in love with Pan Yuyan, the daughter of the chancellor Pan Renmei. At the border with the Liao Dynasty, he saved the Liao Princess Mingji twice, meanwhile, Yang Yes 7th son helped his 3rd brother propose to the housemaid and their best friend Yang Chuchu, until finally realizing that her love was himself. Right before her wedding, Yang Chuchu was raped by Pan Yuyans brother Pan Bao and committed suicide, the 3rd and 4th sons were attacked by Pan Renmeis assassins in jail and had to flee. The 3rd son finally found love with pure-hearted bandit Mao Xiaoying, yiyun, a Liao spy, succeeded in putting the Yangs in great danger, but eventually sacrificed her own life to save the family and the 5th son whom she developed feelings for. To be with the 4th son, Pan Yuyan parted ways with her father, who had plotted with the Liao army to lure Yang Ye. While the emperor escaped from the ambush at Golden Beach, Yang Ye and many sons died tragically one after another
33.
The Young Warriors (TV series)
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The Young Warriors is a Chinese television series based on a series of novels and plays that detail the exploits of the Generals of the Yang Clan during the early Song Dynasty. In the 980s, former Later Han general Yang Ye pledges allegiance to Emperor Taizong of the Song dynasty, Yang leads his family and followers to defend Song from invaders of the Khitan Liao Dynasty. Having served Song for years, the Yangs are viewed as an honorable, courageous, and patriotic clan that protects the nation from foreign invasion. Unfortunately, at the Battle of Golden Beach, the Yangs fall into a trap, which concludes with the death of Yang Ye and four of his sons. Yangs last two surviving sons, Yang Yanzhao and Yang Yande, must continue their familys legacy to bring peace and prosperity to Song, hu Ge as Yang Yanzhao, Yang Yes sixth son. Leo Wu as young Yang Yanzhao Lin Chia-yu as Chai Meirong and she is Yang Yanzhaos love interest. Peter Ho as Yang Yanhui, Yang Yes long-lost fourth son and he roams the jianghu together with his teacher as a chivalrous warrior after incidentally separated from his family since childhood under the alias Chou Muyi before reuniting with his family. Li Hangye as young Yang Yanhui Cecilia Liu as Lady Luo, chen Long as Yang Yande, Yang Yes fifth son and second-in-command of the Yang clan army. Wei Xiaojun as Guan Hong, a blacksmith and Yang Yandes love interest, eddie Peng as Yang Yansi, Yang Yes seventh son. Liu Xiaojie as Xiaolin, Yang Yansis first love interest and a Liao spy and she is implied to be a long-lost sister of Du Jine due to the similarity in their appearances. Liu Xiaojie simultaneously played Du Jine, the daughter of a Tiger Camp bandit leader and she becomes Yang Yansis second love interest. Weng Chia-ming as Yang Ye, the patriarch of the Yang clan and he is also known as Peerless Yang. Amy Chan as She Saihua, Yang Yes wife and mother of the Yang children and she was previously the second-in-command of the Yang clan army. Zhao Zicun as Yang Yanqi, Yang Yes eighth child and only daughter, ethan Li as Yang Yanping, Yang Yes eldest son. Chen Jie as Zhang Jinding, Yang Yanpings wife, Song Yang as Yang Yanding, Yang Yes second son. Chen Lili as Yun Cuiying, Yang Yandings wife, wang Xiaoming as Yang Yanan, Yang Yes third son. Li Yinning as Luo Sumei, Yang Yanans wife, tong Yao as Pan Ying, Pan Renmeis daughter and Chai Meirongs love rival. Deng Limin as Pan Renmei, the Song chancellor and a rival of Yang Ye
