Vol. 5 No. 1 (2021): Beyond Guanxi: Chinese Historical Networks

The study of Chinese historical networks is a burgeoning field, and this guest-edited special issue seeks to introduce this innovative scholarship in its variety to a broader audience beyond the field of Asian studies. As the research articles and introductions to various databases and tools in this issue underscore, Chinese historical network research draws on a wealth of historical data and digitized sources and allows us to revisit many facets of premodern and modern Chinese history from a new angle. The special issue thus offers both an introduction to the state of the field and underscores the potential of more interdisciplinary dialogue and cross-cultural comparisons, for example, on elite networks, political career paths, and the structural analysis of biographical texts and intellectual writings.