Compilation Of The Ryukyu Official Historical Record “Qiuyang”

"Qiuyang" was written in 1745.It is the last of the official historical record "Zhongshan Shijian","Zhongshan Shipu" and "Qiuyang".In the middle and late 17 th century,with the continuation of the relationship between China and Ryukyu in the Qing Dynasty,the Kangxi Dynasty canonized Ryukyu three times and established the tributary trade system,which greatly strengthened the political and economic relations between China and Ryukyu,thus laying a good foundation for the social stability and economic prosperity of Ryukyu.In this context,the development of Ryukyu Confucianism and the formation of gentry class have provided a good social environment for the compilation of official history books and the improvement of Ryukyu’s subject status.Therefore,from the 1750 s to the 1840 s,three official historical record of Ryukyu came out one after another.Zheng Bingzhe and Cai Wen,the compilers and supervisors of "Qiuyang",came from Jiumi village and went to China to study,which was deeply influenced by Confucian culture.From the perspective of style,"Qiuyang" follows the characteristics of "Zhongshan Shipu".The main volume,the attached volume and the outer volume pay attention to king’s generation,the relationship between Satsuma,the legend of outer islands and people’s life respectively.In terms of content,"Qiuyang" involves Wang family genealogy,official position,handicraft industry,genealogy,local administration,law,religion,taxation,culture and education,temple system,astronomy,disasters,auspicious omens and other aspects,and its content is far richer than "Zhongshan Shipu".On the one hand,by inheriting the history of "Zhongshan Shipu","Qiuyang" strengthens the narration of ancient Ryukyu history,so as to highlight the subject consciousness of Ryukyu;On the other hand,it expanded the vision of official history books to the outer islands and showed the whole picture of Ryukyu society,thus completing a major turning point from official historical record centered on Wang Tong to the writing of overall national history.More importantly,"Qiuyang" emphasizes the Confucian politics and ritual system as the foundation of Ryukyu’s founding,which has a far-reaching impact on the writing of Ryukyu history books and the development of Ryukyu’s social,political and cultural development after the middle of the 18 th century.