Local Stories and National History of China

Chen Chunsheng is Professor at the Department of History, Sun Yat-sen University, China and Chair of the Steering Committee for Guidance in History Teaching of the Ministry of Education of China. His research interests include Chinese social history, economic history, and historical theory. He has significant contributions in historical measurement research and traditional rural society studies.

• Volume 1: Introduction Part I Religion, Ethnic Groups and Social Order before the Mid-Ming Dynasty 2. Tales of Gods: Textualization and Local Society during the Song and Yuan Dynasties 3. Coastal Defense, Garrison, and Battalions in the Early Ming Dynasty 4. Local Society of Coastal Area 5. Mountainous Area in the Early Ming Dynasty 6. Different Ethnic Groups in Xingning County Part II From the Intrusion of Japanese Pirates to Coastal Clearances 7. Pirates and Bandits 8. Appeased Pirates Mountain Bandits 9. Organization of Local Armed Forces and the Militarization of Rural Areas 10. Social Unrest and Literature Compilation Part III Local Beliefs and Settlement Patterns 11. Localization of Orthodox Gods 12. Role of the Gentry and Development of the Double Loyal Ministers Belief in the Qing Dynasty 13. Settlement Patterns Coastal and Mountainous Areas 14. Social Transformation of Coastal and Mountainous Areas Volume 2: Part I Clans, Temples, and Local Commercialization 1. Lifting the Coastal Ban and Clan Construction 2. Clan Integration in Dongfeng Village 3. Legalization of Maritime Trade and its Effects 4. Commercial Center in Zhanglin 5. Temple Networks in Zhanglin Part II The History of “Hometowns for Overseas Chinese” 6. Rise of Shantou and Popularization of Dafeng Belief 7. Formation of “Hometowns for Overseas Chinese” 8. Letters and Remittances of Overseas Chinese and Characteristics of Their Hometowns 9. Overseas Chinese and Charitable Halls in Chaozhou and Shantou 10. Development of the Shantou City and Hakka Ethnic Group 11. Epilogue