Headhunting in ancient China

The History of Violence and Denial of Knowledge

Bibliographic Data

ID2801176
AuthorsOlivia Milburn (0000-0002-0340-0013, Seoul National University, corresponding author)
Year2018
Volume81
Issue1
Pages103-120
Publication date2018-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueBulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0041-977X • E-ISSN: 1474-0699
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0041977x17001446
OpenAlexW2793009108
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited20

Headhunting has a long and well-documented history in China, but most people are today unaware of this practice, first recorded in Shang oracle bones and regularly mentioned in ancient Chinese texts until the Han dynasty. This ignorance is because headhunting subsequently came to be seen as a barbaric practice and knowledge concerning its long history was destroyed: this was achieved by inventing a new character, guo 聝, which means "to cut the ear of a dead enemy combatant" and using this to replace (and thus confuse meanings with) an older character guo 馘, which refers specifically to headhunting. Ancient texts in which headhunting practices are documented have been misunderstood and misrepresented by imperial era scholars to prevent anyone from seeing that ancient China was a headhunting culture. This study shows how dominant cultural norms can impact on the way in which texts are read

Adversary · Ancient history · Archaeology · Art · Character (mathematics) · China · Denial · Epistemology · History of China · Ignorance · Literature · Psychoanalysis · Chinese history and philosophy · Eurasian Exchange Networks · History · Martial Arts: Techniques, Psychology, and Education · Philosophy · Psychology

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