‘Greatest Chinese historian of his time’, Yu Ying-shih, leaves behind living legacy

Yu was lauded for his impact on the study of Chinese history, thought and culture, and the examination of deeper truths about human nature

He was also sympathetic to Hongkongers seeking freedoms and democracy, and concerned about democratic development in Taiwan

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Chinese-born American historian and sinologist Yu Ying-shih, former Princeton professor and winner of the Tang and John W. Kluge prizes, died aged 91 on August 1 at his home in the US. Photo: CNA

Published: 7:30pm, 5 Aug 2021Updated: 8:08pm, 5 Aug 2021

Renowned Chinese-American historian and sinologist Yu Ying-shih, who died on Sunday aged 91, leaves behind him a legacy that shed new light on Chinese intellectual and cultural history.

The emeritus Gordon Wu ’58 professor of Chinese Studies at Princeton University passed away in his sleep at his home in the United States, according to Taiwan’s top academic institution Academia Sinica, where he was elected a lifetime member in 1974.

Hailed by fellow academics and the media as the greatest Chinese historian of his time, Yu was known for his sweeping knowledge of China’s past and present, with the Princeton faculty website citing his “mastery of sources for Chinese history and philosophy, his ability to synthesise them on a wide range of topics, and for his advocacy for a new Confucianism”.

He was the first-ever winner of the Taiwan-sponsored Tang Prize in Sinology in 2014 and co-winner in 2006 of the third John W. Kluge Prize – which rewards accomplishments in areas not covered by the Nobel – for lifetime achievement in the study of humanity.

In his citation for Yu’s works, then US Librarian of Congress James Billington said: “[Yu’s] impact on the study of Chinese history, thought and culture has reached across many disciplines, time periods and issues, examining in a profound way major questions and deeper truths about human nature.”

Yu’s works, encompassing more than 100 books and dozens of collections of articles, were read and discussed widely in both the Western and Chinese-speaking worlds.