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| The Interpretation of “史” on the Inscriptions on the Tortoise Shells or Bones |
| GUAN Wan-wei |
| Shenzhen Academy of Social Science, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518028 |
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Abstract The sharp blade represented by“丨”in the character “史” on the inscriptions on the tortoise shells or bones is not a weapon but an engraving tool, an recorder of the divination in Ying and Shang period: asking the Heaven by divination, and oracles were engraved on tortoise shells by historians. But “史（historian）” has six functions. To be more specific, those who engraved the oracles on bones or tortoise shells were historians called “尹（yin）”. They were the historians of the highest position, and thus later turned into high-ranking officials. The royal family in Ying and Shang period might have begun to record divination unconsciously, whereas the royal family of the Western Zhou Dynasty attached great importance to “史（recording history）”, which could be the beginning of the ancient?historiography. From Shang Dynasty to the Western Zhou Dynasty, “historians” became increasingly professional and conscious. They transformed from historians of high position to historians of historiography consciousness, which began the tradition of official historiography. During the Eastern Zhou period, the historical books of all the states had direct influence on the establishment and content of later ideology and culture.
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Received: 10 November 2015
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2016, Vol. 33 
