Chūzan Seifu


The Chūzan Seifu is an official history of the Ryūkyū Kingdom. It exists in two versions, the book of Sai Taku, compiled by Sai Taku in 1701 and the book of Sai On, compiled by his son Sai On in 1725. The two books are integrally written in traditional Chinese characters.

Edition

''Book of Sai Taku''

The compilation of the Chūzan Seifu was ordered by king Shō Tei in year 36 of the Kangxi era to his brother and sessei Chatan Chōai, who delegated the task to a group of scholars led by Sai Taku Shitahaku Uēkata Tenshō. The book of Sai Taku was finished in year 40 of the Kangxi era.

Editors

The persons involved in the redaction of the book are mentioned in the preface:
Sessei
  • Shō Kōsai Chatan Wōji Chōai
Sanshikan
  • Shō Seishun Nakada Uēkata Chōjū
  • Ba Teiki Kōchi Uēkata Ryōshō
  • Ikegusuku An'i
General supervisors
  • Shō Kōtoku Kochinda Wōji Chōshun
  • Shō Warei Ie Aji
  • Fū Shūdō Tasaki Uēkata'' Gensei
Editor
  • Sai Taku Shitahaku Uēkata Tenshō

''Book of Sai On''

In year 2 of the Yongzheng era, king Shō Kei orders a revision of the Chūzan Seifu to his brother and sessei Chatan Chōki, who delegates the task to a group of scholars led by Sai On Gushichan Uēkata Bunjaku, son of Sai Taku Shitahaku Uēkata Tenshō, who had been several times to China and studied there numerous documents related to Ryūkyū history.

Editors

The persons involved in the redaction of the book are mentioned in the preface:
Sessei
Sanshikan
  • Ba Kenzu Urasoe Uēkata Ryōi
  • Ie Chōjo
  • Mō Shōshō Mabuni Uēkata Ansei
General supervisors
  • Shō Sei Goeku Wōji Chōkei, brother of king Shō Eki
  • Shō Bunmei Tamagawa Aji Chōyū
  • Mō Kōhitsu Gushichan Uēkata Anryō
Editor
  • Sai On Sueyoshi Uēkata Bunjaku

Contents

''Book of Sai Taku''

The book of Sai Taku is dedicated to emperor Kangxi of the Qing dynasty. It presents the annals of the reigns of the different kings of Ryūkyū since the Tenson dynasty. Although the original text stopped at the events of 1701, the book was updated until the death of king Shō Eki in 1712.
It comprises seven volumes: five main volumes, a volume dedicated to the relations with the Satsuma domain and a volume of appendixes.
The book first presents a “genealogical tree of the kings of Chūzan” that includes all the dynasties, before it details each dynasty one by one.
Volume 1 is a general introduction that includes the fondation myths of Ryūkyū and the Tenson dynasty, volume 2 deals with the kings from the Shunten dynasty to the Satto dynasty, volume 3 of the first Shō dynasty and volume 4 and 5 with the kings of the second Shō dynasty until Shō Eki.
The five main volumes include two hundred and thirty six articles.
The most numerous of the articles are the ones dedicated to the commercial and diplomatic relations with China, followed by the ones giving genealogical details for each king. A few articles deal with internal politics, buildings construction or destruction by fire.
The appendix volume is dedicated to the crown princes who never reigned: Shō Kyō and Shō Bun, eldest and second sons of Shō Hō.
The volume dedicated to the relations with the Satsuma domain details those contacts between the reign of Shō Sei and the reign of Shō Tei.

''Book of Sai On''

The second edition of the Chūzan Seifu, later called the book of Sai On is finished on year 3 of the Yongzheng era.
The book of Sai On adds to the book of Sai Taku information about the Ryūkyū Kingdom that have been found in the chronicles of the Chinese empire.
This version of the Chūzan Seifu included nine volumes, but it was updated gradually until 1876 to reach fourteen main volumes dealing primarily with the relations between Ryūkyū and China and seven appendix volumes dealing primarily with the relations between Ryūkyū, the Satsuma domain and Japan.
Volumes 1 and 2 serve as introduction, volume 3 goes from the Tenson dynasty to King Bunei, volumes 4 and 5 deal with the first Shō dynasty and volumes 6 to 13 with the second Shō dynasty.
The book of Sai On originally included three appendix volumes dealing with the relations with the Satsuma domain, that were revised by Tei Heitetsu Kohagura Uēkata Yūjitsu in year 9 of the Yongzheng era  ; Tei Heitetsu Kohagura Uēkata Yūjitsu is also involved in the redaction of the Kyūyō and of the Ryūkyū-koku kyū-ki.

Volumes of the current version

The book includes the following volumes:
Main volumes
Appendixes

Preserved copies

Original copies of the Chūzan Seifu that had been stolen during the Second World War were returned to the Government of the Ryukyu Islands in 1953, with a copy of the Chūzan Seikan. They are kept at the Okinawa Prefectural Museum and were designated as national important cultural properties in 2020.
An original copy is conserved by the Shō family. Other copies are conserved in several facilities including the Okinawa Prefectural Library.
There is a woodblock printing version of the book of Sai On, compiled in 1832 by Naoatsu Minamoto, a Japanese philosopher of the Kokugaku movement. This version only contains the genealogies and the succession of the kings of Ryūkyū. A copy is conserved at the University of the Ryukyus.
The text of the book of Sai On is published in the Collection of historical documents from Ryūkyū, volumes 4 and 5.