Warring States Project

The Project works in the great tradition of the humanities, going back to the European Renaissance, to scrutinize the text sources on which our knowledge of the classical Chinese past ultimately rests. In this "official" portion of the Project web site, we explain how the Project came to be and how it is currently organized, how it uses and extends traditional philological methods, and what reception its results have received in the scholarly community.

• Early History: The First Thirty Years
• Core Research Staff: Project Principals and Permanent Assistants
• Project Organization: University Support, Advisors, Fellows, and Patrons
• Tour of Project Facilities

Introductions. The Project has often explained itself and its methods, for those making a first acquaintance with its work. Here are two of those explanations, with some additional examples:

• Re-Dating the Texts (paper by Taeko, October 1995)
• Summary of the Project's purpose and results (by Bruce, September 2003)
  • Philology (an example of the Project's principal tool in recovering text history)
  • Chronology #1 (a preliminary overview of the Project's dating conclusions)
  • Chronology #2 (a more complex and realistic version of the above)
  • Arithmetic (archaeological confirmation of a Project prediction)

Reception. Some of the Project's results challenge long-established ideas about classical China and its relations with the rest of the world. These have aroused opposition in some corners of the scholarly world, and have been warmly welcomed in other corners. Here are samples of the latter response, together with current news about the Project.

• Reception of Project publications
• Appreciations of the Project's initiative and influence
• Making Contact with the Project
• Gifts to the Project

The next section contains current and past News of the Project.

This Page © 2007 University of Massachusetts Amherst. Site Policies. This site is maintained by the Warring States Project.