Biographical Dictionary of Occupied China (BDOC)
The Biographical Dictionary of Occupied China (BDOC) seeks to address a significant lacuna in the scholarship surrounding the Japanese occupation of China (1937-1945). Remarkably, there exists no dedicated biographical dictionary on this subject in Chinese, Japanese, or Western languages. While the BDOC does not purport to be comprehensive, it endeavors to elucidate the structure of the Japanese occupation state in China through the diverse biographical pathways of its key figures. Each entry, besides internal cross-references within the BDOC, provides hyperlinks to external online resources, such as the Biographical Dictionary of the International Labor Movement (often referred to as the “Maitron”), the Biographical Dictionary of Republican China (colloquially known as the “Boorman”), and the Historical Dictionary of Japan.
The current tally of entries stands at 170, but this number is anticipated to grow steadily, aspiring to emulate the breadth and depth of “the Boorman”. The vision for the BDOC is to evolve into a collaborative endeavor, uniting historians specializing in occupied China. To cater to a broader audience, all extant entries will be either translated into English or authored directly in that language. At present, approximately one third of the entries meet this criterion.
Each entry is meticulously curated, drawing from primary and secondary sources in Chinese, Japanese, and other languages. Comprehensive references are collated under the designated “Sources” tab. This section not only catalogues the references used for individual entries but also encompasses an extensive bibliography on occupied China, subject to regular updates. Feedback and recommendations from BDOC users, pertaining either to the dictionary’s content or its bibliography, are highly encouraged.
Last but not least, the BDOC website has been adeptly crafted by Thomas Arciszewski of Aix Marseille University, with the full support of the ENP-China team.
OpenEdition suggests that you cite this post as follows:
Christian Henriot (October 16, 2023). Biographical Dictionary of Occupied China (BDOC). Elites, Networks and Power in modern China. Retrieved December 15, 2024 from https://doi.org/10.58079/o8mu
Dear Professor Henriot, I completed a PhD in the 1970s at Cambridge Uni (UK) on regions of China under Japanese occupation, focussing on the middle Yangzi and Guangdong/Hainan. (this was in immediate response to the books by Boyle and Bunker, which neglected these areas). I also spent many years looking at the history of Manzhouguo. I have been retired for some 10 years and am living in the UK. I am delighted to read of this project. If I can be of any use to it, e.g. to comment on articles, to act as a proofreader with knowledge of Chinese and Japanese, etc., please let me know.