An Analysis of the Changes of Astronomical Records in Ancient China

Astronomical Records is a traditional and important part of the official historiography,and showed different characteristics in different periods. In terms of length,it reached more than 10% in the official history books written before early Tang Dynasty,but only 6% after Song Dynasty. In terms of content,at the beginning,Astronomical Records gave precedence to record the position of the stars,and then added the contact between human affairs and the star image. This trend reached a climax from the Southern and Northern Dynasties to early Tang Dynasty Almost every star image had its specific meaning called Zhan( 占). At the same time,there is also a corresponding human event calledYing( 应). During this period,the observation technology and discussion on the composition of the universe began to be added to Astronomical Record. The historians had gradually abandoned Zhanand Ying,only retained the objective movement of celestial phenomenon. The above changes can be explained as follows: on the one hand,the regimes since Song Dynasty had been established by conquering the former dynasty which is different from abdication system. It's less necessary for the founding monarchs to establish their authority by means of mysteries such as destiny,virtue,astrology and semiotical omen. Therefore,the significance of Astronomical Records decreased to some extent. On the other hand,with the changes in compilation method of historiography and the academic atmosphere,ZhanandYinghad gradually been eliminated from Astronomical Records which made it more objective.