March 28, 2025

Early China Seminar Lecture Series

Title: “Aristocratic Lineage Structures in Western Zhou”
Speaker: Tao Duan, Fudan University
Time: March 28, 2025 (4:30-6:30 PM EST)
Venue: Faculty House
*Please check the announcement board in the first floor lobby for room information.
**Please use the ‘Request Pre-circulated Paper’ link to RSVP by March 23. All visitors without a CUID are required to receive pre-authorization to gain access to Morningside campus as per guidelines of Columbia Morningside campus access. Attendees must present a government-issued ID with their name matching exactly the name registered for the event, along with an one-time QR code (via email), for entry.

Commonly known as the patriarchal family structure, the aristocratic society of the Western Zhou dynasty was composed of many families that originated from the royal house and the heirs of other early founders. With the increasing discovery of bronze inscriptions and cemeteries, some details have come to contradict what researchers previously understood about the principles governing aristocratic lineages and families. The naming conventions of sons—often referred to and distinguished by Bo, Zhong, Shu, and Ji—did not always correspond to their familial status. This talk will examine the practices of addressing fathers and ancestors in worship, as well as the patterns of lineage cemeteries, to explore the potential variations in lineage structures that supported the royal house and the political arena during the Western Zhou period, alongside its chronological transformations.