Thursday, November 15, 2012 • 314 Royce Hall • 12 PM

Chinese and Western Perspectives on the Jewish Community of Kaifeng: Towards a Fusion of Horizons

Lihong Song (Nanjing University)

The Jewish past in Kaifeng, China stretches back more than a thousand years.  Most scholars agree that a Jewish community existed in Kaifeng, once an important stop on the Silk Road, since the Northern Song Dynasty (960–1127).  Some experts date the arrival of Jews to the Tang Dynasty (618-907) or even earlier. Since the discovery of the community by the Jesuits in the 17th century, it has triggered legions of scholarly activity. Working on the same historical evidence, however, Chinese and western scholars usually drew drastically different conclusions.  Reflections on the differences will not only lay bare the orientations of Jewish studies in China, but also shed light on the worlds in which we live. 

Faculty/Student Seminar Series

Sponsored by the

UCLA Center for Jewish Studies

Cosponsored by the

UCLA Department of History

UCLA Confucius Institute

UCLA Department of Asian Languages & Cultures

UCLA East Asian Library

UCLA Center for Chinese Studies