Historical Dictionary of the People's Republic of China: 1949-1997 (Asian/Oceanian Historical Dictionaries, No. 28.)

Journal of Third World Studies, Fall 2001 by Deng, Peng

Sullivan, Lawrence R. with the assistance of Nancy R. Hearst. Historical Dictionary of the People's Republic of China: 1949-1997(Asian/Oceanian Historical Dictionaries, No. 28.). Lanham, MD: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1997. 279 PP.

This dictionary is a handy tool for students of the history of the People's Republic of China. It contains information on most things one needs to know about the PRC. The selection of the entries demonstrates a thorough familiarity with the People's Republic and an acquaintance with western literature in this area since World War II. The facts in the vast majority of the entries are carefully weighed and the data are, by and large, accurate. For the most part, interpretations are objective and well balanced, reflecting the author's erudition and honesty. These qualities are essential for any reputable scholarship. One should also admire the author's conscientious and consistent use of the Pingyin system to render Chinese proper nouns. It avoids the unnecessary confusion over Chinese names and saves the user much time.

The dictionary also has, regrettably, some problems. One of them is the omission of some very important names and events. The reader tries in vain, for example, to find such names as Chen Yi, who led the New Fourth Route Army during World War II and served as the Foreign Minister of the PRC between 1958 and 1972. Neither can one find Ma Yinchu, China's eminent economist whose New Population Theory not only predicted China's population problem in recent decades but brought himself much political trouble. In regard to the Great Cultural Revolution, the most regrettable omission includes the Tenth Plenum of the Central Committee of CCP's Eighth Congress and the subsequent "Sixteen Points" or the Decision of the Central Committee of the CCP on the Cultural Revolution. They are absolutely essential for our understanding of the Cultural Revolution.

On the other hand, one can question the inclusion of Hu Shi who, even though undoubtedly one of the most dynamic figures in modern China, was nevertheless never a citizen of the PRC. Hu took exile in Taiwan after the Communist victory in 1949 and never returned to the mainland. In contrast, prominent intellectuals such as Liang Shumin, Luo Longji and Yu Pingbo were uncomfortably missing. With respect to Tibet, the dictionary rightfully includes an entry on the Dalai Lama, but has conspicuously left out the Banchan Lama who was the second head of Tibetan Buddhism. A careful reader can in fact compile a fairly long list of names and events that not only deserve a spot in the dictionary, but are safely more important than some of its existing entries.

Another shortcoming of the dictionary is the author's failure to incorporate recent scholarship on such important events as the Vietnam War. Contrary to what Sullivan claims, China was involved in the conflict in significant ways. In addition to moral and material support, the Chinese government also sent more than 320,000 troops into Vietnam between 1965 and 1969. The Chinese troops engaged in a variety of tasks ranging from construction of transportation facilities to the air defense of Hanoi and Haiphong. The Chinese participation in the Vietnam War is well documented and discussed in some studies in recent years [For example, see Xiaoming Zhang, "The Vietnam War, 19641969: A Chinese Perspective," Journal of Military History, 60 (October, 1996): 731-62.]. Information from these sources would have made the entry on Vietnam (pp. 222-224) more authoritative.

It also seems to be necessary for the author to double check facts such as the number of lives China lost in the Korean War. He apparently accepted the estimate by the UN command in the 1950s. Whereas Chinese sources indicate that the total loss of Chinese lives in the conflict (around 336,000) is significantly lower than the UN number.

The greatest virtue of a good dictionary is its objectivity. On controversial issues, such quality should ideally come from a careful reading of literature on both sides of the argument. When explaining the Tibetan Rebellion of 1959, Sullivan writes that "conflict broke out" as "Tibetans protested the presence of Chinese military garrison" (p. 209). The story from the Chinese historians is quite different. According to Chinese sources, Tibet had maintained a feudal system until 1958. Under the old social system, the majority of the Tibetan people were serfs with little property and few rights. In 1959, the Chinese authorities in Tibet were carrying out a radical social reform that aimed at, among other things, putting an end to serfdom and redistributing land. Considering the momentum of the Chinese revolution, the reform was certainly not executed in a gentle way and apparently caused resentment among some Tibetans. Powerful Tibetan landlords and the upper echelon of Buddhist lamas led the rebellion not only because they wanted to preserve an age-long way of life but also to protect their vested interest under the old regime. With due respect for Dalai Lama's character, his motives during the rebellion were certainly more complex than the dictionary suggests. The story from the Chinese side may not be totally accurate and fair. But to explain the rebellion in 1959 merely in terms of Tibetan nationalism is certainly partial. One can easily detect the legacy of the Cold War in entries like this.