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Zhang Xian

Type Figure Region Zhejiang Time 990–1078 Also known as Zhang Ziye、Zhang Sanying

Zhang Xian (990–1078), courtesy name Ziye, was a Northern Song ci poet from Wuxing.…

Timeline

  1. 990–1020Wuxing · ZhejiangBorn in Wuxing to a wealthy family, he loved reading from youth and delighted in composing verse; traveling in Jiangnan in his early years, he began to make a name for himself as a ci poet.
  2. 1021–1060Hangzhou · ZhejiangServing successively as magistrate of Wucheng, vice-prefect of Runzhou, and in Hangzhou and elsewhere, his fame as a ci poet spread far; Ouyang Xiu, Yan Shu and others all praised his work. During this period he composed famous lines such as 'the clouds part, the moon emerges, and the flowers play with their shadows,' earning the sobriquet 'Zhang Sanying.'
  3. 1061–1078Wuxing · ZhejiangAfter rising to Director in the Ministry of Revenue he retired to his hometown, living in Wuxing, socializing with younger ci poets; his works were collected in Zhang Ziye's Ci, and he died in Wuxing.

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