Xu Xiake's Travels

Xu Xiake's Travels is a famous book in Chinese history, written in the 17th century. It consists mainly of essays describing the travels of geographer Xu Hongzu (also known as Xu Xiake). Over 34 years, Xu produced more than 60 thousand words, including works such as "Guizhou tour diary" and "Yunnan tour diary". This book offers detailed descriptions of geography, hydrology, geology, plants and other phenomena.

Writing process

Xu Xiake traveled 22 years after he married in 1607 until his death in 1640. He reached all 16 provinces of China. He traveled to Jingling (Nanjing) in 1611, visited Mount Huangshan, Wuyishan, Baiyue Nine-Bend stream, Hangzhou West Lake in 1616. He went to Songshan, Huashan, Tai Shan (Wudang Mountains). He traveled to Luoyang during 1625–1627 and Fujian in 1628. During 1636–1640, he didn't go home for four years.^[1]

Brief introduction

Xu Xiake's travels has 22 articles.^[2] Xu Xiake's travels at times put him in danger. His persistence led others to invent the term "spirit of Xu Xiake".

Xu Xiake's Travels corrected many mistakes about Chinese roads, described many plants and how the wind speed and air temperature affect plants. It is also respected for its literary qualities.

References