{"id":1654,"date":"2014-03-07T09:03:37","date_gmt":"2014-03-07T09:03:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.digmandarin.com\/?p=1654"},"modified":"2017-03-07T14:14:06","modified_gmt":"2017-03-07T14:14:06","slug":"8-influential-women-in-chinese-history-to-remember-this-women-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.digmandarin.com\/8-influential-women-in-chinese-history-to-remember-this-women-day.html","title":{"rendered":"8 Influential Women in Chinese History to Remember this Women’s Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

While every March 8 is recognized as International Women\u2019s Day in \u2013 not surprisingly \u2013 many nations, few countries go as far in showing admiration and appreciation as China. Taking a cue from their northern neighbors, the Soviet Communists, the Middle Kingdom first celebrated the day created to promote and press for equal rights for women in 1922. (It should be noted that the first \u201cWomen\u2019s Days<\/a>\u201d were celebrated in the early 20th century in Chicago, IL, and New York City, NY, later striking a chord with socialist and communist nations between world wars.)<\/p>\n

Yet it wasn\u2019t until 1949, and the founding of modern China, that Women\u2019s Day was made an official public holiday<\/a> for the female gender. Mid-20th century social architect Mao Zedong even famously uttered, \u201cWomen hold up half the sky,\u201d reaffirming the important role women played in creating a functional, educated, and well-behaved generation of young Chinese workers.<\/p>\n

These days, Chinese and foreign women of all professions receive small gifts of appreciation from students, children, husbands, employers, employees\u2026or essentially any and everyone who has benefited from their hard work and tutelage.<\/p>\n

And modern-day China and the ancient world are certainly not lacking for female role models (in alphabetic order):<\/p>\n

Empress Dowager C\u00edx\u01d0 (\u6148\u79a7\u592a\u540e), 1835-1908<\/h3>\n

\"cixi\"
\nA controversial leader even in her own time, Cixi<\/a> \u201cwas consort of the Xianfeng emperor, mother of the Tongzhi emperor, adoptive mother of the Guangxu emperor, and a towering presence over the Chinese empire for almost half a century.\u201d Undoubtedly \u201cone of the most powerful women<\/a> in the history of China,\u201d Cixi plotted her way up from concubine to empress dowager<\/a> \u2013 speaking on behalf of her infant son \u2013 and used her acquired knowledge of foreign affairs, diplomacy, economics, and national politics to help develop 19th century China into a modern and internationally competitive nation.<\/p>\n

(However, Cixi isn\u2019t the only empress to have an impact on China\u2019s history. Read about the Middle Kingdom\u2019s 10 most influential empresses \u2013 all deserving inclusion in this list \u2013 here<\/a>!)<\/p>\n

J\u012bn X\u012bng (\u91d1\u661f), 1967 \u2013 Present<\/h3>\n

\"jin
\nReportedly \u201cone of the first few trans women<\/a> officially recognized by the Chinese government,\u201d Xing has had more than her fair share of setbacks in a life filled with beauty, artistry, and passion. A biological male born to Korean parents in China, she joined the People\u2019s Liberation Army<\/a> at age 9 to become part of the military\u2019s dance troupe. After receiving high accolades, Jin went abroad to study modern dance in New York City, eventually marrying a German man and adopting three children. Her choreography is said to be \u201cstartlingly original and provocative,\u201d with her last public appearance being in the 2007 filming of \u201cStock Exchange of Visions.<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n

S\u0101n M\u00e1o (\u4e09\u6bdb, born Chen Ping), a.k.a. \u201cEcho\u201d, 1943-1991<\/h3>\n

\"san
\nThe first time I heard San\u2019s words was from a high school student I tutored in Yongzhou. She was entranced, captivated, by San Mao\u2019s stories from far-away lands: \u201cDon\u2019t ask me where I come from. My hometown is far away. I wander and search for the olive tree in my dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n

Something of a Chinese Sylvia Plath<\/a>, Chen was born in Chongqing, relocated to Taiwan province, and later traveled to the Sahara and beyond in attempts to pin down the ideal locale of \u201cromance, courage, truth, and freedom.\u201d Her writing dealt largely with experiences from abroad, peaking in popularity in 1980s China where few were able to leave and even fewer were allowed to enter.<\/p>\n

In the tradition of many disillusioned authors before her, Chen cut her stellar career short and committed suicide in 1991.<\/p>\n

S\u00f2ng Q\u00ecngl\u00edng (\u5b8b\u5e86\u9f84), 1893-1981<\/h3>\n

\"song
\nA prominent politico prior to and during the establishment of the People\u2019s Republic of China in 1949, Song Qingling<\/a> was more famously known as Sun Yat-sen<\/a>\u2019s second wife and would later be remembered for her strong political presence both at home and abroad in the 1950s and \u201860s. Marrying Sun shortly after the 1911 revolution (much to the disgrace of her parents), his death in 1925 spurred her to leave the separatist Kuomintang in favor of the People\u2019s Republic. One of few women working in upper-level government after 1949, she was eventually named a PRC \u201cVice-chairperson.\u201d Before her death in 1981, she became the first and only person to ever earn the title \u201cHonorary President of the People\u2019s Republic of China.\u201d<\/p>\n

W\u00e1ng Zh\u00e8ny\u00ec (\u738b\u632f\u4e49), 1768-1797<\/h3>\n

Taking to the hard sciences easily, astronomer Wang Zhenyi<\/a> (no photo available) became especially interested in lunar eclipses and gravitational physics early on. Publishing what was then an unprecedented 12 scientific works \u2013 many focused on self-modeled hypotheses \u2013 during her lifetime, she is remembered by the crater on Venus named in her honor. Wang was also an outspoken proponent of equality in the sciences, noting that women and men \u201care all people, who have the same reason for studying.\u201d<\/p>\n

W\u00fa M\u00e9i (\u5433\u6885), early 17th century to mid-18th century<\/h3>\n

Basically an all-around martial arts bad-ass, Wu Mei survived the 1647 attack on Shaolin Monastery<\/a>, fought against Qing invaders in 1674, and later took refuge in Hunan\u2019s White Crane Temple.<\/p>\n

And her martial arts legacy? \u201cWe classify martial arts as long or short, hard or soft, internal or external; Wu Mei Pai [\u201cschool of thought\u201d] is a martial art that defies classification.\u201d<\/p>\n

Later founding martial arts styles such as Five-Pattern Hung Kuen<\/a> and Dragon Style, Mei is now respected as one of the legendary \u201cFive Elders,\u201d survivors of the arson of the Shaolin temple<\/a> during the Qing Dynasty<\/a>.<\/p>\n

W\u00fa Y\u00ed (\u5434\u4eea), 1938 \u2013 Present<\/h3>\n

\"wu
\n\u201cWu Yi is tiny but powerful. Not because she was vice premier of China. And not because she was China\u2019s chief trade negotiator, or because she was named three times to Forbes\u2019 \u2018Most Powerful Women in the World\u2019 list, or because when the going gets tough, all the top men of China send Wu to do the dirty work,\u201d writes the Daily Beast<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Born in Wuhan in 1938, Wu was named the \u201csecond most powerful woman in the world\u201d in 2004, \u201905, \u201907, and \u201cthird most powerful\u201d in 2006. From vice mayor to vice premier of the state council, Wu worked her way up to the health minister position during the early SARS outbreak, earning her a spot in TIME magazine\u2019s \u201c100 most influential of 2004\u201d listing. Retiring from Chinese politics in 2008, Wu is remembered as the \u201cIron Lady of China\u201d and the \u201cGoddess of Transparency\u201d for her exemplary work in public health.<\/p>\n

Women of modern China (\u73b0\u4ee3\u4e2d\u56fd\u5973\u6027), 2014<\/h2>\n

Mothers, grandmothers, workers, students, dreamers: The vast majority of China\u2019s 650 million-some females toil from daybreak to late into the night, every night, working to make their own futures and the futures of their loved ones as successful and prosperous as possible.<\/p>\n

\"1\"
\nWomen of all ages work jobs of all levels in the center of a Hunan province city.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"2\"<\/p>\n

Young women help sell the family\u2019s handmade z\u00f2ngzi (\u7cbd\u5b50), or glutinous rice balls wrapped in bamboo leaves, early in the morning during the Dragon Boat Festival (du\u0101nw\u01d4 ji\u00e9, \u7aef\u5348\u8282)<\/em><\/p>\n

\"3\"<\/p>\n

Female university students (and little sister) enjoy an evening of relaxation and fun singing karaoke at one of China\u2019s many popular KTV studios<\/em><\/p>\n

This March 8 \u2013 Women\u2019s Day \u2013 don\u2019t forget to show respect and appreciation to the most important women in your life. As history has shown us, even the most unlikely of heroines can grow up in the heart of the Middle Kingdom or the middle of nowhere!<\/p>\n

Now tell us: Who are your favorite or most inspirational heroines throughout Chinese history? Which Chinese female figure has had the greatest impression on you?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While every March 8 is recognized as International Women\u2019s Day in \u2013 not surprisingly \u2013 many nations, few countries go as far in showing admiration and appreciation as China. Taking a cue from their northern neighbors, the Soviet Communists, the Middle Kingdom first celebrated the day created to promote and press for equal rights for…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":4240,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[122],"post_series":[],"yoast_head":"\n8 Influential Women in Chinese History to Remember this Women's Day<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Who are your favorite or most inspirational heroines throughout Chinese history? 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