Was 8th Century China Meritocratic?

Two of the most important, but widely overlooked aspects of East Asian culture are widespread belief in meritocracy and social mobility. Confucius himself endorsed these ideals, which were strengthened in the 7th century when Empress Wu Zetian opened up the bureaucracy. Any man could sit the keju civil service exam. Meritorious men became highly-esteemed officials.

But was 8th Century China truly meritocratic? Surely elites had far greater resources to support their sons’ education and arrange promotions via nepotism?

Wu Zetian, as depicted in an 18th century album of portraits.

Examination cells, Beijing

Fangqi Wen, Erik Wang and Michael Hout have a new paper analysing social mobility during the Tang Dynasty (618–907 CE). Building on earlier work by Nicholas Tackett, they have constructed a dataset from 3,640 tomb epitaphs! These detail:

• The deceased’s man career

• If he passed the imperial exam (Keju)

• Father’s and grandfather’s occupations

• Ancestral ‘branch’.

Wen, Wang and Hout 2024