Biography.guide
Home › People › Poet › Ding Wei
Portrait of Ding Wei

Ding Wei

966 – 1037

Song dynasty chancellor

Don't just read it — keep itBiographies to ownE-book · Audio · Video From $7 →

About Ding Wei

Lived 966 – 1037 (aged 70–71). Ding Wei was a Chinese poet.

Ding Wei ( 966 – June 1037), courtesy name Gongyan, was a Song dynasty chancellor, who dominated the courts during Emperor Zhenzong's later reign and Emperor Renzong's early reign.

Ding Wei's opponent Wang Zeng claimed that Ding was considered one of the "Five Devils", along with Wang Qinruo, Lin Te , Chen Pengnian and Liu Chenggui , a group of high-ranking ministers unpopular at the time. In the centuries to follow, Ding Wei has almost always been portrayed as a treacherous minister in popular fiction.

Early career Ding Wei once wrote a prose essay with his friend Sun He that quite impressed Wang Yucheng, a leading literati. Wang Yucheng considered their writing the best in China since Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan almost two centuries ago. In 992, Ding Wei passed the imperial examination and became the controller-general of Raozhou. A year later, he accompanied the crown prince Zhao Yuankan to inspect Fujian. Upon his return, he presented a report on salt and tea, and was made fiscal commissioner.

Notes and references

Biography shop

Don’t just read it —
keep it.

Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.

  • E-book
  • Audio
  • Video
Browse the shop — from $7

Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free

Important facts

Born
966, Suzhou
Birth century
Died
1037, Guangzhou
Occupation
Nationality
Also known as
Weizhi, Gongyan

People in Ding Wei's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Ding Wei's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Ding Wei?

Song dynasty chancellor

When was Ding Wei born?

Ding Wei was born in 966 in Suzhou.

When did Ding Wei die?

Ding Wei died in 1037 in Guangzhou.

What was Ding Wei's occupation?

Ding Wei was a poet.

What nationality was Ding Wei?

Ding Wei was Chinese.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Ding Wei

· Wikidata: Q10864404

· DBpedia: Ding Wei (Song dynasty)

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Ding Wei. https://biography.guide/ding-wei/

MLA: "Ding Wei." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/ding-wei/.

Chicago: "Ding Wei." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/ding-wei/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Page generated 2026-09-27 05:15 UTC