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Ju-k'ang T'ien

1916 – 2007

Chinese anthropologist and historian

Social anthropologist
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About Ju-k'ang T'ien

Lived 1916 – 2007 (aged 90–91). Ju-k'ang T'ien was a social anthropologist.

Tien Ju-K'ang (; 1916–2006) was a Chinese anthropologist and historian, best known for his work on the Chinese of Sarawak. Other works concerned the history of Protestantism in China, medical anthropology and the Dai people.

Born in Kunming, he first studied at Peking Normal University (1935-1937) before going abroad to the London School of Economics, initially to study psychology. On the advice of Raymond Firth, he switched to anthropology. His 1953 work The Chinese of Sarawak, A Study of Social Structure drew on his fieldwork in 1948 and 1949 and gives a rare mid-20th century scholarly account of a Borneo society. Though a professor at Fudan University, he faced persecution for his overseas connections (including siblings who had studied overseas and his own Chinese Canadian wife) beginning in 1952, and during the Cultural Revolution twice attempted suicide. However, in the post-Mao era, he returned to active scholarship and received numerous invitations to lecture abroad. For his Morrison Lecture in 1981, he lectured on the history of his native province, "Moslem Rebellion in China: A Yunnan Controversy," about what is now generally known as the Panthay Rebellion.

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Important facts

Born
1916
Birth century
Died
2007
Occupation
Social anthropologist
Also known as
Ju-Kʻang Tʻien, Rukang Tian, T'ien Ju-K'Ang, Tian Rukang, Tʻien Ju-kʻang, 田汝康
moreTien Ju-K'ang

People in Ju-k'ang T'ien's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Ju-k'ang T'ien's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Ju-k'ang T'ien?

Chinese anthropologist and historian

When was Ju-k'ang T'ien born?

Ju-k'ang T'ien was born in 1916.

When did Ju-k'ang T'ien die?

Ju-k'ang T'ien died in 2007.

What was Ju-k'ang T'ien's occupation?

Ju-k'ang T'ien was a social anthropologist.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Ju-k'ang T'ien

· Wikidata: Q97065226

· DBpedia: Tien Ju-K'ang

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Ju-k'ang T'ien. https://biography.guide/ju-k-ang-t-ien/

MLA: "Ju-k'ang T'ien." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/ju-k-ang-t-ien/.

Chicago: "Ju-k'ang T'ien." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/ju-k-ang-t-ien/.

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