Kanpou

Date of birth and death unknown. A historian of the Eastern Jin Dynasty in China in the mid-4th century. His courtesy name was Lingsheng. He was from Xin Cai (Henan Province). His talent was recognized and he was made a writer, and his official rank rose to the position of Sanqi Changshi. He was recommended to compile the 20 volumes of the Western Jin Dynasty's history, the Jinji, but it no longer exists. He also had a natural love for Yin-Yang magic and numerology, and at a time when stories of the supernatural were in vogue, he wrote the 20 volumes of the Sojinki, a collection of tales and observations about ghosts, gods, and supernatural phenomena. This book is rich in content and has excellent language, making it a masterpiece of the Six Dynasties' mysterious novels. It is also considered a groundbreaking work in the history of Chinese novels, as it provided many sources of material for later novels.

[Akira Takeda]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

生没年不詳。4世紀中ごろ、中国、東晋(とうしん)の歴史家。字(あざな)は令升(れいしょう)。新蔡(しんさい)（河南省）の人。才器を認められて著作郎となり、官は散騎常侍(さんきじょうじ)まで進んだ。推薦を受けて西晋の歴史『晋紀(しんき)』20巻を編纂(へんさん)したが現存しない。また彼は生来陰陽術数を好み、怪異を語る風潮が流行するなかで、鬼神・怪異に関する説話や見聞を集めた『捜神記(そうじんき)』20巻を著した。この書は、内容も豊富で文辞も優れ、六朝(りくちょう)志怪(しかい)小説の代表作とされ、また、後世の小説に多くの素材を提供している点でも、中国小説史上画期的な著述と評価される。

［竹田　晃］

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