Yang Yanzhao | |
|---|---|
 from one 1892 print of the novel Legends of Generals of the Yang Family (楊家將傳)[1] | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 958 likely modern Taiyuan, Shanxi |
| Died | 9 February 1014 (aged 56) modern Baoding, Hebei |
| Children |
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| Father | Yang Ye |
| Full name | Surname: Liú (劉), changed to Yáng (楊), his father's original surname, in 979 with his father Given name: Yánlǎng (延朗), changed to Yánzhāo (延昭) in 1012 |
| Nickname | "Yang's 6th son" (楊六郎) |
| Yang Yanzhao | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 楊延昭 | ||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 杨延昭 | ||||||||||||||
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Yang Yanzhao (楊延昭) (c. 958 – 9 February 1014), named Yang Yanlang (楊延朗) before 1012, was a military general in ancient China's Northern Song Dynasty. For over 2 decades he defended Song's northern border against the Khitan-ruled Liao Dynasty, helping Song thwart Liao's repeated invasion attempts between 999 and 1004.
He was one of Yang Ye's 7 sons. History of Song mentions that he was called Yang Liulang (楊六郎, literally "Yang's 6th son") by the Khitans who feared him. In the largely fictional legends of Generals of the Yang Family, Yang Yanzhao is Yang Ye's 6th eldest son to explain this nickname,[2] even though historians believe he was actually the eldest or 2nd eldest son.
- ^ Essentially the same novel, with slight modifications by publishers and editors, as the second half of Records of the Two Songs, South and North (兩宋南北志傳) written by Xiong Damu (熊大木) in the late 16th century.
- ^ It's unclear today what the nickname means. Some historians believe the Khitan people referred to sirius as liulang xing (六郎星; "6th Son Star"), so the nickname conferred a degree of respect, as important generals were believed to be reincarnations of stars. Some believe there had been a scribal error in History of Song, since the words "Eldest son" (大郎) and "Sixth son" (六郎) are very similar in writing. Some believe "Liulang" is simply a transliteration of a nickname in the still undeciphered Khitan language. Others believe he was indeed the 6th oldest of the generation if cousins are included.