Fan Lihua

Fan Lihua (樊梨花) is a fictional folk heroine in Chinese folklore and a legendary female general from the Western Liang during the early years of the Tang dynasty.[1] She was the wife of Xue Dingshan and the daughter-in-law of the famous early Tang dynasty general Xue Rengui.[2][3]

Fan Lihua is one of the four folk heroines of ancient China along with Hua Mulan, Mu Guiying and Liang Hongyu. The story of her husband Xue Dingshan, fighting alongside each other on the battlefield is well-known and has had a far-reaching influence. Fan Lihua's legendary stories are expressed in various forms of literary and artistic works, especially in movies, TV dramas and songs.[4]

  1. ^ Hsu, Cho-yun (19 June 2012). China: A New Cultural History. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-52818-4.
  2. ^ "Could these historical heroines be Disney's new leading ladies?". South China Morning Post. 20 September 2019.
  3. ^ Chen, Fan Pen Li (21 June 2007). Chinese Shadow Theatre: History, Popular Religion, and Women Warriors. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. ISBN 978-0-7735-7599-8.
  4. ^ "《六郎罪子》《梨花罪子》 具古腔唱功 排場威風戲味濃 - 香港文匯報". Wenweipo (in Chinese). 27 December 2020.