Jian Youwen
Jian Youwen (simplified Chinese: 简又文; traditional Chinese: 簡又文; pinyin: Jiăn Yòuwén; Wade–Giles: Chien Yu-wen; Jyutping: Gaan2 Jau6 Man4, sometimes transliterated Jen Yu-wen or Kan Yau-man in older documents; 1896 – 1978) was a Chinese historian, public official, and sometime Methodist pastor, known in particular for his writings on the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. He taught at Yenching University, the University of Hong Kong, and Yale University.
Jian was born in Guangdong in 1896, the son of Jian Yinchu and Jian Wenliu, and educated at Lingnan School, where he was baptized as a Christian. His older brother, Kan Tat-Choy, became a wealthy entrepreneur and later built St. Mary's Episcopal Church in Causeway Bay. In 1914, Jian attended Oberlin College where he earned his undergraduate degree in 1917, and obtained his master's degree from the University of Chicago in 1919, then returned to China in 1921. In 1922, he accepted a position as General Editor at the Hong Kong YMCA's publications division, and in 1924 was appointed associate professor of religion at Yenching University, a post he held until 1927.
Jian joined the Nationalist Party in 1926 and developed a close relationship with General Feng Yuxiang, the "Christian Warlord", who appointed him head of his political department in 1927. After that party formed a government the same year, Jian held a variety of posts including salt commissioner, overseeing the traditional salt monopoly. His interest in politics grew, and from 1933 to 1946 he was a member of the legislature. He recalled his experiences with the Kuomintang in his biography, 西北从军记 (Xibei congjun ji, Record of my military days in the northwest), which was published posthumously in 1982.
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