This two-volume set examines the social history of the Hanjiang River region of southern China from the Song Dynasty to modern times, shedding light on the complex relationship between local societies and state power in traditional China.

Through a careful analysis of social change over the centuries, the study shows how religious beliefs, administrative systems, cultural etiquette and ethnic interactions in the middle and lower reaches of the Hanjiang River shaped regional development. Local communities in the region navigated periods of social upheaval, dynastic change and economic transformation with remarkable adaptability. The two volumes show how the people of the Hanjiang River region skilfully combined local traditions with state resources as they integrated into the unified dynastic state - undergoing successive waves of orthodoxy, militarisation, commercialisation and internationalisation. Their experiences offer a microcosmic view of China's broader historical development.

This set is an invaluable resource for scholars and students of pre-modern and modern Chinese social history and historical anthropology.

Chen Chunsheng is Professor at the Department of History, Sun Yat-sen University, China and Chair of the Steering Committee for Guidance in History Teaching of the Ministry of Education of China. His research interests include Chinese social history, economic history, and historical theory. He has significant contributions in historical measurement research and traditional rural society studies.