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Nathan Sivin

October 14, 2023

Nathan Sivin (11 May 1931 – 24 June 2022), also known as Xiwen (Chinese: 席文), was an American sinologist, historian, essayist, educator, and writer. He taught first at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, then at the University of Pennsylvania until his retirement in 2006.[1]

The major areas of study and focus in Nathan Sivin's career and publications were history of science and technology in China, medicine in traditional China, Chinese philosophy, and Chinese religious beliefs. He was a key player in the development of their scholarly study in the West. He collaborated with prominent scholars, such as G.E.R. Lloyd, A.C. Graham and Joseph Needham, and nurtured younger ones.

His wife was the artist Carole Delmore Sivin, who died in 2020. For many years they lived in Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania. [2]

In 1977 he was elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.[3] He was president of the Philadelphia literary society, Franklin Inn Club, 1996-1998.

Education and career Edit

From 1954 until 1956, Sivin was enrolled in an 18-month language program for Chinese at the U.S. Army Language School. He then went on to receive his Bachelor of Science degree in humanities with a chemistry minor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1958. He received his A.M. in the history of science at Harvard University in 1960, and his Ph.D. in the history of science at Harvard University in 1966. He received an honorary M.A. at the University of Pennsylvania.[4]

In 1966, at MIT, Nathan Sivin served as an assistant professor of humanities, associate professor in 1969, and professor from 1972 until 1977, where he then moved to the University of Pennsylvania as a professor of Chinese culture and history of science.

Sivin studied abroad on many occasions. From October 1961 to August 1962 he studied Chinese language and philosophy in Taipei, Taiwan. From August 1962 to March 1963 he studied the history of Chinese alchemy in Singapore and provided guest lectures there. From the 1960s until the 1980s he was an avid visitor to Kyoto, Japan, where he acted as a visiting professor, studied at the Research Institute of Humanistic Studies, and studied Chinese astronomy, alchemy, and medicine. From 1974 to 2000 he made numerous trips to Cambridge in order to study Chinese astronomy, visiting Gonville and Caius College, the Needham Research Institute, and St. John's College in the process. From the late 1970s until the late 1990s he traveled several times to the People's Republic of China. In September 1979 he lectured in seminars at the École Pratique des Hautes Etudes of Paris, France, and at the Sinologisches Seminar at the University of Würzburg in Germany in 1981. Sivin also spoke several foreign languages, including Mandarin, Japanese, German, and French.

Along with various responsibilities at the University of Pennsylvania, throughout his career Sivin was also an elective member of numerous societies and committees. This included the American Society for the Study of Religion, the Philomathean Society, the Académie Internationale d'Histoire des Sciences, the T'ang Studies Society, and many others.

In 2010, his volume Granting the Seasons: The Chinese Astronomical Reform of 1280 was the first recipient of the Osterbrock Book Prize, awarded by the American Astronomical Society. “I am not a historian of astronomy,” he told the committee, “but a generalist who has investigated all of the Chinese sciences and every period of Chinese history." He began work on the project in the 1970s, and was impressed that the large scale and lavish funding from the thirteenth century Chinese government were remarkable compared to the limited support for mathematical astronomy in Europe before modern times. [5]

Along with numerous book publications, articles, chapters, and edited volumes, Sivin gave over 200 lectures throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America.

In his last years he was working on several projects, including a biography on the Song Dynasty polymath scientist Shen Kuo and a translation into English of a Yuan Dynasty calendrical treatise published in 1279 AD, the Season-Granting (a hallmark of Chinese mathematical astronomy).

Selected works Edit

In a statistical overview derived from writings by and about Nathan Sivin, OCLC/WorldCat encompasses roughly 50 works in 80+ publications in 7 languages and 4,000+ library holdings.[6]

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.
  • 1968. Chinese Alchemy: Preliminary Studies. Harvard Monographs in the History of Science, 1. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Chinese translation, Taipei: National Translation Bureau, 1973.
  • 1969. Cosmos and Computation in Early Chinese Mathematical Astronomy. Leiden: E. J. Brill. Separate book version of 1969 essay (see below).
  • 1973. Chinese Science: Explorations of an Ancient Tradition. MIT East Asian Science Series, 2. Edited by Shigeru Nakayama & N.S. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Includes an introduction and three articles by N.S., listed below.
  • 1977. Science and Technology in East Asia. Articles from Isis, 1913–1975. Selected and edited by N.S. New York: Science History Publications. Includes an introduction and an article by N.S., listed below.
  • 1979. Astronomy in Contemporary China. A Trip Report of the American Astronomy Delegation. By ten members of the Delegation. CSCPRC Reports, 7. Washington, DC: National Academy of Sciences. Includes several contributions by N.S., including a chapter on the history of astronomy.
  • 1980. Science and Civilisation in China. Vol. 5, Part 4. Chemical Discovery. By Joseph Needham, Lu Gwei-djen, Ho Ping-yu, & N.S. Cambridge, England: At the University Press. Includes a section by N.S. on the theoretical background of laboratory alchemy.
  • 1984. Chūgoku no Kopernikusu (Copernicus in China), trans. Nakayama Shigeru & Ushiyama Teruyo 牛山輝代. Selected essays by N.S., 1. Tokyo: Shisakusha.
  • 1985. Chūgoku no renkinjutsu to ijutsu (Chinese alchemy and medicine), trans. Nakayama & Ushiyama. Idem, 2.
  • 1987. Traditional Medicine in Contemporary China. A Partial Translation of Revised Outline of Chinese Medicine (1972) with an Introductory Study on Change in Present-day and Early Medicine. Science, Medicine and Technology in East Asia, 2. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, Center for Chinese Studies.
  • 1988. Contemporary Atlas of China. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Consulting Editor. German translation: Bildatlas China. München: Südwest, 1989.
  • 1989. Science and Medicine in Twentieth-Century China: Research and Education, ed. John Z. Bowers, William J. Hess, & N.S. Science, Medicine, and Technology in East Asia, 3. Ann Arbor: Center for Chinese Studies, University of Michigan.
  • 1995. Science in Ancient China. Researches and Reflections. Variorum Collected Studies Series. Aldershot, Hants: Variorum.
  • 1995. Medicine, Philosophy and Religion in Ancient China. Researches and Reflections. Variorum Collected Studies Series. Idem.
  • 1996. History of Humanity. Scientific and Cultural Development. Vol. III. From the Seventh Century BC to the Seventh Century AD, ed. J. Herrmann & E. Zürcher. Paris: UNESCO. Integrated contributions on science, medicine, and technology.
  • 2000. Science and Civilisation in China. Vol. 6, pt. 6. Medicine. Edited and with an Introduction by N.S. Cambridge University Press.
  • 2002. The Way and the Word. Science and Medicine in Early Greece and China (with Sir Geoffrey Lloyd). Yale University Press.
  • Sivin, Nathan. 2005. “A Multi-dimensional Approach to Research on Ancient Science”. East Asian Science, Technology, and Medicine, no. 23. Temporary Publisher: 10–25. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43150669.
  • 2008. Granting the Seasons: The Chinese Astronomical Reform of 1280, With a Study of Its Many Dimensions and A Translation of Its Records. Springer.

See also Edit

References and further reading Edit

  • Hanson, Marta; Smith, Hilary; Nylan, Michael (2023). "Eloge: Nathan Sivin (1931-2022)". Isis. 114 (1): 182–186. doi:10.1086/723498. S2CID 257051265.
  • Nakayama, Shigeru (1995), "Working with Nathan Sivin: Four Decades", East Asian Science, Technology, and Medicine, 12 (1): 6–9, doi:10.1163/26669323-01201004, S2CID 164449074
  • Rosemont, Henry (2008), "Nathan Sivin: A Man for All Seasons", Asia Major, 21 (1): 1–14, JSTOR 4164993.
  • "Star Gazing, Firephasing, And Healing In China: Essays In Honor Of Nathan Sivin", Asia Major, 21 (1), 2009 A festschrift including essays by Anthony C. Yu, Roger T. Ames, G.E.R. Lloyd, Michael Nylan, John S. Major, Sarah A. Queen, and Marta E. Hanson.

Notes Edit

  1. ^ "Nathan Sivin, History and Sociology of Science". University of Pennaylvania Almanac. University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
  2. ^ "Carole Delmore Sivin". Jacob F. Ruth. Jacob F. Ruth Funeral Director. 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
  3. ^ "Nathan Sivin". American Academy of Arts &Sciences. American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
  4. ^ HansonSmithNylan (2023), p. 182.
  5. ^ "Historian of Chinese Astronomy Wins Osterbrock Book Prize". Spaceref. American Astronomical Society. 7 November 2010. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  6. ^ WorldCat Identities: Sivin, Nathan

External links Edit

  • Sivin at the University of Pennsylvania
  • PDFs of many of Sivin's important contributions

October 14, 2023
nathan, sivin, 1931, june, 2022, also, known, xiwen, chinese, 席文, american, sinologist, historian, essayist, educator, writer, taught, first, massachusetts, institute, technology, then, university, pennsylvania, until, retirement, 2006, major, areas, study, fo. Nathan Sivin 11 May 1931 24 June 2022 also known as Xiwen Chinese 席文 was an American sinologist historian essayist educator and writer He taught first at Massachusetts Institute of Technology then at the University of Pennsylvania until his retirement in 2006 1 The major areas of study and focus in Nathan Sivin s career and publications were history of science and technology in China medicine in traditional China Chinese philosophy and Chinese religious beliefs He was a key player in the development of their scholarly study in the West He collaborated with prominent scholars such as G E R Lloyd A C Graham and Joseph Needham and nurtured younger ones His wife was the artist Carole Delmore Sivin who died in 2020 For many years they lived in Chestnut Hill Pennsylvania 2 In 1977 he was elected to the American Academy of Arts amp Sciences 3 He was president of the Philadelphia literary society Franklin Inn Club 1996 1998 Contents 1 Education and career 2 Selected works 3 See also 4 References and further reading 5 Notes 6 External linksEducation and career EditFrom 1954 until 1956 Sivin was enrolled in an 18 month language program for Chinese at the U S Army Language School He then went on to receive his Bachelor of Science degree in humanities with a chemistry minor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1958 He received his A M in the history of science at Harvard University in 1960 and his Ph D in the history of science at Harvard University in 1966 He received an honorary M A at the University of Pennsylvania 4 In 1966 at MIT Nathan Sivin served as an assistant professor of humanities associate professor in 1969 and professor from 1972 until 1977 where he then moved to the University of Pennsylvania as a professor of Chinese culture and history of science Sivin studied abroad on many occasions From October 1961 to August 1962 he studied Chinese language and philosophy in Taipei Taiwan From August 1962 to March 1963 he studied the history of Chinese alchemy in Singapore and provided guest lectures there From the 1960s until the 1980s he was an avid visitor to Kyoto Japan where he acted as a visiting professor studied at the Research Institute of Humanistic Studies and studied Chinese astronomy alchemy and medicine From 1974 to 2000 he made numerous trips to Cambridge in order to study Chinese astronomy visiting Gonville and Caius College the Needham Research Institute and St John s College in the process From the late 1970s until the late 1990s he traveled several times to the People s Republic of China In September 1979 he lectured in seminars at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes of Paris France and at the Sinologisches Seminar at the University of Wurzburg in Germany in 1981 Sivin also spoke several foreign languages including Mandarin Japanese German and French Along with various responsibilities at the University of Pennsylvania throughout his career Sivin was also an elective member of numerous societies and committees This included the American Society for the Study of Religion the Philomathean Society the Academie Internationale d Histoire des Sciences the T ang Studies Society and many others In 2010 his volume Granting the Seasons The Chinese Astronomical Reform of 1280 was the first recipient of the Osterbrock Book Prize awarded by the American Astronomical Society I am not a historian of astronomy he told the committee but a generalist who has investigated all of the Chinese sciences and every period of Chinese history He began work on the project in the 1970s and was impressed that the large scale and lavish funding from the thirteenth century Chinese government were remarkable compared to the limited support for mathematical astronomy in Europe before modern times 5 Along with numerous book publications articles chapters and edited volumes Sivin gave over 200 lectures throughout Europe Asia Australia and North America In his last years he was working on several projects including a biography on the Song Dynasty polymath scientist Shen Kuo and a translation into English of a Yuan Dynasty calendrical treatise published in 1279 AD the Season Granting a hallmark of Chinese mathematical astronomy Selected works EditIn a statistical overview derived from writings by and about Nathan Sivin OCLC WorldCat encompasses roughly 50 works in 80 publications in 7 languages and 4 000 library holdings 6 This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources 1968 Chinese Alchemy Preliminary Studies Harvard Monographs in the History of Science 1 Cambridge MA Harvard University Press Chinese translation Taipei National Translation Bureau 1973 1969 Cosmos and Computation in Early Chinese Mathematical Astronomy Leiden E J Brill Separate book version of 1969 essay see below 1973 Chinese Science Explorations of an Ancient Tradition MIT East Asian Science Series 2 Edited by Shigeru Nakayama amp N S Cambridge MA MIT Press Includes an introduction and three articles by N S listed below 1977 Science and Technology in East Asia Articles from Isis 1913 1975 Selected and edited by N S New York Science History Publications Includes an introduction and an article by N S listed below 1979 Astronomy in Contemporary China A Trip Report of the American Astronomy Delegation By ten members of the Delegation CSCPRC Reports 7 Washington DC National Academy of Sciences Includes several contributions by N S including a chapter on the history of astronomy 1980 Science and Civilisation in China Vol 5 Part 4 Chemical Discovery By Joseph Needham Lu Gwei djen Ho Ping yu amp N S Cambridge England At the University Press Includes a section by N S on the theoretical background of laboratory alchemy 1984 Chugoku no Kopernikusu Copernicus in China trans Nakayama Shigeru amp Ushiyama Teruyo 牛山輝代 Selected essays by N S 1 Tokyo Shisakusha 1985 Chugoku no renkinjutsu to ijutsu Chinese alchemy and medicine trans Nakayama amp Ushiyama Idem 2 1987 Traditional Medicine in Contemporary China A Partial Translation of Revised Outline of Chinese Medicine 1972 with an Introductory Study on Change in Present day and Early Medicine Science Medicine and Technology in East Asia 2 Ann Arbor University of Michigan Center for Chinese Studies 1988 Contemporary Atlas of China Boston Houghton Mifflin Consulting Editor German translation Bildatlas China Munchen Sudwest 1989 1989 Science and Medicine in Twentieth Century China Research and Education ed John Z Bowers William J Hess amp N S Science Medicine and Technology in East Asia 3 Ann Arbor Center for Chinese Studies University of Michigan 1995 Science in Ancient China Researches and Reflections Variorum Collected Studies Series Aldershot Hants Variorum 1995 Medicine Philosophy and Religion in Ancient China Researches and Reflections Variorum Collected Studies Series Idem 1996 History of Humanity Scientific and Cultural Development Vol III From the Seventh Century BC to the Seventh Century AD ed J Herrmann amp E Zurcher Paris UNESCO Integrated contributions on science medicine and technology 2000 Science and Civilisation in China Vol 6 pt 6 Medicine Edited and with an Introduction by N S Cambridge University Press 2002 The Way and the Word Science and Medicine in Early Greece and China with Sir Geoffrey Lloyd Yale University Press Sivin Nathan 2005 A Multi dimensional Approach to Research on Ancient Science East Asian Science Technology and Medicine no 23 Temporary Publisher 10 25 https www jstor org stable 43150669 2008 Granting the Seasons The Chinese Astronomical Reform of 1280 With a Study of Its Many Dimensions and A Translation of Its Records Springer See also EditList of Sinologists List of American authors List of historians History of China Technology of the Song DynastyReferences and further reading EditHanson Marta Smith Hilary Nylan Michael 2023 Eloge Nathan Sivin 1931 2022 Isis 114 1 182 186 doi 10 1086 723498 S2CID 257051265 Nakayama Shigeru 1995 Working with Nathan Sivin Four Decades East Asian Science Technology and Medicine 12 1 6 9 doi 10 1163 26669323 01201004 S2CID 164449074 Rosemont Henry 2008 Nathan Sivin A Man for All Seasons Asia Major 21 1 1 14 JSTOR 4164993 Star Gazing Firephasing And Healing In China Essays In Honor Of Nathan Sivin Asia Major 21 1 2009 A festschrift including essays by Anthony C Yu Roger T Ames G E R Lloyd Michael Nylan John S Major Sarah A Queen and Marta E Hanson Notes Edit Nathan Sivin History and Sociology of Science University of Pennaylvania Almanac University of Pennsylvania Retrieved 21 July 2022 Carole Delmore Sivin Jacob F Ruth Jacob F Ruth Funeral Director 2020 Retrieved 21 July 2022 Nathan Sivin American Academy of Arts amp Sciences American Academy of Arts and Sciences Retrieved 21 July 2022 HansonSmithNylan 2023 p 182 Historian of Chinese Astronomy Wins Osterbrock Book Prize Spaceref American Astronomical Society 7 November 2010 Retrieved 26 July 2022 WorldCat Identities Sivin NathanExternal links EditSivin at the University of Pennsylvania PDFs of many of Sivin s important contributions Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Nathan Sivin amp oldid 1160851299, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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