What is the most commonly used four-part classification of books in ancient China:

China's ancient classification of books, referred to as the four-part classification, the four basic categories for the "Economics, history, son, collection ", the Qing Dynasty "Siku Quanshu" that is, compiled in this classification.

The ancient four-part classification has gone through a process of proposal, refinement and finalization. This process started around the Western Han Dynasty, and went through the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Three Kingdoms, the Two Jin Dynasties, the Northern and Southern Dynasties until the Sui and Tang Dynasties, a period of about a thousand years.

The earliest works exploring book classification appeared in the Western Han Dynasty. Emperor Cheng of the Han Dynasty ordered Liu Xiang and others to generalize the books. After Liu Xiang's death, Emperor Ai of the Han Dynasty ordered Liu Xin, who was then a riding lieutenant, to succeed his father's work, and "Xin then generalized the group of books and worked on his 'Seven Lore'."

Ban Gu, a famous historian of the Western Han Dynasty, used the book classification method in his book "Han Shu - Art and Culture Zhi", which is basically the same as that of Liu Xin's "Seven Strategies", **** there are "Six Strategies".

The name of "four parts" appeared in the Three Kingdoms, but its exact meaning was not the later classification of "scripture, history, son, collection".

Mr. Zhou Yu-tong, a famous historian, believes that people in Han and Wei Dynasty generally referred to "Le", "Analects", "Xiaojing" and "Primary School" as "Four Parts" in addition to "Five Classics".

In the early years of the Western Jin Dynasty, Xun Castor, the Secretary General, divided the books of the time into four parts: "A", "B", "C" and "D".

In the early years of the Western Jin Dynasty, Xun Castor, the Secretary Supervisor, categorized the books into "A", "B", "C", "D" and "D".

Xun Castor experienced Cao Wei and Western Jin Dynasty, since childhood, smart and studious. Wei Secretary Lang Zheng Mo began to system "in the scripture", Secretary Supervisor Xun Castor and because of the "in the scripture" more "new book", divided into four parts. Qian Daxin, a famous historian of the Qing Dynasty, fully recognized Xun Castor's four-part classification method, that "the division of the four parts, actually began here."

The Eastern Jin Dynasty, when Li Chong served as a writer, the books were very confusing. He sorted out the books, deleted the heavy, and then divided them into four categories, "A, B as the second, since then, followed, no change."

Qian Daxin believes that, since then, "'Jing' 'history' 'son' 'set ' was finalized."

Since the Sui and Tang dynasties, the four-part classification of books has basically been finalized, and has become the most basic classification of books that people follow.

Sui-Shu-jingji Zhi will be in accordance with the books of the "Jing", "history", "Zi", "collection " classification. Later, due to the "son of" books less, people often "interpretation", "Tao", "square technology" and other books into the The Department.

Qing Dynasty, the Qianlong period, the organization of China's history into the largest book series - "Siku Quanshu", *** collection of 3503 kinds of books, 79,337 volumes. Because the content of the book according to the "scripture" "history" "son" "set" four divisions, and is contained in the content of the unprecedented a Books, so the name "Siku Quanshu". This is the representative work of the four parts of the classification of books in the history of China.