Kuan Han-ch'ing, c.1240-c.1320, Chinese playwright of the Yüan dynasty. He resided mainly in the capital Ta-tu (Beijing), where he acquired a reputation as a libertine. Of his 63 plays, 21 survive; six are incomplete or fragmentary. Most concern virtuous women who endure grave injustices without complaint, or whose moral integrity and intelligence bolster weak-willed men; three adventurous historical romances also remain.

Hu Han-min, 1879-1936, Chinese statesman. While studying law in Japan (1905) he was associated with Sun Yat-sen in revolutionary activities. After the revolution of 1911, Hu opposed Yüan Shih-k'ai and served Sun Yat-sen. His position in the Kuomintang and the Guangzhou government was such that he was considered a likely successor to Sun. However, he was forced to withdraw from political life in 1925 when his cousin was implicated in the murder of one of his rivals. He served the Nationalist government as president of the Legislative Yüan (1928-31). He led a Kuomintang faction opposed to Chiang Kai-shek, and his arrest by Chiang in 1931 led to a secessionist movement. Civil war was averted only by the need to unite following the Japanese takeover of Manchuria. After his release, Hu devoted himself to interpreting the political thought of Sun Yat-sen.

Han, dynasty of China that ruled from 202 B.C. to A.D. 220. Liu Pang, the first Han emperor, had been a farmer, minor village official, and guerrilla fighter under the Ch'in dynasty. During the period of civil strife that followed the fall of the Ch'in, he advanced from the Huai River valley, defeated his rivals for the throne, and then established himself in Chang'an (see Xi'an) near the old Ch'in capital. Under Liu Pang and the succeeding Han emperors the task of unification begun by the Ch'in was carried further. However, the harsh laws of the Ch'in were repealed, taxes were lightened, the absolute autocracy of the emperor was lessened, and, most importantly, Confucianism was made the basis of the state. The pyramidal bureaucracy of Ch'in administration was retained, and the Han period saw the beginnings of one of the distinguishing features of the Chinese educational and state system, the recruiting of members of the bureaucracy through civil service examinations. The dynasty attained its greatest territorial expanse under the emperor Wu Ti (reigned 140 B.C.-87 B.C.), who extended Han power W to Xinjiang and Central Asia, N to Manchuria and Korea, and S to Yunnan, Hainan island, and Vietnam. One of China's greatest historians, Ssu-ma Ch'ien, flourished during the reign of Wu Ti. The Han emperors ruled for 400 years with one interruption; in A.D. 8 an agrarian reformer usurped the throne and established the Hsin dynasty. This short-lived dynasty has come to mark the division between the Early, or Western, Han period and the Later, or Eastern, Han period, which began A.D. 25, when the Han capital was moved east to Luoyang. The entire Han era was one of political and cultural centralization and expansion. The writing brush and paper and ink came into wide use and the manufacture of porcelain had its beginnings in this period. Many classic texts were edited, and the first dictionary was compiled. The coming of Buddhism increased cultural ties with India and parts of the Middle East. Trade with border states was increased to pacify these regions and to gain their allegiance. The dynasty collapsed c.A.D. 220 and was followed by some 350 years of smaller political units, including the Three Kingdoms and the Tsin dynasty. China was eventually reunited under the Sui dynasty.

Han. 1 River of S China, 210 mi (338 km) long, rising in W Fujian prov. and flowing S through Guangdong prov. to the South China Sea at Shantou; navigable for about 100 mi (160 km) upstream. The densely populated delta is a rich agricultural area; two crops of rice are grown annually. Manganese and tungsten are mined in the upper valley. 2 River of central China, c.700 mi (1,130 km) long, rising in SW Shaanxi prov. and flowing E between the Qinling and the Daba mts., then SE through Hubei prov. to join the Chang at Wuhan; navigable for about 300 mi (480 km) upstream. The river floods its fertile lower valley in summer. There is a hydroelectric power station near Xiangfan, Hubei prov.

Fief controlled by a daimyo, or territorial lord, during the Tokugawa period (1603–1867) in Japan. Collectively, the han resembled a confederation of principalities united under the Tokugawa shogunate. In 1869 the daimyo were requested to surrender their domains to the Meiji emperor; in 1871 they were abolished and replaced by the present-day prefectures.

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or Kuan Han-ch'ing

(born 1241?, Dadu, China—died 1320?, China) Chinese dramatist. He belonged to a writers' guild that provided plays for performing groups. His plays often dealt with everyday events and sympathetically portrayed women of low social standing. He wrote over 60 plays, 14 of which survive, including Injustice to Dou E, Butterfly Dream, and Saving a Prostitute. Guan is often considered the greatest playwright of the Chinese classical theatre.

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