There are rough parallels with the Middle Ages in Europe. On either side of the river's divide, political fragmentation marked most of the medieval era's eight centuries. A consequence was that locally prominent families assumed functions normally carried out by the state. But theories about medieval China are continually evolving. Early Medieval China serves as a forum for scholars from the P.R.C., Taiwan, Japan, the U.S., and other countries to present new scholarship on the period.
Interdisciplinary collaboration tends to characterize the new research.
The journal was founded in 1994 at Western Michigan University. Thanks to funding from a private foundation, and support received from CLAS and the Office of Research and Graduate Programs, the journal will now be not only edited at UF but also published and distributed from Florida. Yumiko Hulvey Yumiko cites her bicultural heritage as the impetus for choosing to study classical Japanese poetry and prose at the University of California, Berkeley. I was inspired to learn Japanese because I wanted to read my mother's letters, written in a strong, flowing calligraphic hand. People of both China and Japan believe that a good hand indicates character and breeding, so coming from a background in studio art and art history, I was naturally drawn to the visual aspects of calligraphy.