La figura di Zhou Qufei e il valore storico della sua opera geografica Lingwai Daida

This paper will introduce western scholars to the geographical work, Lingwai Daida岭外代答, Notes from the lands beyond the Passes, written by Zhou Qufei in 1178. It can be divided in three parts. First, the author will try to define which versions are available nowadays, then you will focus on the work’s structure and its main features, in the end, the search will led us to compare Zhou’s work and Fan Chengda’s Guihai yuheng zhi桂海虞衡志 (On Guihai rural affairs). The main aim is to underline the importance and the historical value of Daida, in the framework of overseas relationships of Chinese empire. Lingwai Daida includes 10 rolls, 21 chapters and 294 sections. Every chapter provides information about different topics (from administrative divisions and local resources of Guangxi region to overseas reigns which had trading contacts with Chinese empire). Zhou was influenced by his predecessor Fan Chengda and his geographical treatise, but he provides much more details concerning foreign countries and his structure is more complete and cohesive. The present work will explain these differences.