Histoire de l’alimentation chinoise : bilan bibliographique (1911-2011)

Abstract

This article is an assessment of the research carried out on “Chinese food culture” both in China itself and outside this country in the last century. While the work published on this topic, even in China, between 1911 and 1978 is very limited indeed, the Economic Reform brought about an unprecedented increase of publications some thirty years after its launch. At the same time, an inquiry into the published work outside of China proper shows that Japanese sinologists were the first to show an interest in Chinese food history and that they were the authors of top quality contributions as of the end of the Second World War. Likewise, in the U.S., in Taiwan and in Europe a certain curiosity for the history of food took hold as of the end of the 1970’s. A variety of interesting contributions were published in these countries even though it cannot be said that a more widespread research movement managed to take hold. This overall assessment is based on various bibliographical essays published by Chinese specialists who, especially the younger ones among them are quite explicit in their criticism of the work that has been published on Chinese food culture in China, which they consider to be quite unscientific. However, it would seem that, as of the middle of the last decade, the increased amount of publications, as well as a greater interest for research done abroad, is contributing to a very clear improvement of the quality in this domain.