Lists of candidates who were successful in the Civil and Military Service Examinations held in Guangzhou were published by the Govenor's Yamen during the years of the Ch'ing Dynasty. These lists usually named the year, examination level, name, pedigree, home village (or town) and county for each successful candidate, with pedigrees usually going back for nine generations. As such they are valuable genealogical sources.
Unfortunately unsuccessful candidates, and that was the overwhelming majority, do not seem to have been recorded. Very few lists of candidates for examinations held at the county or district level have survived. Lists for examinations held at the capital do survive, but they are much less useful as there were many fewer candidates coming from widely dispersed locations. Consequently they are not considered here.
There are also a number of secondary sources derived from these lists, mainly lists of civil and military service personnel in Guangdong. These are less valuable, but they can throw light on the careers of those mentioned.
All the sources are in traditional Chinese script. Unfortunately my knowledge of that is very limited, so my translation of their titles is a somewhat dodgy.
The sources listed below, are the only ones I know about. If you know of any others, please contact me with the details.
The Center for Chinese Research Materials was established in 1968 by the Joint Committee on Contemporary China of the Social Science Research Council and the American Council of Learned Societies to locate, reproduce and distribute rare and valuable materials on contemporary China, and to provide bibliographic services to students and scholars in the field of Chinese studies.
They may be contacted at:
Extensive collections of their publications are held by the University of Michigan Asia Library, Cornell University Library, University of British Columbia Library, University of Toronto Library, Harvard University Library, University of California (Los Angeles) East Asia Library and University of Hong Kong Library. Interlibrary loans are available from these institutions.
| Title | English | Dates | Location |
| 廣 東 鄉 試 錄 [Guangdong xiang shi lu] |
List of Successful Candidates in the Imperial Examinations in Guangdong Province | 1852, 1900 | mfm O 2179 |
| 廣 東 同 官 錄 [Guangdong tong guan lu] |
List of Fellow Officials in Guangdong Province | 1880, 1915 | n/a |
Note: The location is the catalogue number in the National Library of Australia.
The Genealogical Society of Utah was established in 1894 by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Almost immediately they began assembling a library of genealogical material. Since 1985 the library has been located at:
Copies of their material may be obtained on loan for a fee at any of their branch Family History Centers. These can be located here.
| Title | English | Dates | Location |
| 清末廣東縣級科舉取士紀實 | The End of the Ch’ing Guangdong County-Level Imperial Civil Service Examination selected Scholars for Public Office the On-the-Spot Report | 1644-1912 | Film #1210529 Item 3 |
| 廣東闈墨 : [光緒]恩科并庚子正科 | Guangdong ? ? : [Guang Xu] ? ? and Geng Zi ? ? | n/a | Film #1210533 Item 16 |
| 廣東鄉試題名錄, 雍正 13-光緒 20 | Dongxiang county general candidate roster, Yong Zheng 13 - Guang Xu 20 | 1735, 1760, 1762, 1765, 1770, 1804, 1807, 1808, 1810, 1816, 1818, 1819, 1825, 1828, 1831, 1832, 1844, 1849, 1893, 1894 | Film #1357534 Items 86-105 |
| 廣東鄉試錄, 順治 8-光緒 23 | Guangdong Provincial Civil Service Examination Records, during the reign of Guang Xu 8-23 | 1651, 1699, 1702, 1705, unknown, 1738, 1741, 1747, 1759, 1760, 1762, 1768, 1770, 1795, 1807, 1808, 1816, 1818, 1822, 1825, 1831, missing, 1851, 1862, 1894, 1897 | Film #1357544 Items 6-31 |
| 廣東校士錄 : [4卷] | Guangdong Gentry Scholastic Records [4 volumes] | n/a | Film #1210534 |
| 廣東武鄉試錄 | Guangdong Provincial Military Service Examination Records | 1687, 1736, 1741, 1747, 1752, 1753, 1756, 1768, 1771, 1798, 1800, 1804, 1807, 1810, 1813, 1816, 1818, 1819, 1831, 1834, 1840, 1843, 1846 | Film #1357537 Items 26-48 |
| 廣東武鄉試錄 | Guangdong Provincial Military Service Examination Records | unknown, 1741, 1759, 1770, 1861, 1862, 1893, 1894 | Film #1357549 Items 4-11 |
Note: The location is the film number in the Catalogue of the Family History Library.
The Richard C. Rudolph East Asian Library was established in 1948 to support the teaching and research programs in East Asian Studies at the University of California of Los Angeles. These references are of resources at the library extracted from lists supplied by various lecturers, and have not been examined personally.
| Title | English | Dates | Location |
| 廣 東 鄉 試 [Guangdong xiang shi] |
Civil Provincial Examinations Guangdong Province | 1729(2), 1733, 1738, 1741, 1794, 1813, 1837, 1856, 1882, 1885 | JQ 1512 Z13E8725 ser. 2, pt.10 |
| 廣 東 武 鄉 試 [Guangdong wu xiang shi] |
Military Provincial Examinations Guangdong Province | 1732, 1759, 1762, 1789, 1801, 1821, 1835, 1839 | JQ 1512 Z13E8725 ser. 4, pt.10 |
Note: The location is the catalogue number in the University of California (Los Angeles) East Asian Library.
Taishan Genealogy
Copyright: ©2005-8 Jon Kehrer, Canberra