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25-421: (Redirected from Harvard-Yenching ) Harvard-Yenching may refer to: Harvard–Yenching Library Harvard–Yenching Institute Harvard–Yenching Classification Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Harvard–Yenching . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change

50-517: A symposium and the publication of a volume of scholarly articles on the history of the Library and its collections. In 2009, the library announced a six-year, multimillion-dollar project to digitize major sections of its rare books collection in cooperation with the National Library of China . In 2020, James Cheng retired. During his time as head librarian, he oversaw large-scale digitization of

75-424: A Greek symposium, wine was only drunk after dinner, and women were not allowed to attend. The wine was drawn from a krater , a large jar designed to be carried by two men, and served from pitchers ( oenochoe ) . Determined by the symposiarch, the wine was diluted to a specific strength and was then mixed. Slave boys would manage the krater , and transfer the wine into pitchers. They then attended to each man in

100-612: A research library that encompasses East Asian materials in all academic disciplines. A. Kaiming Chiu served as head librarian of the library until his retirement in 1964, after which he was succeeded by Eugene W. Wu . In 1951, a Korean collection was added. In 1965, the Chinese-Japanese Library of the Harvard-Yenching Institute was renamed the Harvard-Yenching Library to reflect the expanded nature of

125-650: A scientific conference. The equivalent of a Greek symposium in Roman society is the Latin convivium. The Greek symposium was a key Hellenic social institution. It was a forum for the progeny of respected families to debate, plot, boast, or simply to revel with others. They were frequently held to celebrate the introduction of youth into aristocratic society. Symposia were also held by aristocrats to celebrate other special occasions, such as victories in athletic and poetic contests. Many archaic poetic sources were written by members of

150-503: The Cambridge campus of Harvard University since around 1957. The building was originally built in 1929 for Harvard's Institute of Geographical Exploration, and currently houses part of the Harvard-Yenching Institute and the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, in addition to the Harvard-Yenching Library. In 1879, Ko K'un-hua ( Chinese : 戈鯤化 ), a scholar from China ,

175-463: The 416 BC Dionysia . According to Plato's account, the celebration was upstaged by the unexpected entrance of the toast of the town, the young Alcibiades , dropping in drunken and nearly naked, having just left another symposium. The men at the symposium would discuss a multitude of topics—often philosophical or political. A symposium would be overseen by a "symposiarch" ( Ancient Greek : συμπόσιάρχης  : symposiárchēs) who would decide how strong

200-690: The Greek symposia; however, one major difference is that women of status participated more fully in this as in other realms of Etruscan society . Women were allowed to drink wine and recline with men at feasts. Some Etruscan women were even considered "expert drinkers". Additionally, Etruscan women were often buried with drinking and feasting paraphernalia, suggesting that they partook in these activities. The most apparent distinctions between Greek and Etruscan drinking parties appear in Etruscan art. Etruscan paintings show men and women drinking wine together and reclining on

225-426: The Greek virtue of moderation, the symposiarch should have prevented festivities from getting out of hand, but Greek literature and art often indicate that the third- krater limit was not observed. Symposiums are often featured on Attic pottery and Richard Neer has argued that the chief function of Attic pottery was for use in the symposium. An amphora was used as a jug to hold the wine and usually one single cup

250-641: The Harvard College Library, thus launching Harvard's Japanese collection. In 1927, Archibald Cary Coolidge , head of Harvard's libraries, asked Alfred Kaiming Chiu, then a graduate student at Harvard, to organize and catalog these collections. The library was formally founded in 1928, as the Chinese-Japanese Library of the Harvard-Yenching Institute . Following World War II , the library began collecting more social science publications. The once predominantly humanistic collection evolved into

275-612: The dregs of their wine in a kylix , a platter-like stemmed drinking vessel, and flung them at a target. Another feature of the symposia were skolia , drinking songs of a patriotic or bawdy nature, performed competitively with one symposiast reciting the first part of a song and another expected to improvise the end of it. Symposiasts might also compete in rhetorical contests, for which reason the word "symposium" has come to refer in English to any event where multiple speeches are made. Etruscan art shows scenes of banqueting that recall aspects of

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300-422: The guests. Among the instruments women might play was the aulos , a Greek woodwind instrument sometimes compared to an oboe . When string instruments were played, the barbiton was the traditional instrument. Slaves and boys also provided service and entertainment. The guests also participated actively in competitive entertainments. A game sometimes played at symposia was kottabos , in which players swirled

325-441: The library's collections. The Library eventually added Tibetan, Mongolian and Manchu publications, and Western language monographs and journals. In 1973, a Vietnamese collection was added. In 1976, management of the library shifted from the independent Harvard-Yenching Institute to the Harvard College Library. In 1998, Eugene Wu retired and was succeeded by James Cheng. In 2003, the library celebrated its 75th anniversary with

350-449: The library's rare and special collections. James Cheng was succeeded by Jidong Yang in August 2022. 42°22′38.85″N 71°06′51.32″W  /  42.3774583°N 71.1142556°W  / 42.3774583; -71.1142556 Symposium In Ancient Greece , the symposium ( Ancient Greek : συμπόσιον , sympósion or symposio , from συμπίνειν, sympínein , 'to drink together') was

375-442: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Harvard–Yenching&oldid=922148749 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Harvard%E2%80%93Yenching Library The library has been located at 2 Divinity Avenue on

400-588: The part of a banquet that took place after the meal, when drinking for pleasure was accompanied by music, dancing, recitals, or conversation. Literary works that describe or take place at a symposium include two Socratic dialogues , Plato 's Symposium and Xenophon 's Symposium , as well as a number of Greek poems , such as the elegies of Theognis of Megara . Symposia are depicted in Greek and Etruscan art , that shows similar scenes. In modern usage, it has come to mean an academic conference or meeting, such as

425-504: The same cushions. The Sarcophagus of the Spouses , found in the Etruscan region dating to 520–530 BC, depicts a man and women lounging together in the context of a banquet, which is a stark contrast with gendered Greek drinking parties. As with many other Greek customs, the aesthetic framework of the symposium was adopted by the Romans under the name of comissatio . These revels also involved

450-408: The second for love and pleasure, and the third for sleep. After the third one is drained, wise men go home. The fourth krater is not mine any more – it belongs to bad behaviour; the fifth is for shouting; the sixth is for rudeness and insults; the seventh is for fights; the eighth is for breaking the furniture; the ninth is for depression; the tenth is for madness and unconsciousness. In keeping with

475-418: The social elite communities, and so may not be completely representative of the whole local society. Symposia were usually held in the andrōn (ἀνδρών), the citizen quarters of the household. The participants, or "symposiasts", would recline on pillowed couches arrayed against the three walls of the room away from the door. Due to space limitations, the couches would number between seven and nine, limiting

500-465: The symposium with the pitchers and filled their cups with wine. Certain formalities were observed, most important among which were libations , the pouring of a small amount of wine in honour of various deities or the mourned dead. In a fragment from his c. 375 BC play Semele or Dionysus , Eubulus has the god of wine Dionysos describe proper and improper drinking: For sensible men I prepare only three kraters : one for health (which they drink first),

525-559: The total number of participants to somewhere between fourteen and twenty seven (Oswyn Murray gives a figure of between seven and fifteen couches and reckons fourteen to thirty participants a "standard size for a drinking group"). If any young men took part, they did not recline but sat up. However, in Macedonian symposia, the focus was not only on drinking but hunting, and young men were allowed to recline only after they had killed their first wild boar. Food and wine were served. Entertainment

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550-497: The wine for the evening would be, depending on whether serious discussions or sensual indulgence were in the offing. The Greeks and Romans customarily served their wine mixed with water, as the drinking of pure wine was considered a habit of uncivilized peoples . However, there were major differences between the Roman and Greek symposia. A Roman symposium ( convivium ) served wine before, with and after food, and women were allowed to join. In

575-520: Was engaged to teach the first course in the Chinese language offered at Harvard University. The small collection of books that was purchased for this course became Harvard College Library's first acquisitions in any East Asian language . In 1914, two Japanese professors ( Masaharu Anesaki and Unokichi Hattori from om Tokyo Imperial University to lecture at Harvard. They donated several important sets of Japanese publications on Sinology and Buddhism to

600-478: Was passed amongst the men. Cups used at symposiums were not as nearly intricate as amphoras. Pottery used at symposiums often featured painted scenes of the god Dionysus, satyrs, and other mythical scenes related to drinking and celebration. Poetry and music were central to the pleasures of the symposium. Although free women of status did not attend symposia, high-class female prostitutes ( hetairai ) and entertainers were hired to perform, consort, and converse with

625-513: Was provided, and depending on the occasion could include games, songs, flute-girls or boys, slaves performing various acts, and hired entertainment. Symposia often were held for specific occasions. The most famous symposium of all, described in Plato's dialogue of that name (and rather differently in Xenophon's ) was hosted by the poet Agathon on the occasion of his first victory at the theater contest of

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