Ruan Yuan (阮元; 1764–1849) was a Chinese historian, politician, and writer of the
Qing Dynasty who was the most prominent Chinese scholar during the first half of the 19th century. He won the
jinshi degree in the imperial examinations in 1789 and was subsequently appointed to the Hanlin Academy. He was known for his work
Biographies of Astronomers and Mathematicians and for his editing the
Shisan Jing Zhushu (Commentaries and Notes on the Thirteen Classics) for the Qing emperor.
Ruan Yuan was a successful official as well as a scholar. He was the Viceroy of Liangguang, the most important imperial official in Canton (Guangzhou), during the critical years 1817–1826, just before the First Opium War with Britain. It was a crucial time when Chinese trade with the outside world was allowed only through the Canton System, with all foreigners confined to Canton, the capital of Guangdong Province. During his tenure in Canton, Ruan is estimated to have earned more than 195,000 taels of silver.
He was widely recognized as an official, scholar, and patron of learning both by his contemporaries and by modern scholars. He was also praised as an honest official and an exemplary man of the 『Confucian persuasion』. His name is mentioned in almost all works on Qing history or Chinese classics because of the wide range of his research and publications. A number of these publications are still reprinted. Ruan Yuan was a follower of the Han Learning tradition and as such, with the encouragement of Liu Fenglu, he edited and organized publication of the compendium of the imperial achievements in kaozheng scholarship, the Huang Qing Jingjie (:zh:皇清经解) published in 1829.
Kong Luhua (relative of the Duke Yansheng) was the second wife of Ruan Yuan.
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阮元（1764年 - 1849年），字
伯元，號
蕓臺（或作雲臺），又號揅經老人、雷塘庵主等，江蘇儀徵人，
清朝政治人物，乾嘉學派經學家。
Read more...: 生平 著作 評價
生平
乾隆五十四年（1789年）己酉科進士，選為翰林院庶吉士，散館授編修，督山東學政，任侍郎。嘉慶三年（1798年），任浙江巡撫，與李長庚督水師討伐海盜，興修海塘。後任湖廣總督、兩廣總督、雲貴總督。任內主張加強海防，對抗英軍挑釁，亦曾多次鎮壓天地會活動。
嘉慶二年（1797年），阮元主浙江學政時，選拔浙江書生集中于孤山，編纂《經籍籑詁》。嘉慶六年（1801年），在原址創建詁經精舍（在今浙江博物館東）。教育方針以窮經致用、實事求是、培育鑽研精神為宗旨。
嘉慶十四年（1809），阮元受劉鳳誥考場舞弊案牽連後，被革去浙江巡撫一職。這一年，阮元自願出任國史館總輯，負責總輯《國史儒林傳》。早在乾隆三十年（1765），乾隆帝下召編纂《國史儒林傳》，然而在種種原因下，卻一直沒有動工。嘉慶十五年（1810）十月，阮元自願兼任國史館總輯，纂輯儒林傳後，開始儒林傳之編纂。嘉慶十六年，補授詹事府少詹事。同年十二月初十日，「奉旨補授內閣學士兼禮部侍郎」。嘉慶十七年五月初八，補授工部右侍郎，兼管錢法事務。嘉慶十七年（1812）八月接替許兆樁為漕運總督，同月二十日將《儒林傳稿》交付國史館。
道光元年（1821年）阮元奏請申明禁鴉片，加重行商責任，夷船進口，照舊認保，另飭身家殷實的四行輪流加保，如有隱徇，分別懲辦，並先將總商伍敦元加以處分。 阮元在杭州任職期間，大力疏浚西湖，並將挖出的淤泥堆成湖中小島，後人稱為「阮公墩」，今為觀光點。道光十八年（1838年）以體仁閣大學士致仕。道光二十九年卒。諡文達。
著作
阮元擅長考證，精通經學，編纂《皇清經解》、《十三經註疏》等，又修編地方志書數種。還著有《疇人傳》等。又創編清史《儒林傳》、《文苑傳》及《疇人傳》，重修《浙江通志》、《雲南通志》、《廣東通志》。並購進四庫未收古書一百餘部，每得一書，則仿《四庫全書總目提要》撰《提要》一篇。
嘉慶初年，阮元搜集清代揚州學者1636人的詩作，編刻為《淮海英靈集》、《續集》。阮元又在浙江輯詩3133家，撰成《兩浙輶軒錄》。道光初年，阮元集清代前期諸家經說，匯為《皇清經解》一百八十餘種，凡一千四百餘卷。一時知名學者著述，多賴以刊行。自著為《揅經室集》。王國維著《國朝漢學派戴阮二家之哲學說》，將戴震與阮元並舉。
評價
• 侯外廬稱，阮元「扮演了總結18世紀漢學思潮的角色」，「在匯刻編纂上結束乾嘉漢學的成績」。
• 胡適說：「阮元雖然自居于新式的經學家，其實他是一個哲學家。」
• 梁啟超推其為乾嘉學術的護法神。
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