‘A truly remarkable phenomenon’: how a medieval imperial exam helped dismantle the aristocracy in Tang-era China
- New paper reveals medieval exam laid foundations of meritocracy in China
- Scientists prove that passing test drove dismantling of Tang-era aristocracy
Education is valued today because it is viewed as an avenue for social mobility and a means for people who grew up poor to improve their lot in life and find opportunities to support themselves and their families.
But this phenomenon is not a feature of modernity.
During China’s Tang dynasty, (618–907), one specific test, called the keju, created the means for people to circumnavigate the entrenched aristocracy and begin a career in the bureaucracy, according to a new paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, a peer-reviewed journal.
“Our paper shows that even in a decidedly pre-modern society like medieval China, some institutional transformation like keju could activate the link between education and political success,” said Erik Wang, an assistant professor of politics at New York University and author of the study.
The best modern comparison to the keju would be the guokao civil service exams, in which more than three million people sat in 2023, competing for 40,000 government jobs.
While more data is needed to analyse the participation rate in the keju, only around 100 people passed the exam in a given year, and just 30 of them received the highest degree.