Cheng Sijia

The Chinese character zhī 知 means knowledge, perception and understanding. As it appears in its small seal script form (xiaozhuan 小篆), the composition of 知 is an arrow (shǐ 矢) on the left side and a mouth (kǒu 口) on the right side. According to Shuowen, a Han etymological dictionary, 知 (knowing) means “speaking so as to hit the mark.” Such a metaphorical expression, perhaps, offers an intriguing sidelight on the art of knowing in Chinese culture.

Sijia Cheng is a historian of late imperial and early republican China. Her research and teaching interests revolve around the various realms of knowledge and governance. She completed her PhD in Chinese Studies from Heidelberg University in 2024. Her PhD thesis, Turning Filth into Wealth, examines the uses and validations of human and animal waste as valuable fertilizing resource in late imperial China. As a postdoctoral researcher, her new research project explores the quantitative measurements of mental attributes in the twentieth century, with a focus on the fascinating history of intelligence testing in republican China.