- beginning of the year
- Joseph Needham (1900-1995), British biochemist and author of Science and Civilization in China
- knight; Sir; (loanword) jazz
- thriving; flourishing
- scene which recalls past memories (idiom); evocative of the past; reminiscent; to arouse deep feelings
- (idiom) depressed; dispirited
- pungent (taste); bitter; fig. sad; miserable
- title; rank; appellation
- imprint; trace
- fortunately
- coincidence; coincidental; to coincide
- hopelessly muddled; impossible to unravel
- modern history (in Chinese historiography, from the Opium Wars to the fall of the Qing dynasty)
- synopsis; outline; program; leading principles
- the man (or woman) of the moment (idiom); influential figure
- curriculum vitae (CV); resume
- Columbia University
- Doctor of Philosophy; PhD
- Tsinghua University, Beijing; National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan
- head of a (university) department; department chair
- Nationalist government (the government of the Republic of China 1925–1948)
- besides; in addition; moreover; furthermore
- proposer; initiator; founding member
- complete picture; full view
- to dig out; to excavate; to scoop out; to start digging
- historiography
- strange thing; curious occurrence
- poplar tree; various trees of genus Populus
- Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD)
- to the point; concise
- the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD)
- to split heaven and earth apart (idiom); refers to the Pangu 盤古|盘古[Pan2 gu3] creation myth
- bold and decisive
- young and promising
- Wu Han (1909-1969), historian, author of biography of Zhu Yuanzhang 朱元璋, hounded to his death together with several members of his family during the cultural revolution
- subject; course; CL:門|门[men2]; class; lesson; CL:堂[tang2],節|节[jie2]; to levy; tax; form of divination