Eileen Chang

Eileen Chang
Chang in Hong Kong in 1954
Born	Zhang Ying (張煐) (1920-09-30)September 30, 1920 Shanghai, China
Died	September 8, 1995(1995-09-08) (aged 74) Los Angeles, California, United States
Pen name	Liang Jing (梁京)
Occupation	Novelist essayist playwright
Alma mater	St. Mary's Hall University of Hong Kong
Period	1932–1995
Genre	Literary fiction
Literary movement	Mandarin and Butterfly () (disputed)
Spouse	Hu Lancheng (1944–1947) Ferdinand Reyher (1956–1967)

Eileen Chang (simplified Chinese: 张爱玲; traditional Chinese: 張愛玲; pinyin: Zhāng Ailíng; Cantonese Yale: Zoeng Oiling) (September 30, 1920 – September 8, 1995) was one of the most influential modern Chinese writers.

Chang is noted for her fiction writings that deal with the tensions between men and women in love, and are considered by some scholars to be among the best Chinese literature of the period. Chang's portrayal of life in 1940s Shanghai and Japanese-occupied Hong Kong is remarkable in its focus on everyday life and the absence of the political subtext which characterised many other writers of the period. The Taiwanese author Yuan Chiung-chiung drew inspiration from Chang. The poet and University of Southern California professor Dominic Cheung commented "had it not been for the political division between the Nationalist and Communist Chinese, she would have almost certainly won a Nobel Prize".

Chang's enormous popularity and famed image were in distinct contrast to her personal life, which was marred by disappointment, tragedy, increasing reclusiveness, and ultimately her sudden death from cardiovascular disease at age 74.

Chang was born Zhang Ying (張煐) in Shanghai, China. She was the first child of Zhang Zhiyi (張志沂) (1896–1953) and Huang Suqiong (黃素瓊) (1893–1957). Chang's maternal great-grandfather, Huang Yisheng (黃翼升) (1818–1894), was a prominent naval commander. Chang's paternal grandfather, Zhang Peilun (張佩綸) (1848–1903), was son-in-law to Li Hongzhang (李鴻章) (1823–1901), who became an influential court official during the Qing Dynasty and married her paternal grandmother, Li Juou (李菊耦) (1866–1916). Her childhood had also been shared with paternal aunt Zhang Maoyuan (張茂淵) (1898–1991).