Yan, Marquis of Tian 田侯剡 |
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Ruler of Qi | |||||
Reign | 383–375 BC | ||||
Predecessor | Duke Tai of Tian Qi | ||||
Successor | Duke Huan of Tian Qi | ||||
Died | 375 BC | ||||
Issue | Tian Xi (田喜) | ||||
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House | House of Tian | ||||
Father | Duke Tai of Tian Qi |
Full name | |
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Ancestral name: Gui (媯) Clan name: Tian (田) Given name: Yan (剡) |
Yan, Marquis of Tian (Chinese: 田侯剡; pinyin: Tián Hóu Yǎn; died 375 BC) was from 383 to 375 BC ruler of the State of Qi, a major power during the Warring States period of ancient China. His personal name was Tián Yǎn (田剡), and ancestral name Gui ().
Yan's father was Duke Tai of Tian Qi, the first Qi ruler from the House of Tian. Although leaders of the Tian clan had been de facto rulers of Qi since 481 BC, it wasn't until 386 BC that Duke Tai was formally recognized as ruler of Qi by King An of Zhou, the nominal king of all China. Duke Tai ascended the throne and exiled Duke Kang of Qi, the last Qi ruler from the House of Jiang, to a seaside city. Duke Tai died two years later and was succeeded by Yan. Duke Kang died in 379 BC.
In 378 BC the states of Han, Zhao, and Wei invaded Qi and attacked the city of Lingqiu (in present-day Gaotang County, Shandong Province). In 375 BC Yan was murdered by his younger brother Tian Wu, who usurped the throne and became known as Duke Huan of Tian Qi. Yan's son Tian Xi was also killed.
Because of the lack of reliable records during the Warring States period, the chapter on the House of Tian in Sima Qian's influential Shiji is unreliable and error-prone. Yan's reign was completely omitted from the Shiji, and he remained largely unknown until the discovery of the Bamboo Annals in 281 AD during the Jin dynasty.