A Study on the Hua-Yi distinction in the Transition Period Between the Northern and Southern Song Dynasty in Songmojiwen(松漠紀聞)

In 1127, the Song dynasty fell to the Jin dynasty's forces, and in May of the same year, Zhao Gou(趙構) established the Southern Song dynasty. Since both the Northern and Southern Song continued under the Zhao family lineage, contemporaries did not perceive them as separate dynasties. However, this turbulent turning point was undoubtedly a shocking event that disrupted prevailing notions of the state among the Song dynasty’s people.In May 1129, amidst ongoing national turmoil, Hong Hao (洪皓, 1088~1155), a loyal patriot of the Song dynasty, set out for the Jin dynasty to negotiate the repatriation of two captured emperors and resolve diplomatic issues. His journey, undertaken with a heavy sense of responsibility during a time of crisis, tragically resulted in a prolonged captivity of 15 years. During his detention, Hong Hao documented his experiences in the Jin territory in the work Songmojiwen.At first glance, Songmojiwen(松漠紀聞) appears to be a travelogue detailing the history, institutions, environment, and customs of northern nomadic peoples, including the Jurchens. However, when considering the international diplomacy and domestic political circumstances of the time, the work offers insight into the unique experiences of an individual navigating the transitional period between the Northern and Southern Song dynasties and their perceptions of the external world.How did Hong Hao construct notions of ethnic identity and the perception of the "other" amidst the shifting world order and political instability of this transitional era? It seems inevitable that the crisis of this period intensified hostility toward the Jurchens as the "other." At the same time, another important question arises. In a time when travel and interaction with foreign cultures were rare, most knowledge of the outside world came from books or second-hand accounts. Opportunities to directly experience and recognize the "other," or to discover one’s identity through comparison, were extremely limited. Yet Hong Hao spent 15 long years living abroad, and this extraordinary experience likely introduced some degree of transformation to his deeply rooted ideological framework.This paper examines how Hong Hao(洪皓)’s traditional Hua-Yi(華夷) distinction was reinforced in certain ways while also identifying points where his perception of the "other" evolved during his captivity.