An Liu

Born around 179 BCE, Liu An was a prince of the Western Han dynasty who ruled Huainan and was related to the imperial family. Ancient sources describe him as a learned patron of scholarship, and he became closely associated with a circle of thinkers at his court.

He is most famous for the Huainanzi, a major text compiled in the 2nd century BCE that blends Daoist thought with ideas drawn from Confucian and Legalist traditions. The work ranges widely across cosmology, ethics, politics, and practical knowledge, which is one reason Liu An remains such an interesting figure for readers today.

Later tradition also linked him with inventions and legends, including the story that he discovered tofu, though those details are harder to pin down with certainty. What is clear is that his name has endured because of the intellectual world gathered around him and the remarkable text that bears the title of his kingdom.