Wolfram Eberhard

author

Wolfram Eberhard

1909–1989

A German-born scholar of Chinese society and folklore, he spent decades exploring how everyday stories, customs, and social patterns reveal the shape of a culture. His work helped bring Chinese history and popular traditions to a wider international audience.

2 Audiobooks

A history of China., [3d ed. rev. and enl.]

A history of China., [3d ed. rev. and enl.]

by Wolfram Eberhard

A History of China

A History of China

by Wolfram Eberhard

About the author

Born in Berlin on March 17, 1909, he studied Chinese and related fields before leaving Germany in the 1930s. He taught in Ankara, Turkey, during his years in exile and later built a long academic career in the United States.

Eberhard became a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was known for work on Chinese history, folklore, and sociology. Rather than focusing only on dynasties and courts, he paid close attention to popular tales, local traditions, and the lives of ordinary people.

His books and articles covered a wide range of subjects, including Chinese folklore, regional cultures, and social structure. He died on August 15, 1989, and remains remembered as a scholar who connected literary sources, fieldwork, and social history in a lively, wide-ranging way.