What were Ancient or Medieval China taverns or pubs called? And what’s some history behind them?

by Williano98

I’ve recently been intrigued with learning about traditional inns and taverns throughout East Asia. I’ve been trying to get some sort of information on these within China, but with no luck through internet research. I think they’re normally called Joy Dan or Jiuguan, but I’m not entirely sure. I would like to get some insight with regards to this. Were there also places of gathering like this during the Qing Dynasty? Thank you.

y_sengaku

Well, at least I can suggest the basic word(s) for the tavern in Tang China. There are some interchangeable words, but I suppose Jiǔ jia (酒家) or Jiǔ sì (酒肆) since they are found in famous pieces of Tang poems made in the 8th century.

  • As for the former, Poet Du Fu (d. 770) employed this word for illustrating prodigal life of his fellow, Li Bai (d. 762) in Song for the Eight Immortals of the Cup (飲中八仙歌):

"That's Li Bai: One dipper of wine, one hundred poems - / Asleep in some bar in Chang'an. / Even the emperor's summons did not bring him on board, He himself proclaimed, 'Your servant is immortal-in-his-cups! ' (李白一斗詩百篇，長安市上酒家眠。天子呼來不上船，自稱臣是酒中仙)" (English translation is taken from: How to Read Chinese Poetry in Context: Poetic Culture from Antiquity Through the Tang, ed. Zong-qi Cai, p. 223. New York: Columbia UP, 2018).

  • On the other hand, Poet Chu Guang-xi (d. 760) recites the brothel culture in his poem called Road of Chang'an (長安道), with a passing reference to Jiǔ sì as following:

"By whipping a horse and passing a tavern, / gorgeous clothing play in the gate of the brothel. / A million money is spent in one time, / and without any word, but with a romantic passion (鳴鞭過酒肆，袨服遊倡門。百萬一時盡，含情無片言)" (Chinese original text is taken from this site, and clumsy English translation without any aesthetic is by me).

I'm not really specialized in Chinese history, but as for the night life in the city, Tang Period is havee known for its rather strict control. Each city district (坊) of Capital Chang'an officially had a gate, closing with the sunset. In course of late Tang period in the 9th century, however, the unofficial (at first) red light district that also was open during night began to flourish.

Later, Song, Ming, Qing period would saw more prosperity of such kind of city life.

Reference (just in case):

  • KEGASAWA, Yasunori. A History of China, vi: Sui and Tang Period - Gorgeous World Empire (Kenran taru Sekai Teikoku). Tokyo: Kodan-Sha, 2020 (2005 original HB). (in Japanese)