The 'Banner' of the Great Ming and Little China Consciousness - Choson Dynasty’s Revering Zhou and Nostalgizing for the Ming, 1637–1800 CE

This monograph examines Choson Dynasty's Zun Zhou Si Ming (Revering the Zhou and Longing for the Ming) during the period of 1637–1800, after Choson entered tributary relations with the Qing. It shows how the royal family, Confucian scholars, and Ming-loyalist descendants continued to affirm Ming legitimacy through practices such as ritual commemoration of Ming emperors, covert use of Ming reign-titles, and the compilation of Ming-centered historical writings, alongside related material and institutional expressions. Framing these phenomena within Choson “Little China” self-positioning, the study integrates concepts of Choson mainstream cultural mentalities such as the concept of orthodoxy, Sinophilia, Sadae (serving the great), and the Hua-Yi distinction. It offers a reinterpretation of Qing- Choson relations during the Qing Dynasty.