This book is the first comprehensive introduction to the Tangut language and culture. Five of the fiſteen chapters survey the history of Western Xia and the evolution of Tangut Studies, including new advancements in the field, such as research on the recently decoded Tangut cursive writings found in Khara-Khoto documents. The other ten chapters provide an introduction to the Tangut language: its origins, script, characters, grammars, translations, textual and contextual readings. In this synthesis of historical narratives and linguistic analysis, the renowned Tangutologist Shi Jinbo offers a...

This book is the first economic history of the Tangut Empire. With a wealth of historical records: taxes, registers, and contracts, it studies the economic lives and activities, laws and institutions, trade and transactions of Western Xia. It offers a gateway to the outer shape and inner life of the Western Xia (Xixia) economy and society, and rethinks the Tanguts’ influence on the Hexi Corridor and the Silk Road.