Ku Yen-Wu

(also Ku T’ing-lin). Born July 15, 1613; died Feb. 15, 1682. Chinese scholar, philosopher, and historian. Ku Yen-wu took part in the struggle against the Manchu conquerors on the side of the Ming dynasty. He created a critical method of studying Chinese historical sources, particularly classical Confucian monuments. Ku Yen-wu stressed that the study of concrete phenomena and things is the basis of knowledge.