Investigation on some Animals as mentioned by Zhou Qufei in the Lingwai Daida (1178): the perception of exotic Features

The purpose of this essay is to survey and examine references to two animals as presented in Zhou Qufei 周去非 (1133-1189)’s geographical work, Lingwai Daida, 岭外代答 (Notes from the Lands beyond the Passes, hereafter LWDD): the huyang 胡 羊, a kind of sheep/goat, and the tianma 天馬, literally “heavenly horse”. I have compared Zhou’s terminology and descriptions with primary Chinese texts dating from the Han dynasty to the early years of the seventeenth century. I am most interested in identifying animal-related vocabulary and imagery, especially in cases where metaphor and/or symbolism is employed. The LWDD, written by imperial official Zhou Qufei during the Southern Song, Nan Song 南宋 (1127-1279) dynasty in 1178, can be associated with the lishi dili 歷史地理 literature, that is to say, historical geography work.1n