四库

四庫

sìkù

noun

Meanings

1 the four divisions of classical Chinese books: classics, history, philosophers and literature
2 the four repositories of the imperial library

Characters

repository; storehouse

Examples

HSK 6

按照四库的分类，《史记》归在“史”这一类。

Ànzhào sìkù de fēnlèi, 《 Shǐjì 》 guī zài " shǐ " zhè yí lèi.

Under the four-part classification, the Records of the Grand Historian is filed under 'history'.

HSK 7-9

古人把书分成经、史、子、集四库。

Gǔrén bǎ shū fēnchéng jīng, shǐ, zǐ, jí sìkù.

People in old times sorted books into four categories: classics, history, philosophers and literature.

Tips

history

The name goes back to the Tang imperial library, which kept its books in four repositories labeled 甲, 乙, 丙 and 丁, one for each category. The four-part scheme stayed the standard way to catalogue Chinese books until modern library classification replaced it.

In Pop Culture

四库全书 Sìkù quánshū

Complete Library of the Four Treasuries

The Qing imperial collection compiled 1773–1782 under the 乾隆 Emperor and edited by 纪晓岚, filed by the four categories.

Stroke Order

四 sì

库 kù