Cai Yan (c. 162–239)
Cai Yan (c. 162–239)
Chinese composer and poet. Name variations: Caiyan or Ts'ai Yen. Born around 162 ce, during the time of the Han Dynasty; died around 239 ce; daughter of the scholar and poet Cai (Ts'ai) I; widowed around 192; children: two sons.
Cai Yan, daughter of the famous scholar and poet Cai I (Ts'ai) I, wrote poetry that documents her difficult and tragic life during the time of the Han Dynasty. She had been married and widowed before being captured and taken North by the Huns. For the next 12 years, she was a captive and had two sons by a Hun chieftain. Cai Yan's family finally located her and ransomed their daughter back, but she had to return to China without her boys, a heartbreaking experience for her. Though attribution is uncertain, it is believed she wrote Eighteen verses, which describes the life she endured—war, barbarism, and grief. "A Tatar chief forced me to become his wife, And took me far away to Heaven's edge." The verses were meant to be accompanied by the lute and the Tatar horn. Cai Yan is the first Chinese female poet whose life and writings are documented.
John Haag, Athens, Georgia