Han Youming

Overview

Han Youming is a member of the Plain Yellow Banner's bondservant class, recorded in the Han family entry of Volume 77 of the *Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*. His family had lived in Shenyang for generations, but the year of their submission is unknown. The original record states that his son, Han Shijie, served as a warehouse keeper, and his great-great-grandson, Baozhu, served as a scribe at the time of compilation. "Great-great-grandson" should be interpreted as "great-great-grandson," not simply "son of Han Shijie."

The warehouse keeper's duties were related to the official warehouse management. The Imperial Household Department's Guangchu Division and other institutions had different positions such as warehouse keeper, deputy warehouse keeper, and warehouse manager, with different titles and ranks. Han Shijie's "warehouse manager" cannot be written as a promotion to warehouse keeper. The original entry does not specify the exact warehouse location or the type of property he managed.

The scribe is a transliteration of the Manchu word *bithesi*, which can be interpreted as an official handling documents. Their tasks varied depending on the government office, including copying, registering, organizing, and handling matters in both Manchu and Chinese; this differs from the warehouse keeper's duties. The official institution where he served is not recorded, and his translation of specific Manchu documents cannot be determined solely by his official title.

The term "QiGu" (qigu) here refers to the bondservant (baoyi) system, and should not be interpreted literally as flag bearers or drummers, much less directly equated with the Han Chinese bannermen. The bondservant of the Plain Yellow Banner had a background with the three banners of the Imperial Household Department, and Shenyang was their family's former residence. The original book does not specify Han Youming's personal official position; his descendants' roles in treasury affairs and his great-grandson's roles in scribes must be attributed separately and cannot be pieced together to form his ancestral resume.