The Paper reporter learned from Hunan Normal University that Mr. Liu Minghan, a retired professor at the School of History and Culture of Hunan Normal University and a famous historian, passed away on March 3, 2026 at the age of 94.
Liu Minghan was born in Suifenhe City, Heilongjiang Province in April 1932. From September 1949, he studied undergraduate and postgraduate studies in the History Department of Northeastern University (later renamed Northeast Normal University). After graduating in August 1954, he stayed at the school and served successively as a teaching assistant, lecturer, and concurrently as the director of the reference room. In 1958, he was transferred to the Department of History of Shandong University. In 1979, he served as a member of the academic committee of the school and deputy leader of the Shandong Provincial Social Science Discipline Review and History Discipline Review Group. He was named associate professor in 1979 and promoted to professor in 1983. In 1987, he was transferred to the China Youth University for Political Science in Beijing, where he served as director of the Cultural Foundation Department, director of the school library, etc., and as a member of the Senior Professional Title Evaluation Committee of the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League. Joined the Communist Party of China in December 1988. In 1992, he was hired by Capital Normal University as a tutor for doctoral students in world medieval history. In 1993, he was introduced to Hunan Normal University as an expert and retired honorably in April 1998. In July 2008, he was appointed by the Institute of World History of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences as the director of the European Renaissance Research Center of the China International Cultural Academy. He was employed as a part-time professor at Shandong University in 1994 and 2013. In 2013, he was appointed as the current Distinguished Professor of Project 985 by Beijing Normal University. In 2017, he was appointed as the Distinguished Professor of "World-Class Universities and First-Class Disciplines" of the School of History of Beijing Normal University.
Liu Minghan is a well-known expert on world history in my country and the founder of the disciplines of world medieval history and European Renaissance history. He has made outstanding achievements and written extensively. Hosted and completed the National Social Science Fund projects "Research on the History of the European Renaissance" and "Research on Social and People's Livelihood Changes during the European Religious Reform Period", etc.; authored "Biographies of the Roman Popes", "Diversified Spiritual Civilization in the Feudal Era", "Biography of the Japanese Empress Takaken", "History of the European Religious Reform", etc.; co-authored "A Brief Overview of the Development of Christianity in Beijing", "The Fire of Human Civilization", "Educational Thinkers in the Renaissance Era", etc.; the "History of the European Renaissance" (12 volumes) edited by the Ministry of Education of China won the first prize of the 6th National Humanities and Social Sciences University Outstanding Book Award by the Chinese Ministry of Education in 2013, and "World History Medieval History" " was the unified textbook compiled by colleges and universities across the country in the 1980s. "History of the Development of Human Spiritual Civilization" (4 volumes) was included in the national "Tenth Five-Year Plan" key publishing planning projects. It also edited "Review of Foreign Historical Masterpieces" (5 volumes), "American Civilization", "World History Brief", "World Antiquity" "Civilization Miracle Series" and "European Renaissance Famous Masters Series" (6 volumes) and 20 other books; published more than 120 articles in "Historical Research", "World History" and other publications, building a world history research system with Chinese characteristics and having a major impact in the field of history.
Liu Minghan has served successively as secretary-general, vice-president, and president of the Chinese World Medieval History Research Association, and vice-president of the Chinese German History Research Association. In 2004, he was elected as the honorary chairman of the Chinese World Ancient Medieval History. He has been successively elected as the executive director of the Chinese Society for the Study of Japanese History, the executive director of the Chinese Society for Ethnic Studies, and the academic member of the Chinese Society for the History of Sino-Foreign Relations. In 2017, he was appointed as the vice president of the China Association for the Promotion of Peaceful Reunification (Japan). In 1988, he was appointed as a chair professor at the University of Freiburg, Germany. In addition, he participated in the 16th and 22nd International Historical Science Congress, gave lectures at the University of Stuttgart, the University of Bremen, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and Yokohama University in Japan, and went to the United States, Canada, South Korea, and Switzerland to attend academic conferences or give lectures. Actively promoting academic exchanges between China and foreign countries has laid a solid foundation for the development of China's world history discipline, expanded its international horizons, and enjoyed high prestige in the domestic and foreign history circles.
