Nankai University is located in Tianjin, People's Republic of China. It was co-founded by prominent modern Chinese educators Yan Xiu and Zhang Boling, originating from the establishment of Nankai School in 1904. In 1919, the university division of Nankai School was formally established.
On September 25, 1919, the university division of Nankai School held its first opening ceremony, marking the official establishment of Private Nankai University. In 1921, the university division of Nankai School was officially renamed "Tianjin Private Nankai University". In 1929, Nankai University restructured its departments into colleges, establishing the College of Liberal Arts, College of Science, College of Commerce, and Medical Preparatory Department, with a total of 13 departments. At the beginning of the full-scale outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Nankai University became a bombing target, and its campus was almost completely destroyed by fire. On September 10, 1937, the Ministry of Education of the National Government announced the formation of Changsha Temporary University using the faculty and equipment of Peking University, Tsinghua University, Nankai University, and the Central Academy as the backbone. On April 2, 1938, the Executive Yuan ordered that Changsha Temporary University, relocated to Kunming, be renamed "National Southwestern Associated University". In 1939, the Nankai Institute of Economics was re-established at the Nankai High School campus in Shapingba, Chongqing.
On May 4, 1946, National Southwestern Associated University was officially disbanded, and Nankai University was transformed from a "private" to a "national" university. Departments and faculties of Nankai University gradually returned to the old site in Balitai, Tianjin, to resume operations. On October 17, 1946, Nankai University held a ceremony at Balitai to commemorate the reopening, which was designated as Nankai's anniversary day. After the reopening, National Nankai University established the College of Liberal Arts, College of Science, College of Political and Economic Sciences, and College of Engineering, with a total of 16 departments, as well as the Nankai Institute of Economics, the Nankai Institute of Applied Chemistry, and the Nankai Institute of Frontier Humanities.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Nankai University continued as a public institution. During the Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976, the normal educational order of Nankai University was disrupted, and most teachers were persecuted. Between 1966 and 1971, the university did not admit any students for five years. On February 17, 1978, the State Council forwarded the Ministry of Education's report on the restoration and improvement of key national universities, designating Nankai University as one of the first batch of national key universities. In 1994, Tianjin Institute of Foreign Trade merged into Nankai University. In 1995, Nankai University was selected as one of the first universities in China to be included in the "Project 211". On December 25, 2000, it was included in "Project 985". In September 2017, Nankai University was selected as a "world-class university construction university".
Preparation and establishment
Nankai University was initially part of the Nankai Series of Schools, all of which originated from Yan Xiu's private tutoring school, Yan Family School. Although Yan Xiu grew up receiving traditional education and entered the officialdom through the imperial examination, he and Zhang Boling realized the importance of educational reform. They believed that "the way to strengthen China lies in education, creating new education, and cultivating new talents," and that only through educational innovation could the country's declining fate be changed. In 1898, Yan Xiu, who had served as an education commissioner and advocated the abolition of the imperial examination, resigned and began to establish modern schools. In 1904, Private Nankai School was established, with Yan's family's tutor Zhang Boling serving as the principal. Later, realizing the urgent need for higher education due to social development, Yan Xiu began to work on establishing university education.
In 1917, after a year of unsuccessful attempts to establish a specialized department and a higher normal class, Yan Xiu sent Zhang Boling to the United States to study university management at Columbia University. In the same year, Yan Xiu also went to the United States to inspect the operations of well-known private universities such as Columbia University, University of Chicago, and University of San Francisco. After returning to China at the end of 1918, Yan Xiu and Zhang Boling began to actively work towards the creation of Nankai University. They first went to Beijing to meet with the Minister of Education Fu Zengxiang and several well-known scholars to discuss the establishment of the university. They also approached Liang Shiyi, Cao Rulin, Zhou Ziqi, and others to raise funds for the university. Subsequently, they personally or sent people to various places to seek the support of local warlords. Zhang Boling and Yan Xiu once visited Li Chun, the Jiangsu governor who had donated to Nankai many times, and asked for help in raising funds. In October 1920, before his death, Li Chun left a will, donating a quarter of his estate, equivalent to 500,000 silver yuan, to Nankai University as a permanent fund. In commemoration, Nankai University built Xiushan Hall and erected a statue of Li Chun. During the preparation period, besides the two main founders, Yan Xiu and Zhang Boling, the Minister of Education of the National Government, Fan Yuanlian, also participated in the preparation and founding of Nankai University, serving as a director and chairman of the board of directors.
Early years (1919–1937)
In April 1919, Nankai School began constructing the university division's campus south of the middle school department. In May, Nankai School established the university preparatory department, drafted the school charter, planned the departments, and organized admissions. On September 7 and 8, entrance exams were held for the university division, admitting the first 96 students, including Zhou Enlai and Ma Jun. The opening ceremony of the university division was held on September 25, marking the official founding of Nankai University. Initially, the university division had three departments: liberal arts, science, and business.
In 1920, Li Zusen donated 30,000 silver dollars to Nankai University, establishing the mining department and purchasing over 700 acres of land. In 1921, the university division was officially renamed "Tianjin Private Nankai University." On September 12, 1921, Liang Qichao was invited to lecture on "Chinese Historical Research Methods" at Nankai University, attracting teachers and students from various schools in Tianjin to attend. Subsequently, Liang Qichao proposed establishing an Institute of Oriental Culture at Nankai University to primarily study Confucian and Mencian thought and Song Dynasty Neo-Confucianism. This proposal received support from Yan Xiu and Zhang Boling, but it was ultimately abandoned due to a lack of response. In 1922, the Rockefeller Foundation inspected Nankai University and, after attending Mr. Qiu Zongyue's qualitative analysis class, decided to donate a science building. Yuan Shuzhi also contributed to the construction, and the building was completed the following year and named "Siyuan Hall." In 1924, Nankai University experienced the "Reincarnation Education" incident. Nankai University student Ning Encheng published an article titled "Reincarnation Education" in the Nankai Weekly, arguing that contemporary education had fallen into an inescapable cycle that could not save the country and that students' learning could not serve society. The article caused tension between students and faculty, but tensions gradually eased with Zhang Boling's careful handling. Zhang began to reflect on the drawbacks of emulating Western education systems. Soon after, the Nankai University Academic Affairs Council decided that, except for English classes, all courses would be taught in Mandarin. In 1926, the mining department was dissolved, and Wu Dayou and other students were transferred to the science department to continue their studies. In February 1927, Lu Muzhai funded the construction of the Nankai University Library, which was named Muzhai Library upon completion. In September 1927, on the initiative of He Lian and with the support of President Zhang Boling, the Nankai University Social and Economic Research Committee was established in Xiushan Hall as an independent research institution not affiliated with any department. In October of the same year, the Nankai University Manchuria and Mongolia Research Association was founded. In 1928, Zhang Boling, chairing the school's fundraising committee, formulated the "Nankai University Development Plan," which proposed the educational mission of "Knowing China and Serving China", and aimed to solve China's problems with the academic background of Chinese history and society. In 1929, Nankai University restructured its departments into schools, establishing the School of Liberal Arts, School of Science, School of Business, and the pre-medical program, with a total of 13 departments. In September of the same year, history professor Jiang Tingfu, economics professor Xiao Qiu, and botany professor Li Jitong, all American-educated faculty, were recruited by Luo Jialun to teach at Tsinghua University due to its better financial conditions.
In 1931, Nankai University established the School of Economics, founded the Department of Chemical Engineering and the Department of Electrical Engineering, which were affiliated with the School of Science, and Chen Zhiqin funded the construction of Zhiqin Hall. In September of the same year, Hebei University in Baoding was reorganized, and some law students were transferred to Nankai University. In 1932, the Institute of Applied Chemistry was established, and the "Private Nankai University Charter" was formulated. In June 1933, thanks to Zhang Boling's lobbying, Nankai University was included in the subsidy list of the British Boxer Indemnity Fund. On December 24, Nankai School held a board meeting to discuss the possibility of Nankai University taking over the Naval Medical College, but this ultimately did not succeed. In the spring of 1934, Nankai University opened a radio station run by the Department of Electrical Engineering in the basement of Siyuan Hall. The station operated until the following spring when it was closed due to insufficient funds. In the fall of 1934, at the 30th anniversary celebration of Nankai School, Zhang Boling established "public service" and "ability" as the school's motto.