Tribute for Nanxiu Qian, professor of Chinese literature

Dear Rice Community,

I’m writing to share the sad news of Nanxiu Qian’s passing. Nanxiu was a professor of Chinese literature in the School of Humanities. Nanxiu died Nov. 16 after a lengthy battle with cancer. She was 75.

Nanxiu joined Rice’s faculty in 1993 and was known as an indispensable colleague throughout her nearly three decades of service to the university. Nanxiu, who received her master’s degree from Nanjing University and her doctorate from Yale University, was a renowned scholar of Chinese literature and is remembered by those who knew her as a devoted mother, grandmother and friend.

While Nanxiu was a pivotal member of the Department of Transnational Asian Studies, she was also known for her work with the Chao Center for Asian Studies, the Center for the Study of Women, Gender and Sexuality, and the Medieval and Early Modern Studies program. She was renowned for her profound interest in and attention to mentoring undergraduate students, and colleagues and friends recalled the talent with which Nanxiu sang and chanted traditional Chinese poems, as well as her skill at poetry, short-story writing and calligraphy.

Writing in both Chinese and English, Nanxiu was best known in the West for her work studying the influential fifth-century Chinese text “Shishuo xinyu (A New Account of Tales of the World).” She also wrote extensively on other Chinese literary works from the past 2,000 years. Her research interests included classical Chinese literature, Chinese intellectual history, comparative literature and studies on the Sinosphere.

All of us at Rice mourn the loss of Nanxiu Qian. She was a beloved mentor, scholar and instructor whose caring, friendly presence across campus will be greatly missed. We extend our deepest sympathies to Nanxiu’s family, friends, colleagues and students.