The imperial examinations were based mainly on the Four Books and Five Classics.
Tips
culture
The Four Books 四书: 《大学》 《中庸》 《论语》 《孟子》. The Five Classics 五经: 《诗》 《书》 《礼》 《易》 《春秋》. Fixed as the Confucian curriculum by 朱熹 in the Song dynasty; the core of the imperial civil service exam until 1905.
history
The term appears in Han-era commentary. Ban Gu's 《白虎通·五经》 lists the Five Classics; Zhu Xi's 《四书集注》 canonized the Four Books.
