The Linyi ji is a lost text describing Champa (then known to the Chinese as Linyi) and adjacent regions. Several fragments of this text have been preserved in another geographical work, Li Daoyuan’s (d. 527) Shuijing zhu (Commentary on the Book of Rivers). The fragment below suggests that the Chinese of the time regarded at least one of the peoples of Hainan island as “black,” attributed their skin color to frequent exposure to sunlight, and were capable of recognizing a standard of beauty different from (indeed, contrary to) their own.¹

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The Han dynasty established nine commanderies [in Lingnan], one of which was Dan’er (“drooping ears”).² The people there are fond of going barefoot and wearing many rings on their ears as ornaments. Their men and women go naked and do not consider it shameful. Going naked under the hot sun naturally turns these people black, but they have grown accustomed to it and regard blackness as beautiful. This is the “Dark Country” (Xuan guo 玄國) mentioned in the Lisao.³

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1. There is another sixth-century example in the Nanqi shu (History of the Southern Qi), which was completed around 520. Its description of Linyi contains the observation, “Its people regard black skin as beautiful; this is the case for all the countries of the south.” ↩︎
2. Dan’er commandery was located on Hainan island and was known as Danzhou in later periods. ↩︎
3. The Lisao (Encountering Sorrow) is a long poem attributed to the ancient poet Qu Yuan (ca. 340-278 BCE). The Linyi ji may be in error here, or referring to a version of the Lisao different from the received one, which does not contain any reference to a Dark Country. ↩︎