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Zhou Huang was a Chinese bureaucrat and diplomat who is particularly known for having compiled the ''[[Ryukyu-koku shiryaku|Ryûkyû-koku shiryaku]]'' (C: ''Liuqiu-guo zhilue''), a history of the [[Kingdom of Ryukyu|Kingdom of Ryûkyû]] based on records written by previous envoys to Ryukyu.

Zhou Huang was a Chinese bureaucrat and diplomat who is particularly known for having compiled the ''[[Ryukyu-koku shiryaku|Ryûkyû-koku shiryaku]]'' (C: ''Liuqiu-guo zhilue''), a history of the [[Kingdom of Ryukyu|Kingdom of Ryûkyû]] based on records written by previous envoys to Ryukyu.

Originally from Szechuan province, Zhou Huang accompanied Senior Envoy [[Quan Kui]] to Ryûkyû in 1756-1757 to present gifts of congratulation and to perform the ceremonies officially acknowledging and recognizing, on behalf of the Qing Imperial Court, the accession of [[Sho Boku|Shô Boku]] to the Ryukyuan throne. On the way to Okinawa, the envoys' ship ran aground on coral, and was shipwrecked; everyone made it safely to shore on [[Kumejima]], however, where they erected a shrine to [[Tenpi]] (aka Matsu or Mazu), Taoist patron goddess of sailor and of navigation, in thanks<ref>"Shû Kô". ''Okinawa konpakuto jiten'' (沖縄コンパクト事典, "Okinawa Compact Encyclopedia"). [http://ryukyushimpo.jp/news/storyid-41657-storytopic-121.html Ryukyu Shimpo] (琉球新報). 1 March 2003. Accessed 14 October 2009.</ref>. Before continuing on to the Ryukyuan port of [[Naha]], the mission returned to Fuzhou, where it regrouped and set out for Ryûkyû aboard a new ship, arriving in winter<ref name=chen>Ch'en, Ta-Tuan. "Investiture of Liu-Ch'iu Kings in the Ch'ing Period." in Fairbank, John King (ed.) The Chinese World Order. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1968. pp135-164.</ref>.

Originally from Szechuan province, Zhou Huang passed the [[Chinese Imperial examinations]] (''jinshi'') in [[1737]]. He then accompanied Senior Envoy [[Quan Kui]] to Ryûkyû in 1756-1757 to present gifts of congratulation and to perform the ceremonies officially acknowledging and recognizing, on behalf of the Qing Imperial Court, the accession of [[Sho Boku|Shô Boku]] to the Ryukyuan throne. On the way to Okinawa, the envoys' ship ran aground on coral, and was shipwrecked; everyone made it safely to shore on [[Kumejima]], however, where they erected a shrine to [[Tenpi]] (aka Matsu or Mazu), Taoist patron goddess of sailor and of navigation, in thanks<ref>"Shû Kô". ''Okinawa konpakuto jiten'' (沖縄コンパクト事典, "Okinawa Compact Encyclopedia"). [http://ryukyushimpo.jp/news/storyid-41657-storytopic-121.html Ryukyu Shimpo] (琉球新報). 1 March 2003. Accessed 14 October 2009.</ref>. Before continuing on to the Ryukyuan port of [[Naha]], the mission returned to Fuzhou, where it regrouped and set out for Ryûkyû aboard a new ship, arriving in winter<ref name=chen>Ch'en, Ta-Tuan. "Investiture of Liu-Ch'iu Kings in the Ch'ing Period." in Fairbank, John King (ed.) The Chinese World Order. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1968. pp135-164.</ref>.

After arriving in [[Shuri]], the envoys stayed for roughly seven months, during which time Zhou Huang compiled his predecessors reports, commented on them, compared them to Ryukyuan records and histories, and wrote his own record of his own mission, along with other observations and thoughts. This would become the ''Ryûkyû-koku shiryaku'', which was later re-published by the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] and distributed, and which survives today<ref>Hirata, Tsugumasa (trans.). Chou, Huang. ''Ryûkyû-koku shiryaku''. Tokyo: San-ichi Shobô, 1977.</ref>.

After arriving in [[Shuri]], the envoys stayed for roughly seven months, during which time Zhou Huang compiled his predecessors reports, commented on them, compared them to Ryukyuan records and histories, and wrote his own record of his own mission, along with other observations and thoughts. This would become the ''Ryûkyû-koku shiryaku'', which was later re-published by the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] and distributed, and which survives today<ref>Hirata, Tsugumasa (trans.). Chou, Huang. ''Ryûkyû-koku shiryaku''. Tokyo: San-ichi Shobô, 1977.</ref>.