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The historical versions can be found here.

 

Download Latest Microsoft Access Format

Please DO read the CBDB download and installation guide before you start using CBDB Access.

If you encounter an error on Windows 10:  “Missing or broken reference” to a file MSCOMCTL.OCX, follow the instructions in the this PDF.

If you are having trouble downloading the file, please contact hongsuwang(at)fas.harvard.edu.

Download Latest Release SQLite Format:

https://github.com/cbdb-project/cbdb_sqlite/

 

CBDB BJ 20260602 Version

The China Biographical Database Project is pleased to announce the newest release of the database: CBDB BJ 20260602. The new release of the stand-alone China Biographical Database, CBDB_BJ_20260602 in MS Access format, is available for download HERE, effective immediately. This release contains data on 649,533 men and women. In addition to data revisions this release contains extensive structural improvements.

The most significant structural change is that with the BJ revision, CBDB uses just two files: an interface file (CBDB_BJ_User.mdb) with the version indicated by two letters, in this case “BJ,” and just one data file (CBDB_20260602_DATA.mdb) with the version indicated by the date sequence YYYYMMDD.

The technical specifications for the revisions in this release are described below in the CBDB Restructure and CBDB Access Query System sections, including a downloadable machine-readable schema comparison file (access_schema_diff_20250520_vs_20260430). New biographical data appear in the online inputting system as they are created; available HERE. The online search engine in Chinese (simplified and traditional) and English is provided by the CBDB commercial partner https://www.inindex.com/ with free registration. However, this online system replicates the search and export functionalities of the MS Access standalone database only for institutional subscribers. Following an agreement between the commercial and academic branches of CBDB, the academic branch (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International) publishes new data approximately one year after the commercial branch. As a result, no new persons have been added in this release relative to CBDB_bi_20250520.

CBDB Restructure

A detailed machine-readable diff of all schema changes between CBDB_bi_20250520 and CBDB_BJ_20260602 is available for download: access_schema_diff_20250520_vs_20260430.

The database structure has been significantly updated between CBDB_bi_20250520 and CBDB_BJ_20260602. Key changes are summarized below.

Tables added (4):

  • ADMIN_CAT_CODE_TYPE_REL
  • ADMIN_CAT_CODES
  • ADMIN_CAT_TYPES
  • MERGED_PERSON_DATA

Tables removed (5):

  • ADDR_PLACE_DATA
  • ADDR_XY
  • DATABASE_LINK_CODES
  • DATABASE_LINK_DATA
  • PLACE_CODES

Key field and structural changes:

  • c_created_date and c_modified_date across multiple tables: type changed from Text(255) to DateTime
  • ENTRY_DATA.c_nianhao_id renamed to c_entry_nh_id; c_parental_status renamed to c_parental_status_code
  • BIOG_MAIN.c_name and c_name_chn are now required (NOT NULL); c_self_bio field removed
  • TEXT_CODES: publication fields (c_pub_country, c_pub_dy, c_pub_nh_code, c_pub_nh_year, c_pub_range_code, c_pub_year, c_publisher, c_pub_loc, c_pub_notes) moved to TEXT_INSTANCE_DATA
  • POSTED_TO_OFFICE_DATA.c_appt_code_desc removed
  • OFFICE_CODES: four category fields removed; c_dy is now required (NOT NULL)
  • ADDR_CODES: new c_admin_cat_code field linking to new ADMIN_CAT tables
  • EVENTS_DATA and EVENTS_ADDR: primary keys added; c_event_record_id removed
  • ASSOC_DATA: several Integer/Long Integer field type corrections

CBDB Access Query System (Michael Fuller)

CBDB_20250520_DATA_Build_20260424

This build removes c_appt_code_desc from POSTED_TO_OFFICE_DATA.

CBDB_20250520_DATA_Build_20260417

Minor change to synchronize with the MariaDB version. Deleted a field in SOCIAL_INSTITUTION_ALTNAME_DATA.

CBDB_20250520_DATA_Build_20260414

This build removes the four category fields from OFFICE_CODES. c_dy is set to NOT NULL.

CBDB_BJ_AND_20250520_DATA_Build_20260226

In this build, the index year calculation algorithm has been revised in the DATA file.

  1. The calculation of index years by jinshi, juren, and xiucai dates for concubines and successor wives has been moved to after step 9W (based on the woman's oldest son).
  2. Wife is now defined as W (135) and W1 (138).

In the BJ interface, View_PersonData was updated: a mistake was fixed (c_index_year_source_id refers to a person, not a text), and the display of the index year code now shows when the index year is a derivation based on a derivation.

CBDB_BJ_AND_20250520_DATA_Build_20260121

This build is part of the project to synchronize tables between the MariaDB version and the Access version.

In the DATA file:

  1. In ENTRY_DATA, two field renames:
    • c_nianhao_id → c_entry_nh_id (more specific identifier)
    • c_parental_status → c_parental_status_code (more consistent naming)
  2. SOCIAL_INSTITUTION_CODES: deleted the record for c_year_range
  3. TEXT_CODES: deleted the following fields, all now in TEXT_INSTANCE_DATA: c_pub_country, c_pub_dy, c_pub_nh_code, c_pub_nh_year, c_pub_range_code, c_pub_year, c_publisher, c_pub_loc, c_pub_notes

In the BJ interface:

  1. Updated all references to ENTRY_DATA.c_parental_status → c_parental_status_code
  2. Updated ENTRY_DATA.c_nianhao_id → c_entry_nh_id in the view
  3. Removed references to publisher data for TEXT_CODES in one form

CBDB_20250520_DATA_Build_20260126

In this build:

  1. Added primary keys to EVENTS_DATA and EVENTS_ADDR
    • c_sequence was set to 1 where it was null or 0
    • In two records where c_event_code was NULL, event codes were added to EVENT_CODES
    • Where there were duplicate primary key values, c_sequence was incremented to ensure uniqueness
  2. Deleted c_event_record_id from EVENTS_DATA and EVENTS_ADDR
  3. Added a foreign key in EVENTS_ADDR referring to EVENTS_DATA through c_personid, c_sequence, and c_event_code

CBDB_20250520_DATA_Build_20260112

This build includes a series of structural changes to synchronize the Access version with the MariaDB version:

A. ETHNICITY_TRIBE_CODES — removed dynasty fields that had been agreed upon for deletion

B. EVENTS — Restructured EVENTS_ADDR and EVENTS_DATA; updated primary key structure; c_event_record_id added as a transitional field

C. MERGED_PERSON_DATA — c_merged_from_person_id renamed to c_merged_to_person_id; foreign key constraint resolved

D. OFFICE_CODES — c_dy designated as NOT NULL; office code without dynasty (奉直大夫) assigned to Jin dynasty

E. POSTED_TO_OFFICE_DATA — c_appt_type_code renamed to c_appt_code for consistency with APPOINTMENT_CODES; duplicate text field removed

F. SOCIAL_INSTITUTION_ALTNAME_DATA — added c_secondary_source_author field

G. SOCIAL_INSTITUTION_NAME_CODES — added missing pinyin value for code 2521 (敷文書院, Fuwen shuyuan)

H. STATUS_CODES — added missing English description for code 162 (Descendent of the Younger Ancestor lineage in the Liao dynasty)

I. TEXT_BIBLCAT_CODES — added missing English descriptions for codes 83 (Philology: Shuowen) and 84 (Philology: Character books)

J. TEXT_INSTANCE_DATA — corrected field types to align integer/long integer usage

CBDB_20250520_DATA_Build_20260102

This is the companion data file for the corresponding BJ user interface build. It includes the ADMIN_CAT table.

CBDB_BJ_User_Build_20260102

This build fixes a group of important bugs in the BJ interface. Descriptions of associations and kinship have been restored in LookAtNetworks (which had been omitted when moving from BI to BJ). The logic of the last search for both kin and non-kin has been corrected: the final search looks for additional relations among people already identified who are at the maximum node distance, testing only for kinship constraints and association filtering. The ADMIN_CAT tables have been added to the linking routine.

CBDB_BJ_User_Build_20251219

This build restores the PersonIDSource table, which had been mistakenly deleted.

CBDB_20250520_DATA_Build_20251223

This build redefines all c_created and c_modified fields as Date/Time.

CBDB_BJ_AND_20250520_DATA_Build_20251209

This build modifies both the data file and the user interface.

In the data file, a generated table ZZZ_DISTANCE_DATA has been added, containing Great Circle route distances for all pairs of persons appearing in either KIN_DATA or ASSOC_DATA who both have index address information. The code needed to update this table has been added to the tables management form.

In the user interface, the new ZZZ_DISTANCE_DATA table is used to add distance information to the kinship and social network tables, restoring functionality that had previously been generated dynamically from the ZZZ tables.

CBDB_BJ_User_Build_20251205

This build removes the debugging message boxes from LookAtNetwork.

CBDB_BJ_AND_20250520_DATA_Build_20251203

This build makes the Browser form fields consistent with the newly recreated views.

CBDB_BJ_AND_20250520_DATA_Build_20251103

This build adds ZZZ_ADDRESSES to the DATA file and a corresponding link in the BJ user interface. The ZZZ_ADDRESSES table is an improved version with better (but not perfect) year tracking.

CBDB_20250520_DATA2_Build_20251103

This build changes the algorithm for generating ZZZ_ADDRESSES.

CBDB_BJ_User_Build_20251023

This build includes a revised version of the form frmPickEntry_multi in which the logic of the search function has changed. The search now simply identifies all entry codes that contain the search phrase. Resetting is accomplished by clicking on any node in the node tree.

CBDB_BJ_USER_AND_DATA_Build_20251021

This build adds MERGED_PEOPLE_DATA to the DATA file.

CBDB_20250520_DATA1_Build_20251002

This build fixes a mistake in the index year assignment function.

CBDB_bi_20250520_Build20250909

This build prevents the user from selecting all association codes when selecting codes for LookAtAssociations. It also changes some field sizes in the scratch file ZZ_SCRATCH_ASSOC.

CBDB_bi_20250520_Build20250709

This build fixes the Ouyang Xiu and Pang Ji kinship association issue.

CBDB_bi_20250520_Build20250604

  1. Fixed a small error in BIOG_MAIN where 19 records had a NULL address ID yet had an address type = 1. The code for assigning the index address has been changed so that this cannot happen again, and the data in BIOG_MAIN has been corrected so that when the address ID is NULL, the address type is also NULL. The ZZZ tables have been updated to correspond. The error had an impact on writing to Neo4j files.
  2. Added 除授類別 (appointment category) to both LookAtOffice and LookAtGroups.

CBDB_bi_20241217_Build20250526

This build fixes a small error in BIOG_MAIN where 19 records had a NULL address ID yet had an address type = 1. The code for assigning the index address has been changed so that this cannot happen again, and the data in BIOG_MAIN has been corrected so that when the address ID is NULL, the address type is also NULL. The ZZZ tables have been updated to correspond. The error had an impact on writing to Neo4j files.

 

Change History