Youxia (Traditional: 遊俠 Simplified: 游侠 Pinyin: yóuxiá [jǒʊɕjǎ] was a type of Chinese hero celebrated in classical Chinese poetry.

Youxia literally means ‘wandering force’, but is commonly translated as ‘knight-errant’ or less commonly as ‘cavalier’, ‘adventurer’, ‘soldier of fortune’, or ‘underworld stalwart’.

Background[link]

The term 遊俠 yóuxiá ‘wandering force’ refers to the way these men solely traveled the land using force (or influence through association with powerful people) to right the wrongs done to the common people and the monarchy if need be. Youxia did not come from any social class in particular. Various historical documents, wuxia novels, and folktales describe them as being princes, government officials, poets, musicians, physicians, professional soldiers, merchants, and butchers. Some were just as handy with a calligraphy brush as others were with swords and spears.

According to Dr. James J.Y. Liu (1926–1986), a professor of Chinese and comparative literature at Stanford University, it was a person's temperament and need for freedom, and not their social status, that caused them to roam the land and help those in need. Dr. Liu believes this is because a very large majority of these knights came from northern China, which borders the territory of "northern nomadic tribes, whose way of life stressed freedom of movement and military virtues." Many knights seem to have come from Hebei and Henan provinces. A large majority of the characters from the Water Margin, which is considered one of China's best examples of knight-errant literature, come from these provinces.^[1][2]

In poetry[link]

One good example of Youxia poetry is The Swordsman by Jia Dao (Tang Dynasty):

For ten years I have been polishing this sword;

Its frosty edge^[3] has never been put to the test.

Now I am holding it and showing it to you, sir:

Is there anyone suffering from injustice?^[1]

According to Dr. Liu, Jia’s poem "seems...to sum up the spirit of knight-errantry in four lines. At the same time, one can also take it as a reflection of the desire of all those who have prepared themselves for years to put their abilities to the test for some justice."^[1]

Analogous concepts[link]

• Knight-errant in Europe
• Ronin in Japan
• Sae Sok O-Gye in Korea

See also[link]

• Zhou Tong (archer)
• Ronin
• Wuxia
• Tang Yin
• Li Bai
• Gan Ning
• Song Jiang

References[link]

1. ^ ^{a b c} Liu, James J.Y. The Chinese Knight Errant. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1967 (ISBN 0-2264-8688-5)
2. ^ Shi, Nai’an and Luo Guanzhong. Outlaws of the Marsh. Trans. Sidney Shapiro. Beijing: Foreign Language Press, 1993 (ISBN 7-119-01662-8)
3. ^ Extremely sharp.

External links[link]

• The Knight-errant in Chinese literature, a 12 page paper by James J.Y. Liu. (accessed 12-20-2008)

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Alec Su
Alec Su at the New York Chinese Film Festival, September 19, 2010.
Chinese name	蘇有朋 (Traditional)
Chinese name	苏有朋 (Simplified)
Pinyin	Sū Yǒupéng (Mandarin)
Born	(1973-09-11) September 11, 1973 (age 38) Taipei, Republic of China (Taiwan)
Other name(s)	Su You Peng, Tommy Su
Occupation	Actor, singer
Instrument(s)	Keyboards, Guitar
Years active	1988-present
Associated acts	Little Tigers Team
Awards Hundred Flowers Awards Best Supporting Actor 2010 The Message

Alec Su (born on September 11, 1973 in Taipei, Taiwan) is a Taiwanese pop star and versatile actor in films and television dramas. He became famous as a member of the Taiwanese Idol Band The Little Tigers, formed in 1988, and later for his first Chinese TV series Princess Returning Pearl (series 1 and 2).

Little Tigers[link]

Alec Su's career started in 1988, at the age of 15, when he joined the Little Tigers trio. The band was the first idol singing group that debuted in the Taiwanese music industry and Alec was labelled as the "obedient tiger." The group's popularity was unprecedented; the Little Tigers attracted fans from Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, and amongst Chinese communities around the world. The success of the band began the new generation of Taiwanese pop culture in the early 1990s. In 2010, the Little Tigers were invited to participate in the CCTV Spring Festival Gala, in which they sang a medley of three of their biggest hits and won accolades as the "favorite singing group"^[1] for the event.

Apart from being a popular singer, during this period Su was epitomized by the general public as a superior student. He attended Taiwan's number one high school, Taipei Municipal Jian Zhong High School and was accepted into the prestigious National Taiwan University, where he majored in Mechanical Engineering . Su's experiences describing his high school years, preparing for the Taiwan university entrance examinations while trying to also juggle his performing schedule as a member of a wildly popular singing group, are recorded in his 1995 book entitled My Days at Jian Zhong / Youth Never Die.^[2]

However, as Su became so well known at such a young age, he felt that he had lost his freedom as a result of being in the limelight. At the age of 21, a year before his university graduation in Taiwan, Su decided to leave school and study abroad in England.

Television[link]

In 1995, after the breakup of Little Tigers, Su embarked on an acting career. His role as the fifth prince in the Chinese TV series blockbuster Princess Returning Pearl I and II won him fame as a television actor in 1997. He continued in 2000 with another hit TV series Romance in the Rain. His later TV series include Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre (2002), Magic Touch of Fate (2004, costarring Taiwanese actress Ruby Lin and Korean singer Kang Ta), and Mischievous Princess (2005). He collaborated with Korean actress Chae Rim in two 2003 productions, Love of the Aegean Sea and Warriors of the Yang Clan.

In 2006, Su appeared in the 1930s drama Jiang Ji Jiu Ji co-starring with Li Qian, Cecilia Ye Tong, and Paul Chun, and which aired in Spring 2007. In 2008 he acted in the TV drama Re Ai, which aired in the spring of 2009.

Movies and music[link]

Alec Su performing in the Fantasy Stars Chinese New Year Concert at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, January 28, 2012.

In recent years, Su has been concentrating on his film career. Since the second half of 2008 he has participated in more than a half-dozen film projects. Su also appears in the ensemble piece, Fit Lover, which had a November 2008 release, as well as guest starring in a short Taiwan film, L-O-V-E. The high-profile 1940s-period espionage drama, The Message, had a wide release in Asia in autumn 2009, has been included in several international film festivals, and received several nominations (and one win, for Li Bing Bing as "Best Actress") for the 2009 Golden Horse awards. A Singing Fairy, shot in Guangxi Province, and a biography of Macau composer Xian Xinghai, titled The Star and the Sea, both opened in limited release in December 2009. The Four Cupids, a romantic comedy, premiered in April 2010. Film projects for 2010 included The Love Song of Kangding (romantic drama filmed in Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture) and Lost in Panic Room, a "locked room" detective thriller. Both premiered in the fall of 2010. A sequel to the detective film, titled Lost in Panic Cruise, was released for Halloween 2011. Su continues his film career with several completed movies scheduled for release in 2012, and another currently in production.

In October 2010, Alec won the Hundred Flowers Award for "Best Supporting Actor" for his role in The Message. In December 2010, he won the "Best Actor" award at the 2nd Macau International Movie Festival, for his performance in The Love Song of Kangding

Along with his TV and film success, Su has released thirty top-selling albums, starting as a member of The Little Tigers group. As a solo artist he has released 14 albums, beginning in 1992 with I Only Want You to Love Me to his 2004 release Before and After. In January 2012 Su performed, along with singers Daniel Chan, Aska Yang, and Wilber Pan, in the 2012 Fantasy Stars Chinese New Year Concert, MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas.

Filmography[link]

TV series[link]

Films[link]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

Soundtracks[link]

• 2004: Love Of The Aegean Sea Original Soundtrack

Books[link]

• 1995 (revised 2003): 青春的場所 (My Days at Jian Zhong / Youth Never Die)

External links[link]

• SuYouPeng.com - Official Website - inactive: currently undergoing reconstruction
• Blog - Alec's Sina blog
• Da Bu Liao Blog - Blog started in 2007 for upcoming album
• Microblog weibo - Alec's Sina Microblog weibo 新浪微博

References[link]

1. ^ (Chinese)央视春晚调查结果出炉：小虎队最受欢迎. 2010年02月26日 星岛环球网
2. ^ Su, Alec (2003) [1995] (in Chinese). 青春的場所 Qing Chun De Chang Suo / My Days at Jian Zhong / Youth Never Die. Unitas Publishing Co., Ltd., Taiwan. ISBN 957-522-417-5 (2003).