Xuanzang's Great Tang Records on the Western Regions
Gran crónica de Xuanzang de las regiones occidentales
- Date
- 646 (viaje de 629-645) · confidence high
- Place
- Chang'an (Xi'an), Shaanxi, China
- Credited to
- Xuanzang (with the compiler Bianji)
- Field
- Cosmos & Earth
What was discovered
Account of the monk who travelled through Central Asia and India between 629 and 645 and dictated it on his return to Chang'an. It describes over a hundred kingdoms with routes, distances, climate, religion and customs, and was key to locating Nalanda and other sites.
What it led to
- a main source for the historical geography of India and Central Asia
- a guide for 19th-century archaeologists locating Nalanda, Bodh Gaya and other cities