Yang Jia Jiang - Historical and Cultural Sites

Historical and Cultural Sites

Due to the popularity of the stories throughout the Chinese-speaking world, numerous memorial sites including temples and tombs have been built over the centuries throughout China to commemorate Yang Ye and the Yang family. Many locations have no known and realistic relationship with the Yangs, yet still claim that events from the stories occurred there. Some of the most well-known sites include:

• Invincible Yang Temple (楊無敵廟) in Gubeikou, Beijing, built some time before 1055, when the location was still under Liao control. Over the years many generals renovated the temple to pay their respects, including Xu Da in the 14th century and Feng Yuxiang in the early 20th century. It was destructed in the Cultural Revolution but has since been rebuilt according to old photos.

• Tian Bo Yang House (天波楊府) in Kaifeng, Henan, the capital of Song Dynasty during the Yangs' time. The name "Tian Bo" (天波; literally "Heaven Wave") is the name of the house of the Yangs in popular legends. The house was built in 1992 as a tourist attraction. The location in Kaifeng was chosen based on records written in the 14th century. Some historians doubt whether the Yangs actually had a house in Kaifeng like the records claimed.

• Yang Family Ancestral Hall (楊家祠堂) in Dai County, Shanxi. Allegedly this is the location of Yang family when Yang Ye was serving the Northern Han Kingdom. It was built in 1329.

• Yang Family City (楊家城) in Shenmu County, Shaanxi, Yang Ye's birth place. The city walls were built in 748, but at least since 1098 it has been called Yang Family City. The Seven-Star Temple (七星廟) where Yang Ye and She Saihua allegedly married is located about 25km away (the name of course refers to their 7 children).