Using ontology to model time description in historical Chinese texts

Abstract

Temporal information plays a crucial role in historical research, as it enables scholars to gain insights into the events and processes that have shaped the past. However, the complexity and diversity of temporal descriptions found in Chinese historical texts pose significant challenges for analyzing and interpreting this information. This article addresses these challenges by introducing the traditional Chinese time ontology (TCT Ontology), which integrates relevant concepts and different timing methods into an ontology. The TCT Ontology comprises four classes, including the TCT Record class, Chinese Calendar class, Historical Interval class, and Person class, to represent time descriptions in Chinese texts. By separating time records and the traditional Chinese calendar, the ontology provides a reference model for understanding time information in Chinese historical archives and serves as a basis for converting those time records to the Gregorian calendar. This accurate conversion is critical for humanistic research in Chinese history, as it enables scholars to engage in meaningful reading, studying, and research of the historical record.