Shi Ji (The Records of the Great Historian) is the first general historical book in the form of series biographies in China, written by Sima Qian in the Western Han Dynasty (206BC-8AD).

This book contains records from the Yellow Emperor (the forefather of Chinese in legend) to  Han Emperor Wudi, covering the history of more than 3,000 years. There are 130 pieces of writings with 526,500 words. Ben Ji (Main Records) is the outline of the whole book, recording the words and deeds and achievements of the kings and emperors. Biao (Sheets) lists the lineage, historical figures and events in the form of table sheets. Shu (Documentation) describes the development of the system, concerning ceremonial rites and regulations, astronomy and military regulations, social economy, river and geography, etc. Shi Jia (Hereditary) describes the historical stories of the dukes inherited from their forefathers. Lie Zhuan (Biographies) describes the life of the important historical figures. Among them, Ben Ji and Lie Zhuan are the main parts.

In the compiling, the writer consulted many literatures, as well as archives and ancient books written by ordinary people. The interviews and field investigations were also employed by the writer for data collection to ensure the accuracy of the content.

No historical books before the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD) could match Shi Ji in contents, historical events, materials, or the compilation level. Therefore, Shi Ji was the first general historical book in ancient China, not only due to its wide scope and complete system, but also because of its great influence on the later historical books. After that, all the official history of the later dynasties was written in the form of series biographies like Shi Ji. In the mean time, the vivid wording and narration in the book reaches a very high level, and Mr. Lu Xun also thought highly of Shi Ji.