Editing Li Ao (philosopher) (section)

==Biography==
Li was born in present-day [[Tianshui|Tianshui, Gansu]], but some accounts relate he was from [[Zhao County|Zhao, Hebei]]. After achieving the degree of [[Jinshi (imperial examination)|Jinshi]] in 798, he joined the imperial bureaucracy and served in the history department at [[Changan]].

In 809, he was assigned to the southern provinces and made the trip with his pregnant wife from [[Luoyang]] to [[Guangzhou]] over nine months. The course they took included the modern provinces of [[Henan]], Anhui, [[Jiangsu]], Zhejiang, [[Jiangxi]] and [[Guangdong]]. His record of the trip, the ''Lainan Lu'' (來南録, "Record of Coming to the South"), contains detailed descriptions of medieval southern China and is considered one of the earliest forms of the diary.{{citation needed|date=December 2018}}

At the time of his death in [[Xiangyang District, Xiangfan|Xiangyang, Hubei]], Li held the position of Governor of East Shannan Circuit (now [[Hubei]] and [[Henan]]). There is some debate about the year of his death. The ''[[Old Book of Tang]]'' gives the date of 841. While the [[Qing dynasty]] historians, however, have argued that it should be 836.

Late imperial scholars regarded Li as the founder of one of the ten great schools of philosophy in the Tang and [[Song dynasty|Song]] dynasties. As a philosopher, Li was heavily influenced by Buddhist philosophers like [[Liang Su]]<ref>{{Cite book|last=Yu-Lan|first=Feng|title=A History of Chinese Philosophy|year=1953|pages=424}}</ref> and also the great [[neo-Confucian]] [[Han Yu]]. His extensive writings are preserved in the ''Liwengong Wenji'' ({{lang|zh|李文公文集}}). This work is presumably a later edition of the ten chapters of the ''Li Ao Ji'' ({{lang|zh|李翺集}}) as referenced in the ''[[New Book of Tang]]''. Some of the few poems he produced can also be found in the ''[[Quantangshi|Quan Tang Shi]]'' ({{lang|zh|全唐詩}}).

Li's maternal grandsons [[Lu Xie]] and [[Zheng Tian]] both served as chancellors under [[Emperor Xizong of Tang]].