'Tang Dynasty never existed': China's state media pushes back against viral conspiracy theory

Chinese state media has moved to contain a fringe historical conspiracy theory spreading online that claims the Tang Dynasty — which ruled from 618 to 907 — never actually existed.

The controversy began in May when Cao Yu, a social media influencer who produces history content, posted a video claiming the Tang Dynasty was a fabrication, citing astrological data as evidence, according to CNN and China's People's Daily. The hashtag "the Tang Dynasty did not exist" has since racked up tens of millions of views on Weibo.

Chinese internet users have linked the claim to a theory by German author Heribert Illig, who argued that European history from 614 to 911 was fabricated by later generations — a theory already debunked by the international historical and astronomical communities.

A recurring grievance among Chinese nationalist commentators is that the Tang Dynasty's ruling family was not of Han Chinese origin.

William Kirby, a professor of Chinese studies at Harvard University, told CNN the claims were "basically crazy." He said history has facts, and the Tang Dynasty is clearly one of them. "The Tang was more than a Chinese dynasty. It was also a dynasty of inner Asia," he said.

The People's Daily dismissed the claims as absurd in an editorial published in mid-August, warning that "if young people start to doubt our national history, cultural confidence will be like water without a source, a tree without roots."

Rana Mitter, a professor at Harvard Kennedy School, told CNN that "under Xi Jinping, the Communist Party upholds a longer arc of Chinese history," adding that all history must point toward "the idea of 'China' as a unified identity, cultural continuity and an entity that has persisted throughout history, rather than one of division."

Xi Jinping welcomed Central Asian leaders in Xi'an — the former Tang Dynasty capital — in 2023, staging a performance featuring dancers dressed in Tang-era costumes.

Meanwhile, Cao Yu's account was blocked in mid-August and all the videos were removed.