Abstract:

 The time that The Song of Mulan was created is controversial, as there are six different versions: the Han Dynasty, the Northern Dynasties, the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Southern Dynasties, the Sui Dynasty and the Tang Dynasty. The Han Dynasty was excluded for lacking the support of historical events. The Northern Dynasties were too broad and general. The Southern Dynasties and the Sui Dynasty can be refuted due to insufficient data. The Tang Dynasty is not opted either without convincing evidence. Only the Northern Wei Dynasty matched the creation backgrounds of The Song of Mulan, but the connection to the poetry is yet to be proved. By assuring the location of Heishan and Yanshan recorded in the Song is the place where the war between the Norther Wei and Rouran Khaganate broke out, we can assert that The Song of Mulan was created during the Northern Wei Dynasty. A further literature comparison and emendation shows that The Song of Mulan had been constantly modified and embellished since its circulation and become a classic in Yuefu Poems edited by Guo Maoqian till Song Dynasty. Although there were modifications after the Song Dynasty, the canonized status of The Song of Mulan in Yuefu Poems could not be challenged.

Key words: the time of creation, text, The Song of Mulan, embellishment