Xian Yuqing was born in 1895 in Macau.[1][2][3] Her family was originally from Xiqiao, in the Nanhai District of China's Guangdong province.[1] She was one of eight children born to a couple from Guangdong who had moved to Macau during the Taiping Rebellion.[1] As a teenager, Xian decided to focus on her education and career, choosing to never marry or have children.[1][2]
Xian attended the Guangen School in Macau beginning in 1907, graduating in 1913.[1] She then attended St. Stephen's Girls' College in Hong Kong beginning in 1916, where she studied English.[1] She subsequently attended Lingnan University's high school from 1918 to 1920, then studied education at the university, teaching Chinese and history at the attached high school, and graduating in 1924.[1]
She stayed on staff at Lingnan University for many years, teaching Chinese literature and curating the university's museum.[2] As an academic, she focused on historical documents in Guangdong, producing various academic publications from the 1930s onward.[1][2] Then, in the 1950s, she was accused of spying and eventually resigned, as her health had declined amid the ordeal.[2]
Xian was also known for her work as a poet and a painter.[1][2] She published several books, including A New Lease on Life (Gengsheng ji) in 1936.[1] Her best-known book is perhaps Guangdong nuzi yiwen kao (1941), which included biographies of women poets from Guangdong.[2][4]
Her final book, Studies of Written Material Relating to Guangdong (Guangdong wenxian congtan), was published in May 1965.[1] She died in October 1965 at the age of 70.[1][2][3]
