Hamilton Library research room named in honor of Chinese leaders

The Asia Collection at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa Hamilton Library is now home to the Sun Yat-sen and Soong Ching Ling Research Room, dedicated on Sun Yat-sen’s 153rd birthday, November 12, 2019. The soft opening of Room 409 and an adjacent alcove honored the Chinese political figures, acknowledging a gift to the Hamilton Library Asia Collection Endowment Fund. The gift is a collaborative effort of family, friends and community supporters of Sun Yat-sen and Soong Ching Ling, including the Dr. Sun Yat-sen Hawai‘i Foundation and the Shanghai Soong Ching Ling Foundation.

Hamilton Library’s Asia collection holds more than 600 titles related to Sun Yat-sen and Soong Ching Ling, including books, photos, and other memorabilia on display in the research room.

“It was a wonderful event,” said Yen Chun, Executive Vice President of the Dr. Sun Yat-sen Hawai‘i Foundation, at the dedication ceremony. “We raised this donation over several years to fund supplemental library holdings and to provide subsidies to visiting researchers studying Sun and Soong.”

Sun Yat-sen, who attended 'Iolani School and Punahou School in Honolulu, was a Chinese philosopher, physician and politician, the first president of the Republic of China. Soong Ching Ling, Sun’s wife, held multiple titles in the Chinese government, and is the only person ever to be named Honorary Chairwoman of the People’s Republic of China.

“My grandaunt was a great leader of China and so accomplished, but she was very humble and kind,” said Yen Chun. “She loved the women and children of her country, and contributed her entire life for their welfare.”