Dai De

Who is Dai De?

Dai De, also known as Da Dai, birth and death unknown, was a Confucian scholar of the Former Han Dynasty. He was active during the reign of Emperor Yuan of Han.

He was the son of Dai Ren and the elder brother of Dai Sheng. He was a native of Liang and a founder of the Former Han Dynasty Jinwen Jingxue.

He helped compile the Book of Rites, editing the 214 books that made it up in the 1st century AD down to 85. His brother Dai Sheng further reduced it to 46, to which were added three books, giving the 49 that have come down to us today. Dai De's version of the Rites is known as 大戴礼记.