Jianwen (Chinese: 建文; pinyin: Jiànwén; Wade–Giles: Chien-wen; lit. 'establishing civility'; 6 February 1399 – 29 July 1402) was the era name (nianhao) of the Jianwen Emperor, the second emperor of the Ming dynasty, lasting for four years. The Yongle Emperor did not recognize the Jianwen era name after the success of the Jingnan campaign and changed Jianwen 4 to Hongwu 35.^[1] In 1595 (Wanli 23), the Wanli Emperor issued an edict to restore the Jianwen era name.^[2]

The Yongle Emperor never announced the abolition of the Jianwen era name. Some scholars believe that the abolition of the era name was not Yongle's intention but rather the actions of his subordinates. Some people also believe that the Yongle Emperor deliberately distorted the history of the Jianwen era by heavily revising the Taizu Shilu (太祖實錄) and compiling the Fengtian Jingnan Ji (奉天靖難記), which is equivalent to abolishing the Jianwen era name, but he was unwilling to personally implement it publicly and bear the historical responsibility.^[3]

Comparison table

Other regimes' era names that existed during the same period

• Vietnam
  • Kiến Tân (建新, 1398–1400): Trần dynasty—era name of Trần Thiếu Đế
  • Thánh Nguyên (聖元, 1400): Hồ dynasty—era name of Hồ Quý Ly
  • Thiệu Thành (紹成, 1401–1403): Hồ dynasty—era name of Hồ Hán Thương
• Japan
  • Ōei (応永, 1394–1428): Japan—era name of Emperor Go-Komatsu and Emperor Shōkō