Song Lian

Song Lian (1310–1381) was a historian and official of the early Ming dynasty, born in Pujiang, Zhejiang. A leading Neo-Confucian of the Jinhua school, he refused Yuan office before joining Zhu Yuanzhang, the future Hongwu Emperor, and tutoring the crown prince.

In 1369 he headed the Bureau of History and directed the compilation of the History of Yuan, completed in 1370. The commissioned official history became a major source for many peoples' histories.

He rose to chief minister of the Hanlin Academy, but after retiring in 1377 was implicated in the Hu Weiyong case through his grandson and died in exile at Kui Prefecture in 1381.