Situ (office)

{{Short description|Imperial Chinese ministerial rank}}

Situ was one of the highest ranking government offices in ancient China. Established in the Western Zhou dynasty, it was originally written as {{lang|zh|司土}} ({{zh |p = Sītǔ }}), meaning Administrator of Land.{{cite web |url = http://www.guoxue.com/?p=349 |script-title=zh:中国古代官制常识 |trans-title=|website=Guoxue.com |language=zh |date=2010-10-25 |access-date=2013-10-22 }}{{cite web |url = http://define.cnki.net/WebForms/WebDefines.aspx?searchword=%E5%91%A8%E4%BB%A3%E5%8F%B8%E5%BE%92%E8%81%8C%E5%88%86%E8%80%83%E8%BE%A8 |script-title=zh:周代司徒职分考辨 |trans-title= |website = CNKI |language = zh |access-date=2013-10-22 }}

During the Han dynasty, the title became written with the different characters {{lang|zh|司徒}} ({{zh |p = Sītú |l = Administrator of people }}), which is translated variously as Minister over the MassesBielenstein, 207–230 or Excellency over the Masses.de Crespigny, 1221 It was one of the three most important official posts during the Han dynasty, called the Three Excellencies. The nominal salary for the post was 20,000 dàn ({{lang|zh|石}}) of grain.Michael Loewe The Men Who Governed Han China Dictionary of the Qin, Former Han and Xin Periods (2004)

The title is the origin of the surname Situ.