hsing-ming in Chinese philosophy, ‘forms and names,’ an important philosophical concept associated with Legalism and the Huang–Lao School (the school of the Yellow Emperor and Lao Tzu), which flourished during the Warring States period and the early Han dynasty (third– second century B.C.). The narrower meaning of the term has to do with a system of law and punishment, designed especially to keep state officials in check. More broadly, hsing-ming points to a vision of order, in which all ‘names’ (ming) should correspond to their underlying ‘form’ (hsing) or reality. Applied to politics, this suggests that the ruler must discern the workings of the cosmos, ensure that officials perform their assigned duties, and allow the people to prosper in the perceived natural order of things. See also CHINESE LEGALIS. A.K.L.C.