Title of an emperor's reign, title given after death and posthumous title of an emperor were all dispensable special titles of emperors in ancient China

In the eyes of ancient emperors and ministers, it was a very important and holy thing to determine the title of reign. After a dynasty was replaced by a new one, the new emperor should determine a new title for his reign to show he abided by the new calendar promulgated by the emperor.

According to the Table of Chinese Dynasties, tiles of emperors' reigns totaled 708. In terms of contents, they fall into several categories: (1) indication of receiving orders from the Heaven; (2) indication of holiness and auspiciousness; (3) indication of dynasty change; (4) eulogy to the emperor's achievements; (5) hope for a peaceful and safe nation; or (6) prayer for a permanent country.

After the death of an emperor in ancient China, emperors of the later generations gave a title to him according to his life story to express their compliment, depreciation, criticism, compassion or other feelings.

The posthumous title is different from the title given after death. Posthumous title is pronounced as Miaohao (temple name) in Chinese. The ancestral temple of an emperor had a special temple name (or posthumous title). Compared with the title given after death, the posthumous titles used fewer characters and all carried the meaning of compliment.