Scholar is the initial level for ancient scholars to take the imperial examination, and sometimes it is also a general term for scholars. There are generally three theories about its origin. Amin Yang Shen believes that the name of a scholar originates from a passage in the history books: "Zhao Wuling talks about-the cloud, customs change into people's habits, and Yue Hu has no scholar." Gu found a sentence in Historical Records, and his Biography of Historical Records Jia Sheng recorded that he was "eighteen years old, so that he could recite poems and become famous in the county, and Wu Tingwei was famous in Henan". In addition, Wang Xianqian, a scholar in the Qing Dynasty, believed that scholars got their name from Guan Zi Kuang Pian, and it was said that Lai Ye could become a scholar.

Of all these statements, Gu's is the most reliable. However, the scholar in Han dynasty is only a name for people with outstanding talents, not a subject for selecting talents. The scholar's department only appeared in the Western Jin Dynasty. But soon after it appeared, it became dim under the glory of the nine-product official law. Its status was improved until the Sui Dynasty, when the Ministry of Scholars was established, and its status was the noblest among the tribute subjects, and there were only a dozen scholars in the Sui Dynasty. Later, in the Tang Dynasty, literati were widely respected.

However, it began to show a downward trend after the Song Dynasty. Hong Mai's "Three Stories of Rong Zhai" records that some people regarded the scholar as a "contemptible name" in the Song Dynasty. By the Ming dynasty, it had degenerated into the common name of a trainee in the imperial examination, and some trainees even felt that others looked down on him as soon as they heard the scholar. Related to this, a large number of "sour scholars" images began to emerge in novels and operas. There is a folk saying that "vinegar is big" or "sour son". Only when lifting in the middle can acid gas be removed.

In the Qing Dynasty, scholars' mocking voice continued unabated. It is said that there was a popular proverb in Jiangnan at that time, which was called "Give a supervisor". The publication of this proverb clarifies the difference between a scholar's knowledge, a scholar and a tutor. It is said that Juren, scholar and Guo Jian students get together in the Mid-Autumn Festival respectively, and after half a tour of wine, they go to the yard to enjoy the moon, and the bright moon is in the sky. Seeing this, the juren praised: "Good moonlight." The scholar went on to say, "Good moonlight." Guo Jiansheng finally had to say, "Good moonlight is also good." This man added a sentence, which vividly described the scholar and the diploma of national identification that he had little knowledge but wanted to show off.