| Wang Yirong | |
| Native Name: | 王懿榮 |
| Native Name Lang: | Chinese |
| Birth Date: | 1845 |
| Birth Place: | Yantai, Shandong, Qing dynasty |
| Death Place: | Beijing, Qing dynasty |
| Death Cause: | Suicide during the occupation of Beijing |
| Nationality: | Chinese |
| Occupation: | Administrator of education, archaeologist, epigrapher |
| Titles: | Director of the Academy |
| Discipline: | Archaeology, epigraphy |
| Sub Discipline: | Palaeography, oracle bone script |
| Workplaces: | The Guozijian |
Wang Yirong (; 1845–1900) was a director of the Chinese Imperial Academy, best known as the first to recognize that the symbols inscribed on oracle bones were an early form of Chinese writing.[1] His work on the oracle bone script was curtailed when he accepted a local command during the Boxer Rebellion, despite his belief that the cause was futile. When an international force occupied Beijing in August 1900, Wang committed suicide, together with his wife and daughter-in-law.[2] A museum devoted to Wang is located in his birthplace of Yantai, Shandong.[3]
. Chinese history: a manual . Endymion Porter Wilkinson . Harvard Univ Asia Center . 2nd . 2000 . 978-0-674-00249-4 . 391 .