Abstract: “Tradition” is the key word shared in humanities and social science. When Chinese modernization goes deeper, different kinds of social problems appear, and people started to focus on the value and meaning of Chinese traditional culture for the development of modern society. Since the protection of intangible cultural heritage promote overwhelmingly, people have paid more and more attention to tradition. However, there are various views on the concept of “tradition”. On Tradition is the first book in the west which discusses tradition comprehensively and systematically. It presents the implication, evolution, tendency and some other key points of tradition. Though it cannot be applied completely to Chinese reality, as a comprehensive and systematic book on tradition published in the process of modernization, it contains many ideas we can learn from.

Key words: Tradition, Edward Shils, substantial tradition