“唐船商人”是近世时期活动在东亚海域贸易最前线的人群，亦是处在清朝对日贸易体系最基层的群体，然而关于这一群体，特别是他们在海域贸易活动中的位置和处境迄今鲜有深入的综合性研究。本文通过日本史料所存清朝官方颁发的出海许可证书、日本长崎有关唐船的进出港档案，以及唐通事教科书等文献，考察在清朝出海管理体制下赴日商人的地位，同时揭示他们在中日双方国家权力的挤压间挣扎求生的处境，进而尝试对这一群体的历史形象重新进行修正和评价。

"Tang Ship Merchants”were a group who flourished on the trade frontier of the East Asian Seas during the Early Modern period.  They occupied the lowest rung of Qing Dynasty’s trading system with Japan，however their position and status in the trading activities are rarely studied.  By examining the existing trade documents，this article intends to view the position of these merchants within the Qing Dynasty’s overseas trading system and reveal their circumstances under the official supervision from both Chinaand Japan in order to revise and re-evaluate the historical image of this community in an unbiased way.