The real pilgrim behind the Monkey King
The monk Xuanzang's 16-year overland journey to India (629–645) to gather and translate Buddhist scriptures became the historical seed of the Ming-era novel "Journey to the West" (earliest surviving edition c. 1592), whose pilgrim-monk Tang Sanzang is modeled on him. Its fictional companion, the Monkey King Sun Wukong, went on to become one of the most famous characters in all of Chinese literature.
How we know
Xuanzang c. 602–664 CE; pilgrimage to India 629–645 (16-year absence, per his collaborators' biographies; a 627 start appears in some East Asian versions); "Journey to the West" earliest surviving edition 1592 (Ming dynasty), monk-character Tang Sanzang based on Xuanzang, companion Sun Wukong.
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