# ElegantBook: a LaTeX book class with a three year gap in its history > The Chinese LaTeX book template that was officially dead from 2023 to 2026, came back under new maintainers, and now sits on CTAN with a small, readable repository. **ElegantLaTeX/ElegantBook** — Elegant LaTeX Template for Books - Repository: https://github.com/ElegantLaTeX/ElegantBook - Stars: 2,606 · Forks: 468 - Language: TeX - License: LPPL-1.3c - Published: 2026-10-06 · Updated: 2026-10-06 · Language: en - Canonical page: https://hysenlabs.com/projects/elegantlatex-elegantbook ## A book class, not a document full of custom commands ElegantBook's primary artefact is `elegantbook.cls`, a LaTeX document class. That distinction matters more than it sounds. A template that ships a folder of preamble snippets leaves you assembling your own document class, while a class file gives you a single `documentclass` line with the whole design already encoded, including how theorem environments are declared and numbered. The repository is deliberately small, and the whole file layout fits in a short list: ```text elegantbook.cls elegantbook-cn.tex elegantbook-en.tex build.lua reference.bib figure/ image/ ``` `elegantbook-cn.tex` and `elegantbook-en.tex` are the two example books, one Chinese and one English, and they are the fastest way to learn the class since a working document beats any documentation. `build.lua` means the class expects LuaLaTeX rather than pdfLaTeX, which is a real constraint if your workflow is pinned to the older engine. `reference.bib` shows the bibliography style, and the `figure/` and `image/` directories separate document figures from decorative artwork. The class options are documented through the release notes rather than the README, which is thin. v4.5 for instance added a `usesamecnt` option so that all theorem environments across the theme share one counter, and added a fifth optional parameter to the `\elegantnewtheorem` command. ## Discontinued in 2023, republished in 2026 This is the most interesting thing about the project and the README states it plainly, twice, once in Chinese and once in English. The template was discontinued as of January 1, 2023 and its use was not recommended. Then, because the user base was large, it was re-released starting in 2026. The release history makes the sequence visible. v4.5 on 2022-12-31 carries a "Stop Maintenance" note alongside the `usesamecnt` option and the `\elegantnewtheorem` change, so the final state of the old line was also the last useful state of the old line. Then nothing for three years. v4.6 on 2026-02-27 says only "Maintenance resumed", and v4.7 on 2026-05-01 is a small update referencing two issue numbers. A gap like that changes how you should read the documentation. The README says it keeps past information so that users of earlier versions can still consult it, which is honest but means some of it may describe a class file that no longer exists in that form. If you are starting fresh, read the notes from v4.6 and v4.7 rather than assuming the older advice is current. Maintenance now belongs to Osbert Wang, who took over distribution in 2026, after earlier stewardship by Ethan Deng, ethanol and sikouhjw. ## LPPL licensing and what derivatives have to do The licence is the LaTeX Project Public License v1.3c or later, which is the standard choice for a LaTeX class and has one obligation that catches people out. The README asks that derivatives include both the licence notice and the template information, meaning the GitHub and CTAN addresses. For a class file that people modify, that is a reasonable request rather than an onerous one. The README is bilingual throughout, with Chinese and English paragraphs stating the same things. That is worth noting for anyone who only reads one language: nothing important is hidden in the half you skip. The acknowledgements name sikouhwj and syvshc for fast responses to GitHub issues, and thank ChinaTeX and LaTeX Studio for promoting the series, which gives a sense of where the project's audience came from. The repository identifiers are ordinary: 2606 stars, 468 forks, 43 open issues, default branch `master`, licence LPPL-1.3c, and repository topics limited to `book`, `latex-class` and `latex-template`. The GitHub repository also links to CTAN, and both carry version badges, so you can see at a glance whether your copy is current. ## Derivative projects as evidence of real use The README lists three derivative works, and they say more about how the class is actually used than any usage statistic would. ElegantBookdown is a Bookdown template built on ElegantBook, developed by XiangyunHuang, which means the class survives being driven from Markdown rather than from a raw `.tex` file. bookdownplus by pzhaonet collected ElegantPaper and adapted fonts for Mac, which is the kind of change that only matters if real books are being typeset with it. PanBook by annProg is a Markdown based workflow that includes both ElegantBook and ElegantPaper. Three separate Markdown toolchains choosing this class is the strongest evidence available that it holds up outside its author's own documents. It also tells you where to look if you want to see the class in a modern writing workflow rather than a traditional one. Search results around this project surface the sibling names regularly, including ElegantPaper and ElegantNote, along with Kaobook and Overleaf as the alternatives a reader is likely comparing against. That is the right comparison set: this is one template in a family, competing with other Chinese LaTeX classes and with hosted editing services. ## What a newcomer has to learn before the first compile Nobody reading this repository gets a quick start. The README is an introduction and a licence statement, and the class documentation lives in the CTAN package and in the example documents. That is normal for a mature LaTeX class, and the practical approach is to start from `elegantbook-cn.tex` or `elegantbook-en.tex`, compile it unchanged, and only then begin replacing content. The engine choice is the first thing to get right. A `build.lua` file at the root means LuaLaTeX, so a toolchain set up for pdfLaTeX will fail before it reaches any of your content. Chinese typesetting then depends on which font setup the example document expects, which is the kind of detail the example file answers and a manual does not. Since the class is on CTAN, a TeX Live installation or an Overleaf project can bring it in as a dependency rather than as a copied file. That is the better habit even when you are working from the GitHub archive, because it means a missing package is a `tlmgr` install rather than a debugging session. ## Reading a community template critically A useful habit when evaluating a template like this is to ask what happens when it stops. ElegantBook has already answered that question once, with three years of no maintenance between v4.5 and v4.6. The users who started a book in 2023 got a class file that would not receive fixes, and some of them are the reason it was republished. The response to that was not a new project but a revived one, which is usually the better outcome: the accumulated knowledge in the class file and the derivative templates survives, and the new maintainer inherits users rather than starting from zero. Osbert Wang taking responsibility for maintenance and distribution in 2026 is the specific fact that makes the current line different from the old one. The scale of the community is the other consideration. A template with 468 forks and 43 open issues has a large body of accumulated fixes, which is good for you and bad for maintainers. Issues are the documentation here, as the README's acknowledgement of fast issue responses suggests. The project is at version v4.7 as of 2026-05-01, with the repository last pushed on 2026-05-02. ## Conclusion ElegantBook is a good choice when you want Chinese academic book typesetting with a working theorem and bibliography setup, and you would rather not build a class file from scratch. The class itself is the product: `elegantbook.cls` plus `build.lua`, with the example files showing what a finished book looks like. Its maintenance history deserves reading before you commit a large manuscript to it, because the project spent three years officially discontinued before being re-released in 2026 under a new maintainer, and the README says outright that the documentation still carries information from the older versions. v4.7 arrived on 2026-05-01 and the repository was last pushed on 2026-05-02, so the current line is active. Start from the CTAN package rather than the GitHub archive, since that is the version the maintainers consider the distributable one. ## FAQ ### What is the best LaTeX book template? It depends on the engine and the language. ElegantBook targets LuaLaTeX and ships complete Chinese and English example books, so it suits Chinese academic writing where you want theorem environments and a bibliography already configured. For English only work with pdfLaTeX, Kaobook or a plain memoir setup may fit better, and Overleaf is worth trying before committing to any class file. ### Is ElegantBook still maintained? Yes, since 2026. The template was discontinued as of January 1, 2023 and re-released from 2026 because of its large user base, with Osbert Wang responsible for maintenance and distribution. v4.6 marked the resumption and v4.7 followed on 2026-05-01. ### Which LaTeX engine does ElegantBook need? LuaLaTeX. The repository includes a build.lua file at its root, which is the standard marker for a LuaLaTeX project, so a pdfLaTeX setup will fail before reaching your content. The class is also on CTAN, so it can be installed as a package rather than copied in. ## Sources - [ElegantLaTeX/ElegantBook on GitHub](https://github.com/ElegantLaTeX/ElegantBook) - [Issues](https://github.com/ElegantLaTeX/ElegantBook/issues) - [License: LPPL-1.3c](https://github.com/ElegantLaTeX/ElegantBook/blob/master/LICENSE) - [README](https://github.com/ElegantLaTeX/ElegantBook/blob/master/README.md) - [Releases](https://github.com/ElegantLaTeX/ElegantBook/releases) --- Hysen Labs editorial analysis, written from the project's own repository and release notes. Cite the canonical page: https://hysenlabs.com/projects/elegantlatex-elegantbook