Black carbon is a series of carbonaceous substances produced by combustion of biomass and fossil fuels. It is widely distributed in soil, atmosphere and other carriers for a long time, and exhibits different environmental effects. As a non-renewable natural resource, soil is indispensable material foundation for human survival and development, and it is also the spatial and ecological basis for urban development. Black carbon in soils constitutes an important component of soil organic carbon pool, and affects the soil fertility, structure, organic pollutants and many other aspects. At present, the research on black carbon concentrates on its environmental impact, and our research in this area is late, especially the research on black carbon in soil is still at the initial stage. We analyzed the possible sources of black carbon (natural fire, human agricultural activity, fossil fuel combustion and automobile exhaust emissions), and summarized the common methods for the identification of black carbon sources (black carbon morphological characteristics analysis, black carbon / organic carbon ratio analysis, carbon isotope analysis of black carbon), and reviewed the research status of soil black carbon in different natural environments and different urban functional areas at home and abroad. Finally, we put forward the key issues that need to be concerned and resolved in the global black carbon research, so as to provide the important theoretical basis for the future development of the relevant policies to control the black carbon emission, and mitigate the impact of black carbon on the environment quality and human health.