Ancient China

Geography of China•Natural barriers isolate China•Yellow Sea, East China Sea and the Pacific Ocean to the East•Taklimakan Desert and Plateau of Tibet to the West•Himalayas to the Southwest•Gobi Desert and Mongolian Plateau to the North

•How does this affect China?

Geography of China•Two major rivers•Huang He (Yellow River) in the north •Yellow river gets its name from the loess (fertile soil) that deposits along its bank

•Chang Jiang in central China – flows to the Yellow Sea

Environmental Challenges•Flooding from the Yellow River could be disastrous – nicknamed “China’s Sorrow”

•China is isolated by surrounding mountains, deserts and large bodies of water

•Invasions from outsiders

•Little farmland

Ancient Dynasties•Xia (shyah) Dynasty emerges around 2000 BC•Irrigation projects to control flooding and make farming possible

•Shang Dynasty rules from 1700 BC to 1027 BC•First dynasty with written records•Left behind many artifacts (palaces and tombs)

Shang Cities•Cities were built mainly of wood – Why?•Higher class citizens lived within city walls•Peasants lived in huts outside the city

•Surrounded the cities with walls for protection•Demonstrate a government that organized for such projects•Needed the walls because the Shang were always at war

Chinese Culture•Called the “Middle Kingdom”•Because they thought of themselves as the center of the civilized world

•Family was central to the Chinese•Men controlled property•Females were inferior; marriages were arranged

•Society was divided between nobles and peasants•Nobles owned land and ruled the government

Chinese Culture•Religion was closely linked to the family•Believed ancestors had power to bring good fortunes and disasters•Supreme god was known as Shang Di•Used oracle bones to consult the gods

•Developed a system of writing •Advantage- Could be learned by all member of society regardless of location•Disadvantage- Enormous number of symbols, so literacy was limited

Chinese Culture•Religion was closely linked to the family•Believed ancestors had power to bring good fortunes and disasters•Supreme god was known as Shang Di•Used oracle bones to consult the gods

•Developed a system of writing •Advantage- Could be learned by all member of society regardless of location•Disadvantage- Enormous number of symbols, so literacy was limited