Early Chinese

CivilizationBy Elin Richmond Journey Across Time Chapter 7

Chinese Civilization• Little is known about how Chinese Civilization began.

• Archeologists have found pottery in the Huang He river valley dating back thousands of years.

• These artifacts show that the Huang He valley was the first center of Chinese civilization.

People farmed the land and the population grew.

As the number of people rose, they began building towns and soon thereafter, Chinese civilization began.

The Shang Dynasty • China’s first rulers were likely part of the Xia (syah) dynasty.

• Rulers known as the Shang became powerful between ca 1750-1045 B.C. because they controlled land and had strong armies.

• The Shang might have built China’s first cities, including Anyang in northern China. Anyang was China’s first capital.

• Using chariots and bronze • weapons the Shang kings’ • armies took over nearby • villages in the Huang He valley.

The Shang Dynasty The king used warlords and other royal officials to control the land.

1. They made up China’s upper class and were aristocrats.

aristocrats- nobles whose wealth came from the land they owned

2. A few people were traders & artisans

3. Most were farmers

4. Also a small number of slaves

The Shang Dynasty • Shang and Chou times are known for their use of jade, bronze, horse-drawn chariots, ancestor worship, highly organized armies, and human sacrifice. 

• Chopsticks were invented, which changed the way people ate their food.

• For both the rich and the poor, the family was all important. • The oldest male was the head of the family.

Gods & Spirits• Spirits lived in mountains, rivers, and seas • Keep gods and spirits happy by making

offerings of food and other goods• Angry if not treated well –poor harvest and

armies lose in battles

Ancestors •People honored ancestors –departed family members

•Offerings made in hope that ancestors would help in time of need and bring good luck

•To this day, many Chinese still remember their ancestors by going to temples and burning small paper copies of food and clothing.

•These copies represent things that their departed relatives need in the afterlife.

• Shang kings believed that they received wisdom and power from spirits, gods, and ancestors.

• Oracle bones to help tell future• Religion and government was closely linked, just as in

Ancient Egypt & Mesopotamia.• Discuss: Compare to USA today….

Chinese Language

Keep in mind that there is Mandarin and Cantonese, not really “Chinese.” This is a common mistake many adults make as well. You can find a link to how to learn Mandarin on my wikispace!

Like many other ancient civilizations, early Chinese writing used pictographs and ideographs.

English and many other languages have a written system that use characters that stand for sounds (alphabet).

Pictograph = characters that stand for objects

Ideograph = join two or more pictographs to represent an idea

The Zhou Dynasty Dynasty = line of rulers from the same family

•During the Shang dynasty there was a big gap between rich and poor. They also began to treat people cruelly. Therefore they lost the support of their people.

•1045 B.C. an aristocrat named Wu Wang led a rebellion against the Shang and created a new dynasty called the Zhou (joh) dynasty.

•The Zou dynasty ruled for more than 800 years!

• King was head of government• Under king was a large

bureaucracy – appointed officials responsible for different areas of government

• Aristocrats were in charge of territories

• Chinese considered their king their link between them and the gods.

The Mandate of Heaven Chinese considered their king their link between them and the gods & this paved the way for a new idea that the Zhou dynasty introduced.

Mandate = a formal order

According to Zhou rulers, a heavenly law gave the Zhou king the power to rule. This heavenly law was called the Mandate of Heaven.

•The king was chosen because of his talent &virtue.

•He would rule the people with goodness and wisdom.

•People expected the king to rule according to the proper way (Dao) and keep the gods happy

•Bad harvest could be sign that he failed his duty- right to overthrow the ruler

•People could also overthrow dishonest or evil ruler.

•Clear that the king was NOT a god himself