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Transcript

An Introduction to Ancient China

Maps

Geography

Isolation

  • Due to vast amounts of sea, desert, and mountain ranges China was rather isolated
  • Prevented trade throughout the area
  • Trade located in specific areas

River Systems

  • Two major rivers that flow to the Pacific Ocean
  • Yangtze & Huang He (Yellow River)
  • Allowed for fertile soil

Climate

  • Varied throughout the nation
  • Allowed for a variety of crops to be grown
  • Ex: Rice in the South, Wheat & Millet in the North

Developing Language

The Shang Dynasty

Shang Family Kings

  • Appeared about 1766 BC
  • Had religious responsibilities
  • Claimed they had permission from the gods to rule
  • Controlled the central part of the North China Plain

Shang Families

  • Respect for parents and elders extremely important
  • Believed spirits of ancestors could bring good luck and fortune
  • Paid respect to father's ancestors through animal sacrifices
  • Men ruled within the family

Shang Kings claimed to receive messages from the gods

  • Through oracle bones
  • Generally animal bones or turtle shells
  • Rulers etched questions onto the bones/shells
  • Touched the questions with heated rods until the bones cracked
  • They claimed these cracks were messages from the gods

Pictographs

  • used simple drawings for words or ideas
  • Chinese system of writing uses a large amount of symbols
  • educated people know roughly 10,000 characters

Examples

The Zhou Dynasty

Introduction to Power

  • Moved down from the north
  • Around 1027 BC, Wu Wang, eventually defeated the Shang

Dynastic Circle

  • Describes the rise and fall of Chinese rulers

Mandate of Heaven

  • believe troubles would come if the rulers fell out of favor with the gods
  • when a ruler was bad or foolish, the gods would take power away
  • troubles would appear in the form of peasant uprisings, invasions, floods or earthquakes

Homework (Due Tuesday 28 October)

Dynastic Circle

Read pages 254-257 (already posted)

Respond to questions: 3, 4, 5, 6

(post responses on Google Classroom)

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