China

What problems did ancient China face when it came to coming into contact with other cultures?

China

• China covers an area of almost 4 million square miles
• About the size of the U.S.
• China is protected in the southwest by the Himalaya Mountains
• Two Major Deserts: Taklimakan and Gobi Desert
• The weather and temperature vary from cold and dry to wet and humid, and monsoons can bring up to 250 inches of rain each year.

Chinese Deserts

• Taklimakan Desert – one of the most dangerous deserts in the world
• Its name means “once you go in, you will not come out”
• High winds cause sand dunes to shift and temperatures can range from 15 to 100 degrees
• Legend says two armies and 300 cities are buried 600 feet below the sand dunes

Chinese Deserts

• Gobi Desert – one of the worlds largest deserts
• Made up of small pebbles and tiny bits of sand
• Little to no plant life

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Rivers - Huang He River

• Huang He River (Yellow River) - Called yellow river because it picks up a fertile yellowish soil
• Nearly 3,000 miles long across northern China
• The Yellow River has been nicknamed “China’s Sorrow” because of many devastating floods

Rivers - Chang Jiang

• Chang Jiang (Yangzi River) - The longest river in Asia; also called the Yangzi River
• Yangzi River - Flows across central China from Tibet to the Pacific Ocean
• Major transportation river

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Civilization

• China’s physical geography made farming possible but travel and communication difficult.
• Civilization began in China along the Huang He and Chang Jiang rivers.
• Both rivers would flood causing a lot of death and destruction, but they also left behind rich soil for farming.
• Along with farming, the Chinese people hunted, fished, and domesticated animals.
• Some small villages along the rivers grew into larger cities.

Shang Dynasty

• Dynasty – A series of rulers from the same family
• According to ancient Chinese records, the Shang dynasty formed around 1766 BC
• Chinese civilization developed along the Huang He.
• Shang China was largely agricultural
• Most of the population tended crops in fields

Government and Society

• The king was the center of Shang political and religious life.
• Nobles served the king as advisors and helped him rule.
• Nobles owned much land, and they passed on their wealth and power to their sons.
• Most people in the Shang ruling classes lived in large homes in cities

Government and Society

• Artisans were at a middle level of importance in Shang society.
• They lived in groups based on what they made for a living.
• Artisans made weapons, pottery, tools, and clothing

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Society

• Farmers ranked below artisans in the social order
• Slaves were the lowest rank and were an important source of labor
• Farmers called on to fight in army, work on building projects—tombs, palaces, walls

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Shang Writing System

• China’s first writing system used more than 2,000 symbols to express words or ideas
• Shang kings claimed to be able to influence the gods.
• Priests received messages from the gods through oracle bones
• Oracle bones - Priests carved questions about the future on bones or shells, which were then heated, causing them to crack.
• The priests believed they could “read” these cracks to predict the future.

Ancestor Worship

• Much of what is known comes from studying royal tombs
• Shang offered gifts to dead ancestors to keep them happy in afterlife
• Tombs held remains of sacrificed prisoners of war
• Believed in afterlife where ruler would need riches, servants

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As part of worship, Shang asked ancestors for advice

• Sought advice through use of oracle bones
• Inscribed bits of animal bone, turtle shell
• Living person asked question of ancestor
• Hot piece of metal applied to oracle bone resulting in cracks on bone’s surface
• Specially trained priests interpreted meaning of cracks to learn answer

Oracle Bones