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CHINA

Chinese name:

Zhong Guo – Middle Country

Chinese believed they were the center of the world: lived in the “Land Under Heaven”

Why might they think this?

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-Huang He River (Yellow River)

-named for yellow brown soil (loess)

-nicknamed River of Sorrow= flooding

Chang River(Yangzi River)

-used for trade

-Shanghai (port) is at its mouth

Xi River

-large farming area

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Oldest Civilization

Discovered written records dating back 3,500 years
Believed they were the only civilized culture in the world

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1/5 of the World’s Population

(1.4 billion)

Celebrate the

“4 Great inventions of China”

Compass
Gunpowder
Paper
Printing

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PAN GU

LEGEND

MYTH

STORY TELLERS

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“In the far off Universe…..an enormous egg split into two: it’s upper half became the sky, it’s lower half the earth, and from it emerged P’an Gu (Man).

Every day he grew 10 feet taller, the sky 10 feet wider and the earth 10 feet thicker.

After 18,000 years, P’an Gu died.
His head split and became the sun and moon.

His blood filled the rivers and the seas.
His hair became the forests and meadows.
His perspiration the rain
His breath, the wind
His voice, the thunder
His fleas, our ancestors

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YIN YANG

Egg symbolized Yin Yang, the major forces in Chinese life
Two forces are in every life
Forces constantly interacting
Process never ended, they produced each other, influenced each other and destroyed each other

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Yang- Positive force, masculine, active ,warm, dry, bright and aggressive
Sun and Heaven were considered Yang
Fire, the south side of a hill, the Horse- because it rose front end first, were all Yang

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Yin was feminine, dark, cool, wet, mysterious, secret and submissive.
Shadows, the north side of a hill and Camels because they rose hind-end first, were Yin
Women, considered earthy and of no great worth, were Yin

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BALANCE

To achieve great balance in life the forces of Yin-Yang had to work together in harmony
Upset the balance and disaster occurred
Drought, fire, famine from too much Yang
Yin brought off season rain and floods
Live in Harmony

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CARDINAL DIRECTIONS

Chinese believed in 5 cardinal Directions that Centered their lives

Chinese Cities were laid out in accordance with these forces in mind.

Each city was a square

How are there 5?

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CENTER

YELLOW

EARTH

MAN

WINTER

BLACK

WATER

TORTOISE

BIRD

FIRE�RED

SUMMER

FALL

WHITE

METAL

TIGER

SPRING

GREEN

WOOD

DRAGON

CENTER

YELLOW

EARTH

MAN

NORTH

SOUTH

WEST

EAST

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Porcelain

Fired pottery in a kiln at high temperatures to produce hard surfaces
Created colorful porcelain which became known as ‘China.’

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SILK

Chinese SILK is shiny because it comes from a triangular prism-like structure of the silk fiber, which allows it to refract light.

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The Story of Silk

Believed they first started making silk around 2,700 BC. Legend has it that Empress Si Ling Chi discovered silk when a silkworm moth cocoon fell from a mulberry tree into her tea. After some experiment, she finally managed to weave the silk filament into a piece of fabric.

The process of making silk weaving is still the same today. Known as sericulture, the cocoons are placed in hot water to release the silk filaments and kill the silkworm larvae. The filaments are combined to form yarn, wound and finally dried. Each cocoon can yield around 500 to 1,200 yards of silk.

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SILK WORMS and

MULBERRY LEAVES

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Silk Legend

Legend says that the Chinese made Silk as far back as 2,700 BC and kept it a secret until 300 AD when it was discovered by India.

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SILK ROAD

Not just one single route. Many trails to the WEST were followed through various oasis’ in the desert.
Not ‘only’ silk was traded along the route. Gold, Ivory, Animals, Plants, Ideas: Religion.
Silk was the most sought after in the West, hence the name given to the road it traveled- the most significant commodity.

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Peak Ottoman Empire

1481-1566

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BUDDHIST RELIGION

Most significant commodity carried along the Silk Road
Buddhism- brought from India to China
Siddhartha Gautama
Meditated under a tree and found the cause of suffering
“Wanting nothing” - Nirvana
Influenced Western China and swept East
Grottoes or Caves containing Buddhist artwork found along the Silk Road