Chinese civilisation
Also called: Ancient China · Topic: Bronze Age Civilisations: Mesopotamia, Egypt, China · NCERT: Class 9, Ch 4 "Early Humans and Beginning of Civilisation"
Meaning
Chinese civilisation grew up in the valleys of the Huang He (Yellow River) and the Yangtze. Farming villages of the New Stone Age (Neolithic) existed there from c. 7000 BCE. Copper and bronze working came c. 2000 BCE. Cities appeared only from c. 1600 BCE. Bronze Age China was ruled by the Shang dynasty (1600–1046 BCE) and then the Zhou dynasty (1046–256 BCE). The Qin (221–206 BCE) and Han (206 BCE–220 CE) dynasties came later.
Example
Zhou rulers were both kings and priests. People saw them as "appointees of heaven", but a ruler could be removed if his people did not prosper. Officials were tested in archery, horse riding, calculation, writing and music. Later, China became the first to have a civil service chosen through public examinations.
Don't confuse with
- Qin dynasty: the name "China" probably comes from the Qin. But the Qin belong to the Iron Age. They came long after the Bronze Age Shang and Zhou.