#erlitou culture | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

masterofrecords · 10 months

Text

The Ravages of Time episode 4

I started on this episode thinking “oh, this is going to be an easy one – it’s just a little about the city, nothing bad”. I was halfway through the first paragraph when I realized I’ll need a ton of notes to explain what all these words mean… Editing and writing the notes and fact-checking everything took me ages, haha. So. Buckle up, this is gonna be a long one, I’ll probably put the notes under the read more this time so as not to clutter everyone’s dashes.

Before getting into the translation proper, I must note that there doesn’t seem to be a lot of consistency between different sources on how to translate some terms and names here. I’ll be using the terms I like best or a literal translation if I haven’t found an established one.

Additionally, a lot of dates for the early period aren’t precise (with the uncertainty being sometimes measured in centuries) due to the lack of written sources.

Episode 4

Luoyang Commonly shortened to “Luo”, formerly known as Luoyi and Luojing. As the place of origin of Ancient Chinese culture, the city has great importance. It was located in the middle of the territory of Ancient China, between the Nine Provinces [1]. Over more than 5000 years of history, 13 dynasties held their capitals there. The Xia dynasty Erlitou, Yanshi Shangcheng, Eastern Zhou dynasty capital ruins, the ancient city of Han and Wei dynasties, the Sui and Tang Luoyang city were the five great capitals lined along the Luo river, known together as the “Five Capitals of the Luoyang Basin” [2], a sight rarely seen in the world. The Longmen grottoes, the Grand Canal and the Silk Road – three sites and six locations of World Cultural Heritage are situated there [3]. – excerpt from the website of the Luoyang prefecture of the People’s Republic “Beautiful Luoyang – essential facts” Eastern Zhou royal capital In 1046 BCE, after Western Zhou dynasty formed, a city was built in Luoyang. The Duke of Zhou built Chengzhou and the city wall on the northern bank of the Luo river. In 1960s Western Zhou precious bronzeware was unearthed, containing inscriptions saying that the King of Zhou [4] “was the first to move his home to Chengzhou.” In the first year of King Zhou Ping’s rule (770 BCE), the capital was moved to Luoyi (near modern-day Luoyang in Henan Province) [5], marking the beginning of the Eastern Zhou dynasty. The residence of the rightful ruler, called the Eastern Zhou royal capital, extended from the south of modern Mouth Mang to the north of the Luo river, where the Luo and Jian rivers converged. Since the 1950s the excavation of the Eastern Zhou capital city revealed the astonishing scope of the city, precise planning, exquisite construction. It is of great importance to the study of the development of Ancient Chinese capitals.

[1] Nine Provinces – the territorial divisions of ancient dynasties, also commonly refers to China of that period as a whole (the Xia and Shang dynasties period – around 2000-1000 BCE)

[2] The Five Capitals of the Luoyang Basin – over the centuries, the locations of the cities moved a little, but they all remained on the northern (sunny) bank of the Luo river. They include:

Erlitou – a bronze age (Xia dynasty – XXI-XVII centuries BCE) site where the remains of an ancient capital were found. Erlitou is the modern name of the nearest village; the city’s original name was most likely Zhenxun.

Yanshi Shangcheng (lit. Yanshi market) – an early Shang dynasty (XVI-XI centuries BCE) city. A lot of the finds from the site seem to be related to rituals or craft like pottery and bronzeware.

Eastern Zhou dynasty capital ruins – elaborated in the next paragraph, but I’ll just offer the dates for Easter Zhou: 771-256 BCE.

The ancient city of Han and Wei dynasties – again just dates, the fun parts are (or will be, I assume) in the donghua. Han (206 BCE - 220 CE) and Wei (220-266). This is the period of the donghua. “But what about the Three Kingdoms?” you might ask – Wei dynasty is one of those three kingdoms, the one where Luoyang was situated.

Sui and Tang Luoyang city – not particularly relevant for this card since it’s in the distant future. Sui (581-618), Tang (618-907). I’m not very knowledgeable about Sui, but it’s worth noting that during the Tang dynasty the capital traveled between Chang’an and Luoyang. The main capital was in Chang’an for the majority of the period, and it was the largest city of the country (about a million people), while Luoyang was known as the “Eastern Capital”. However, during Empress Wu’s reign the capital was fully moved to Luoyang.

[3] three sites and six locations – I believe refers to the Grand Canal and the Silk Roads having to multiple protected locations, most outside of Luoyang. After analyzing the maps on the UNESCO website for ages, I think there are 4 locations from the Silk Roads complex in Luoyang.

Longmen Grottoes – also Longmen caves or “Dragon’s gate grottoes”, are a complex of artificial caves carved in the limestone on both sides of the Yi river, containing over a hundred thousand of buddhist statues, and is considered one of the finest examples of buddhist art. Most are dated to Tang or Northern Wei dynasties. Was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list as “an outstanding manifestation of human artistic creativity”.

Grand Canal – a unique waterway system going from Beijing in the north to Zhejiang province in the south. It was constructed over multiple centuries from V century BCE. It connects all five main waterbasins of China, and “represents the greatest masterpiece of hydraulic engineering in the history of mankind”. Notably, the pound locks were invented to make navigation between differently elevated portions of the canal easier and safer. The total length of the canal is almost 2000 km and some portions of it are still used for transportation.

Silk Road – probably the most universally known one, this is part of the ancient roads network going from Luoyang/Chang’an to the West. The UNESCO site includes various cities, palaces, temples, tombs and various other locations built along that route across many different cultures and eras. “These interaction and influences were profound in terms of developments in architecture and city planning, religions and beliefs, urban culture and habitation, merchandise trade and interethnic relations in all regions along the routes.”

[4] Duke of Zhou or King of Zhou? Those are two different people. The King of Zhou, judging by the date, should refer to the first king of the Western Zhou dynasty, King Wu. The Duke of Zhou was his younger brother Dan, who was heavily involved in the establishment of the new dynasty (and frankly left a much bigger impression on history). This is all from a time when the rulers of the country were referred to as kings – the title of the emperor won’t appear until the establishment of the Qin dynasty in 221 BCE.

[5] The act of moving capitals was what led to the dynasty becoming “Eastern Zhou” instead of “Western Zhou”, even though the ruling family remained the same (though – as it tends to be – there was a power struggle involved). Zhou Ping is also the reason why the dynastic name of Wu Zetian’s rule was Zhou dynasty – she claimed ancestry from Zhou Ping’s youngest son.

----------------

Spoiler time! Well, not really, because most of this episode is fighting... but I still have things to say!

"It should be the Kuaiji army of Sun Jian from Jiangdong". Jiangdong - lower Yangtze area, Kuaiji - Kuaiji commandery, conquered by Sun Jian's son a few years before the events of the donghua

Unlike a lot of secondary characters, both Hua Xiong (Dong Zhuo's general) and Huang Gai/Uncle Huang (from Sun Jian's army) are real people. (Meaning you don't have to worry about Huang Gai for another... say, ten years). Not much is known about them except that they did indeed take part in the conflict between Dong Zhuo and the coalition.

#the ravages of time #masterofrecords translates

2 notes · View notes

anotherdiamonday · 2 years

Text

Longshan Culture, Erlitou Period, circa 1900-1700 B.C.

#art #erlitou period #neolithic

1 note · View note

ancientorigins · 2 years

Link

#Erlitou #cultures #Xia dynasty #floods #dynastic rule #Neolithic

23 notes · View notes

nailsalon75034 · 3 years

Video

T SHIRT SYMBOLIZES AROWANA RICH & LUCKY

Feng Shui Arowana - the symbol of wealth, opening the supply of wealth, peace

The dragon fish statue is considered a symbol of feng shui (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feng_shui) in folk culture, representing wealth, rich, wealth and prosperity. Products help open up the supply of wealth, peace, and bring fullness to life. Therefore, feng shui arowana has been chosen by many customers to display in their living space as well as as a high-class gift on a special occasion.

Bagua, Qi, China, Luopan, De Christiana expeditione apud Sinas, Flying Star Feng Shui, Wuxing (Chinese philosophy), Yellow River Map, Culture, Cultural Revolution, Shang dynasty, Yin and yang, Yellow Emperor, Divination, Chinese folk religion, Chinese astronomy, Chinese dragon, Da Liu Ren, Taoist cosmology, I Ching, Mainland China, Zi wei dou shu, Compass, Taoism, Classical Chinese philosophy, Matteo Ricci, History, Book of Documents, Han Chinese, Human activities, Astronomy, Yinxu, Landscape, Han dynasty, Lo Shu Square, Geomancy, Cultural depictions of turtles, Penn & Teller: Bullshit!, Magnetism, Theory, Superstition, Science, Chemical polarity, Big Dipper, Four Olds, Pseudoscience, Palmistry, Longshan culture, Cardinal direction, Philosophy, Taiwan, Chinese traditions, Gnomon, Chinese words and phrases, Solstice, Guo Pu, East Asian religions, Erlitou culture, Chinese theology, Mao Zedong, Jesuit China missions, Turtleback tomb, New Age, Religious cosmologies, Hanja, East Asian traditional religion, Branches of science, History of China, Astrolabe, Architecture, Red Guards, Chinese culture, Tang dynasty, Vastu shastra, Baguazhang, Lacquerware, Chinese surname, Architect, Magic (supernatural), Puyang, Walt Disney Imagineering, Western world, Chinese architecture, Qing dynasty, House, Metaphysics, Star, Vajrayana, Magnet, Force, Chinese language, East Asia, Hong Kong, Four Symbols, Ecology, Astrology, feng shui bedroom, feng shui bracelet, bedroom feng shui, feng shui for bedroom, feng shui bracelets, feng shui black obsidian bracelet, bagua map, bagua, ba gua, feng shui bagua, feng shui meaning, what is feng shui, ba gua feng shui, bagua feng shui, feng shui baguas, what is fengshui, feng shui meanings, buddha power bracelet, buddha power bracelets, house feng shui, feng shui for house, feng shui house, feng shui rules, rules of feng shui, shui, feng shui houses, black obsidian bracelet, black obsidian bracelets, obsidian bracelet, bedroom feng shui layout, feng shui bedroom layout, bedroom layout feng shui, feng shui home, bed placement feng shui, feng shui bed placement, feng shui definition, definition of feng shui, feng shui map, feng shui bagua map, bagua feng shui map, bagua map feng shui, feng shui a room, fungswae, chinese bracelet, functuay, basic feng shui, feng shui basics, funk shway, what is my element, fonshway, feng shui black obsidian wealth bracelet, feng shui black obsidian bracelet reviews, feng shui pronunciation, feng shui principles, month elements, principle of feng shui, principles of feng shui, chinese feng shui, funk shui, define feng shui, feng shui define, birth element, birth elements, how do you spell fung shway, birth element by month, birth elements by month, feng shui birth element, birth element feng shui, birth feng shui element, birth element chart, what's feng shui, feng shui origin, history of feng shui, feng shui history, feng shui element chart, feng shui background, feng shui explained, where does feng shui come from, feng shui information, where did feng shui originate, silver arowana, Fish, Osteoglossidae, Osteoglossiformes, Aquatic animals, Teleostei, Animals, Arowana, Asian arowana, Black arowana, Fish and humans, Vertebrates, Biology, Organisms, Fishkeeping, Freshwater fish, Hobbies, Zoology, Aquarium, Fish of Guyana, Freshwater animals of South America, Fish of the Americas, Fish of South America, Freshwater fish of South America, Human activities, Freshwater animals, Free-content websites, Aquatic animals of South America, Vertebrates of South America, Neopterygii, Taxa, Vertebrate zoology, Open content, Animals and humans, Vertebrates and humans, Ecology, Fauna of Guyana, Advertising-free websites, arowana platinum, arowana for sale, arowana sales, arowana sale, arowanas for sale, arowana black, arowana gold, arowana golden, black arowana, gold arowana, arowana red, red arowana, expensive fish

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_arowana

t-shirt-symbolize-arowana-rich by themagpie robinbird Via Flickr: Buy for link teespring.com/vi-VN/T-shirt-symbolize-arowana-rich

#animal #aquarium #animals #arowana #arowanafish #aquarium-tank #albino-malaysian-golden-arowana-for-sale #amazing-red-arowana-with-flowerhorn-cichlid-in-community-tank #amazing-golden-blue-base-arowana-fish-bigger-10-inches #fish #flowerhorn-cichlid #flowerhorn #fish-food #food #kamfa #goldfish-animal-crossing

3 notes · View notes

chineselanguageblog · 5 years

Text

Chinese Characters

Writing, the carrier of culture and the symbol of human civilization, first appeared in Sumer. Like other ancient languages of Egypt and India, ancient Sumerian symbols have been lost in the process of history, but only Chinese characters still remain in use today. They have played a significant role in the development of Chinese language and culture. This article intends to display how Chinese characters were created and how they were simplified from the ancient form of writing to more abstract.

Origin of Chinese characters

Chinese characters, in their initial forms, were beautiful and appropriately reflected images in the minds of ancient Chinese that complied with their understanding of reality. Chinese people selected the way of expressing meaning by figures and pictures, and Chinese characters began with drawings.

Three Myths in Ancient Times

It is difficult to determine the specific time when the Chinese characters emerged. There are three old myths about the origin of Chinese characters. The first refers to the belief that Chinese characters were created by Fu Xi — the first of Three Sovereigns in ancient China, who has drawn the Eight Trigrams which have evolved into Chinese characters. The mysterious Eight Trigrams used for divination is composed of the symbols “–” and “– –”, representing Yang and Yin respectively.

Yin and Yang go together, constituting eight areas with three couples in one group, indicating different natural phenomena and things. But these basic symbols are very far from the oracle bone inscriptions (the inscriptions on animal bones and tortoise shells). Therefore, the first statement had been denied by most of the sinologists. It’s hard to believe that Eight Trigrams are the origin of Han characters.

The second one is that Chinese characters were created by the use of knots. It is said that recording events by knots started with Emperor Shen Nung (approximately 2838–2698 BC), so Chinese characters were invented by Shen Nung. Many experts thought that people made knots on ropes to remember something and knots could have been used by almost all primitive people, but it is not possible that they evolved into the writing or functioned as a language. That indicates, it is impossible that Chinese characters were created by the use of knots.

The last popular myth is that Cang Jie, historical chronicler of the Yellow Emperor (ancestor of the Chinese people) over 5,000 years ago, was the inventor of Chinese characters. According to ancient writings, Cang Jie had four eyes and four pupils which could observe different things of the world. When he raised his head he could understand the form of the stars in the sky; when he lowered his head he could distinguish the tracks of birds and animals on the ground.

Therefore, he invented a lot of symbols to represent different objects and affairs, which were the oldest Chinese characters. When he invented the characters, the Heaven rained the grain and the ghosts cried at night. Xunzi (the book collecting the elaborately argued essays by Hsun Tzu - a Chinese Confucian philosopher) and other ancient books also recorded the myth of Cang Jie. Evidently, it is hard to accept that the characters were created solely by an individual. The characters have been, most probably, invented by a number of people, each of whom might have engraved some figures or draw some pictures. Cang Jie, if only be had existed, would be one of the very scholarly people who could collect and settle the different symbols and tell people the corresponding meanings so that people could remember something of importance in their lives. Furthermore, from the scientific perspective, the appearance and forming of any kind of writing have to meet the needs of social life must surely have experienced a considerably long period of trial and development.

Chinese characters are a huge and complicated system, and they could have come into being over a long course of laboring and living. However, the relationship between Cang Jie and the creation of Chinese characters cannot be completely denied. The most important information which we can discover from the previous records is that Chinese characters are ideographic and have originated from drawings.

Predecessor of Ancient Chinese Characters

The oracle scripts on the tortoise shells and animal bones in the Shang Dynasty (1711–1066 BC) were deemed the oldest characters. However, characters of the Shang Dynasty we can see today is mature and had been developed, so Chinese characters might have emerged long before that dynasty, perhaps as early as the New Stone Age during which period Chinese people carved and painted many symbols on pottery. These symbols had a significant relationship with Chinese characters and were the most important materials to research the origin of Chinese characters.

Archaeological researchers discovered many geometric symbols on earthenware excavated from Banpo Village and Jiangzhai Village in Xi’an City, Shanxi Province. Their etchings, consisting of lines, were carved during the Yangshao Culture period about 6,000 years ago. They are too simple and abstract to figure out their meanings, although some of the regular symbols repeated several times. It should be mentioned that there are similar symbols on unearthed relics in ruins of the same period of other cultures. These symbols, which have some certain similarities to the Chinese characters, might well be the predecessors of the ancient Chinese characters.

The ruins of the Erlitou Culture, which had been generally identified by Chinese archaeologists to the site of Xia Dynasty (21st - 17th century BC, the first dynasty in China), were discovered in Erlitou, Henan Province. More than 20 kinds of symbols, dating back at least 4,000 years, carved on pottery were unearthed. Some simple number symbols carved on the surface of pottery such as “一”, “二”, “三”, “M”, “X”, “个”, “十”, “∧” might be used to mark the capacity of earthenware. The forms of these symbols were very similar to those excavated from Banpo Village and Jiangzhai Village, and some of them had a close similarity to the oracle bone inscriptions. However, most of these geometric symbols appeared in single words but not phrases or sentences, so that we cannot say for certain that they are actually characters. But the specialists and scholars presumed from the consistent line structure with the simple characters used now that the geometric symbols carved on the pottery are probably the genesis of the Chinese characters.

Evolution of Chinese Characters

Chinese characters from the earliest Chinese hieroglyphs to today’s simple characters have undergone through a very long process of development which can be divided into two periods: ancient writing and modern writing. Associated with these two periods, Chinese characters had experienced several times of evolution into many different script forms. Oracle bone script of the Shang Dynasty (1711 - 1066 BC) is the earliest systematic form of Chinese characters inscribed on animal bones and tortoise shells. Then Chinese characters evolved through the bronze script of the Zhou Dynasty (1066–256 century BC), seal scrip in the late Zhou Dynasty and Qin Dynasty (221–206 BC), official script in the Qin Dynasty and the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) and regular script. Based on pictographs, Chinese characters gradually developed from the form of drawings to strokes and from complex to simple ones.

Earliest Characters in China

Oracle bone script (Chinese: 甲骨文, Pinyin: jiăgŭwén) is the inscription on animal bones and tortoise shells of the Shang Dynasty (1711 - 1066 BC). It was first excavated by the local farmers in Xiaotun Village, Anyang, Henan Province and was sold as a kind of traditional Chinese medicine called “long” (dragon bones).

In 1899, Wang Yirong, epigraphist of Qing Dynasty (1616–1911), who had a great interest in ancient characters, found many inscriptions on long when he bought traditional Chinese medicine and he thought these inscriptions were ancient characters.

In 1910, the famous scholar Luo Zhenyu affirmed that Xiaotun Village was the capital of the Shang Dynasty, called “Yin”. Hereafter, these inscriptions were designated as Shang script from about 3,000 years ago, which was of great historical significance.

Now 150,000 pieces of animal bones and tortoise shells have been unearthed from the ruins of Yin and other places, including more than 4,500 distinctive characters. As the oracle bone script had the strong features of pictograph and ideograph, some characters could still be recognized by people, although in an early stage of development. To that date, more than 1,700 characters have been interpreted, most of them as prayers by Shang rulers at divination and sacrificial rites.

Before going on a war or a big hunt, there would be a harvest to divine the outcome by animal bones and tortoise shells. Of course, there were a few inscriptions used as simple records.

The oracle bone script from the ruins of Yin consisting of phrases and simple sentences shows that a well-structured script with a complete system of written signs has been formed in the early age. In the past, it had long been thought to be the earliest Chinese characters discovered in China. However, the new archaeological findings proved that this script contains not the earliest characters in ancient China. From 1985 to 1986, Chinese archaeologists discovered a primitive village site from the Longshan Culture period in Chang’an district of Xi’an where animal bones with carving inscriptions were unearthed. From 1996 to 1997, two bones with inscriptions were excavated in Hengtai, Shandong Province. At that time, few excavators believed that the discoveries might be related to characters or symbols. Unfortunately, most of the excavators had not given enough attention to these inscriptions which are largely considered to be damaged by moth or grassroots.

In 2005, Professor Liu Fengjun, a Chinese archaeologist and ancient characters researcher, found a small bone with an inscribed pattern in Jinan. He affirmed that the bone was the Neolithic relic and the inscriptions carved on it were the early characters. In 2007, he discovered and verified a number of bones with inscriptions collected in Changle County, Shandong Province. He first made these bones public and announced the inscriptions above were the Dongyi writing from Longshan Culture period, dating back some 4,000 - 4,500 years. Compared with the oracle bone script of the Yin Ruins, these inscriptions without any divination traces were used to record events. After the further research, the inscriptions carved above these bones, called “bone inscriptions”, were identified as the earliest Chinese hieroglyphs by academia. And they were also regarded as the major source of the oracle bone inscriptions.

Ancient Chinese Characters

The following phase in the evolution of Chinese characters is represented by symbols inscribed on bronze bells and vessels from the Zhou Dynasty (1066–256 BC), writing is known as “bronze script”. In addition, the characters cast in bronze ware are also called 金文 or 钟鼎文 in Chinese (Pinyin: jīnwén or zhōngdĭngwén, respectively) with “wén” meaning “inscription”, because bronze was called “jīn” at that time and Zhōng (bell) and Dĭng (tripodal vessels used for sacrifice) were the symbols of power and position.

In the “Age of Bronze Ware” of China during the period of Shang and Zhou Dynasties, bronze ware was cast as a container, and most often as the sacrificial vessels to inscribe great events such as sacrifice, battle results, trade of slaves, etc. in a style just like the oracle bone script. In the Shang Dynasty, the inscriptions on bronze ware had very few characters, the form of which is extremely close to that of the oracle bone script. The size, complexity, formation of the characters are inconsistent. However, in the Zhou Dynasty, the characters in bronze inscriptions were simpler, and the size and formation were more fixed. The bronze inscriptions looked like drawings but had made significant progress from pictographic forms to block-shaped linear words we use today.

Toward the end of the Zhou Dynasty, a new script called the “seal script” (Chinese: 篆书, Pinyin: zhuànshū) begun to be used in Qin State. This script was usually written on bamboo slips and pieces of silk or inscribed on rocks and stones. Owing to the regular and symmetric structure, rounded and graceful lines, it is deemed to be the most beautiful style of characters in ancient China by calligraphers. It is still used for inscribing names on a seal today. There are two kinds of seal script: large or great seal script and lesser or small seal script.

The large seal script (Chinese: 大篆, Pinyin: dàzhuàn) is a traditional reference to all types of Chinese writing systems used before the Qin Dynasty. However, due to the lack of research achievements and precision, scholars often avoid the large seal script, instead of using more specified terms to the examples of writing. The large seal script was widely used in many vassal states in the Spring and Autumn Period (770 - 476 BC). It was more regular and symmetrical than bronze inscription in the writing system. From some unearthed artworks, the large seal script is generally represented by the stone drum inscription (in about 770 - 325 BC) which is now popularly recognized as referring to the stone inscriptions prevailed in Qin State during the Spring and Autumn period. The stone drum inscription is considered to be a transitional form from the bronze inscription in the Zhou Dynasty to later lesser seal script in the Qin Dynasty. Now many scholars pay more attention to the stone drum inscription because it is one of the most important relics to research the development of characters and the stone-carving art.

During the new era - the Warring States Period (457 - 221 BC), Chinese characters used by seven states had different ways of writing. After the Qin State conquered the other six states and established the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BC), Emperor Qinshihuang unified characters in order to strengthen his control. Based on the Large Seal script and rearranging the variant forms of characters in each state, the unified characters were decreed, called lesser or small seal script (Chinese: 小篆, Pinyin: xiăozhuàn) which was the official style of characters in Qin Dynasty used for all the documents of the government. It was the result of the first extensive simplification and standardization of Chinese characters. Compared with the oracle bone script and bronze script, in the lesser seal script, the forms of characters were simpler, the writing method was consistent, and the character pattern was more orderly. Furthermore, all the characters were the rough block in shape. However, the lines composing of the characters were complicated and curved, although they were less similar to drawings. The Ancient Writing Period, from the earliest known oracle bone script to the development of the seal script, lasted about 1,160 years. And the lesser seal script marked the end of the ancient Chinese characters.

Modern Chinese Characters

In the Qin Dynasty, scholars could not have imaged that great changes in the form of Chinese characters had happened when they wrote the lesser seal script rapidly on bamboo slips or wood, i.e. clerical script or official script. After the unification of China, the seal script was still popular, but could not satisfy the needs of people because of its lengthened and curved lines being written were quite time-consuming, so another faster and convenient style of writing called “clerical script” (Chinese: 隶书, Pinyin: lìshū) appeared during the late of the Qin Dynasty and the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD). “Lì” meant a slave or prisoner in servitude, thus some scholars inferred that the new style of character was created by the slaves or prisoners serving the state which dealt with a large number of relatively official documents. In order to save time, they changed the rounded lines into straight ones which became the officially approved formal way of writing. There is also a historical legend which attributed the creation of a clerical script to Cheng Miao, who was said to have invented it on the orders of Qinshihuang.

However, according to archaeological evidence, all stages of Chinese writing had taken a long course and could not have been invented by an individual. In fact, the clerical script, as well, was created in accumulated work of many people. Furthermore, archaeological discoveries clearly showed that, besides the lesser seal script in the Qin Dynasty, the clerical script found favor among ordinaries at that time. Till the Han Dynasty, the clerical script developed completely mature form and became in common use not only by ordinary people but also by government officials. Recently, “Lì” was noted to have the meaning of “affiliate”, so the clerical script might be the derivative of the seal script.

The Silk Books in tombs of Han Dynasty unearthed at Mawangdui substantiates the origination and formation of the clerical script and supplies a gap of calligraphy history. We could observe from the books that the form of the clerical script totally broke away drawing and was very different from the seal script. There have been made several modifications and simplifications to make the Chinese writing convenient and tidy: the curved lines became somewhat straight strokes; the overall the number of lines were reduced; some complex components merged into one; the forms of characters were simplified. Above all, Chinese characters were no longer pictographic but became more abstract ideographic symbols composed of strokes.

The largest transformation from the seal script to the clerical script is often referred to as the “clerical change”, after which there have been few enormous changes to present characters we see today in general. This change allowed people to write the characters easier and faster. Thus, the emergence of the clerical script had an important significance in the evolution of Chinese characters, which marked that the Chinese characters began to enter the modern writing period.

From the clerical change to the present, it has been more than 2,200 years. This the period in the historical development of Chinese characters is still called modern because the structures of Chinese characters have remained the same until today. Although there has not been any change about the structures of Chinese characters since the clerical change, the strokes of Chinese characters have undergone two main stages: regularization and normalization.

Toward the end of the Han Dynasty, the strokes with the wavy endings and some thick curvy lines seen in the clerical script became smooth and straight. This change is known as “regularization” after which the characters called the regular script (Chinese: 楷书, Pinyin: kăishū) appeared at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 - 220) and replaced the clerical script to be the major font of daily writing. The regular script could serve as an example of learning by the people generation after generation even up to the present days because it is much simpler and easier to be written than the clerical script. So many calligraphers like Zhong Yao in the Three Kingdoms Period (220 - 280 AD), Wang Xizhi in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317 - 420 AD), Ouyang Xun, Yan Zhenqing, and Liu Gongquan in the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907), Su Shi in the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279) contributed to the regular script as the standard for students to admire, imitate and learn. It has been the standard and formal writing style for more than 1,800 years with the widest and longest usage.

Also born in the late Han Dynasty, the cursive and running styles were the results of the regular script rapidly. The cursive script broke the block-shaped forms of characters. The lines are vibrating and strokes are connected with each other. It is hard to identify and read although it is written in a quick way and the characters are elegant and vigorous. The running script is writing between the regular script and cursive script. It is easy to recognize and is extremely fluent and practical. However, these two styles have never been thought as the standard writing because of the many variations. Instead, they have been used as a form of art.

Reform of Modern Chinese Characters

We can see from the evolutionary process of Chinese characters in the past thousands of years that the general trend is moving towards simplicity. The Chinese characters abandoned complicated and difficult forms and adopted simpler and easier forms. In this way, the same character has not only changed the shape in various ways but also simplified the pattern although its rudimental meaning stayed relatively unchanged. However, many characters still remained complicated and were difficult to learn. Some have variations caused by many centuries of use, others arose from a lack of uniformity.

Therefore, from the end of the Qing Dynasty, more and more scholars started to explore the Chinese character reform, such as adopting the Latin alphabets, digit symbols or Ryakuji. But these attempts have failed because of the specificities of the Chinese characters which were considered as a kind of visual symbols, strong at conveying meaning and aesthetics and could inspire the imagination and creativity. In order to continuously overcome the shortcoming of Chinese characters being difficult to be remembered, written and identified, a special government organization, first called the Committee for Chinese Language Reform and later the National Language Commission was established in 1954 and was devoted to the normalization of the Chinese characters.

In 1955, the “List of the First Group of Standardized Forms of Variant Characters” was officially published? 1,027 variant characters were abolished, and the remaining characters have been considered as the “the standard forms of characters”. In 1956, the “Scheme for Simplifying Chinese Characters” was officially published. In 1964, the “Complete List of Simplified Characters” was published, and it was republished in 1986. 2,259 complex characters were abolished, and components of the characters were simplified. The list has 2,235 simplified characters in total, and 482 of them are basic. Among these 482 simplified characters, 20 percent were invented in the 1950s, while the other 80 percent were created over several thousand years ago. In 1988, the “List of Generally Used Characters in Modern Chinese” including 7,000 characters, was officially publis2hed, and later in the same year, the “List of Frequently Used Characters in Modern Chinese”, was also officially published. The second list contains 3,500 characters, which essentially conforms to the use of words in modern Chinese.

The original forms of Chinese characters, before being simplified, are often known as “complex characters”, which together with the characters that were created before the 20th century and had the same structure since the “clerical change” without being simplified, constitute the traditional forms of Chinese characters. And they are still in use in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macao. While after almost 50 years of simplifying, systemizing and standardizing work, Chinese characters are considered normalized. The normalized forms of Chinese characters referring to the modern Chinese characters consist of those Chinese characters having been simplified or standardized since the 1950s and the Chinese characters without simplifying until today. They are officially recognized and used in Mainland China, Singapore, and Malaysia. The students in Chinese schools now are required to write the modern Chinese characters as the regular script.

#Chinese Characters #Chinese Lanugage

307 notes · View notes

chaosnewsinc · 5 years

Conversation

AG Spoilers Cover Your Eyes

No one who saw the leaked episode:

Me: Doesn't anyone want to discuss how Mad Sweeney is technically older than Odin? Technically older than queen love (Bilquis) who had no issues pointing out how much older she is than Odin? Perhaps it's just because he forgot huh? Can you be so old you forget how old you are? Does anyone here know anything about Newgrange?

c. 3200 BC: Sumerian cuneiform writing system[1] and The Egyptian hieroglyphs.

#mad sweeney #lugh #american gods spoilers #american gods #newgrange #Odin #Wednesday #Bilquis #Hella Old #Fucking Ancient #Celts #tuatha dé danann #irish mythology #older than the pyramids #treasure of the sun

7 notes · View notes

occultspirits-blog · 5 years

Photo

Did you know Feng shui is an occult art? You do now.

Hi all and welcome to Spirit's blog. Today I'm going to tell you the origins of Feng shui. Feng shui is a design movement that has become very popular these days, the basis is that with certain materials and the locations of certain pieces in a room, will improve different areas of life. Sounds calming, refreshing, rejuvenating even, not at all scary or like the occult, right? Wrong, big wrong, Feng shui is also called Chinese geomancy. Geomancy is a method of divination that interprets marks on the earth or the patterns that are made when you throw a handfull of rocks, stones, soil, sand, pebbles etc. Now it should sound right. A person in a trance like state, throws a bunch of rock.stones. pebbles, sand and then calls the associate (sometimes an illiterate young boy) to interpret it. There is also scrying where the practitioner would gaze into a crystal or stones for answers. Feng shui is one of the Five Arts of Chinese Metaphysics. The other four are Chinese Astrology, Four Pillars of Destiny, Divination and Face Reading.

Feng shui is classified as physiognomy, this is the observation of appearances using formulas and calculations. Feng shui practices architecture as "invisible forces" that hold together the universe, earth and humanity, also called qi (pronounced chee). It was originally used to find a place to build religious buildings. Depending on the desired style, a site was picked by nearby water or stars.

In roughly 5000 B.C. to 3000 B.C. the Yangshao and Hongshan cultures of Northeast China performed Feng shui by observing the planets and stars and comparing that to humans. These practitioners would align their doors to a particular group of stars that they felt would bring the most sun during the winter solstice. During the Zhou era, they used star gazing as a way to tell when to build a capital city.

In 1900 to 1500 B.C. the Erlitou culture followed rules of Feng shui, all building of capital cities followed Feng shui rules. During the Zhou era, the Kaogong Ji followed the rules so much they were written into a manual, graves and tombs also exercised Feng shui.

The first documented tool for Feng shui was the gnomon, which is the part on a sundial that casts a shadow. Another document tool for Feng shui is the liuren astrolabe, this was a lacquered double sided board with Astronomical lines of sight. Then in about 206 B.C. the invention of the magnetic compass was made. Then the compass was made the primary tool for Feng shui.

Okay so the goal of Feng shui is to place objects on spots that have good qi. Qi is a movable positive or negative life force. Polarity in Feng shui is attained using the yin and yang theory. One creates exertion and the other receives exertion. This is linked to knowing the five elements, metal,fire, earth,water and wood. Earth is a buffer or what happens when polarities cancel out.So as I said before the point of Feng shui is to cause the 5 elements to balance out and the one left will hold the desired traits.

Traditional Feng shui follows heavenly time and earthly space. The Form School is the oldest practice of Feng shui, that is mostly concerned with tombs, homes and other buildings. The form in Form school is related to the shape of the environment, it also uses the 5 celestial animals (the phoenix, green dragon, white tiger, black turtle and yellow snake). They also use the yin-yang concept and the 5 traditional elements. So they use these together to find the area with the best qi.

The Compass School of Feng shui is a more recent school that finds qi using the 8 cardinal directions. These being North, South, East, Northeast, Southeast, Northwest, and Southwest.

Modern Feng shui is expensive, so China came up with a DIY Feng shui. This Feng shui DIY, uses the 5 elements to attain qi.

In conclusion Feng shui is an ancient art form to balance an area or give it qi. In the old days they used scrying, sky maps, the compass, the elements, sun dials but sum are still used today. The intention is the same today as well, to place man made objects or structures, in a way that is conducive to success and aesthetically pleasing. So when you add that extra pillow or add a plant to a room, just think, you are performing in a centuries old ritual. Blessed be.

#feng shui #design #art #occult #mythology #history

3 notes · View notes

chinese-characters · 5 years

Text

The Origin and Evolution of Chinese Characters

Origin of Chinese characters

Three Myths in Ancient Times

Therefore, he invented a lot of symbols to represent different objects and affairs, which were the oldest Chinese characters. When he invented the characters, the Heaven rained the grain and the ghosts cried at night. Xunzi (the book collecting the elaborately argued essays by Hsun Tzu — a Chinese Confucian philosopher) and other ancient books also recorded the myth of Cang Jie. Evidently, it is hard to accept that the characters were created solely by an individual. The characters have been, most probably, invented by a number of people, each of whom might have engraved some figures or draw some pictures. Cang Jie, if only be had existed, would be one of the very scholarly people who could collect and settle the different symbols and tell people the corresponding meanings so that people could remember something of importance in their lives. Furthermore, from the scientific perspective, the appearance and forming of any kind of writing have to meet the needs of social life must surely have experienced a considerably long period of trial and development.

Predecessor of Ancient Chinese Characters

The ruins of the Erlitou Culture, which had been generally identified by Chinese archaeologists to the site of Xia Dynasty (21st–17th century BC, the first dynasty in China), were discovered in Erlitou, Henan Province. More than 20 kinds of symbols, dating back at least 4,000 years, carved on pottery were unearthed. Some simple number symbols carved on the surface of pottery such as “一”, “二”, “三”, “M”, “X”, “个”, “十”, “∧” might be used to mark the capacity of earthenware. The forms of these symbols were very similar to those excavated from Banpo Village and Jiangzhai Village, and some of them had a close similarity to the oracle bone inscriptions. However, most of these geometric symbols appeared in single words but not phrases or sentences, so that we cannot say for certain that they are actually characters. But the specialists and scholars presumed from the consistent line structure with the simple characters used now that the geometric symbols carved on the pottery are probably the genesis of the Chinese characters.

Evolution of Chinese Characters

Chinese characters from the earliest Chinese hieroglyphs to today’s simple characters have undergone through a very long process of development which can be divided into two periods: ancient writing and modern writing. Associated with these two periods, Chinese characters had experienced several times of evolution into many different script forms. Oracle bone script of the Shang Dynasty (1711–1066 BC) is the earliest systematic form of Chinese characters inscribed on animal bones and tortoise shells. Then Chinese characters evolved through the bronze script of the Zhou Dynasty (1066–256 century BC), seal scrip in the late Zhou Dynasty and Qin Dynasty (221–206 BC), official script in the Qin Dynasty and the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) and regular script. Based on pictographs, Chinese characters gradually developed from the form of drawings to strokes and from complex to simple ones.

Earliest Characters in China

Oracle bone script (Chinese: 甲骨文, Pinyin: jiăgŭwén) is the inscription on animal bones and tortoise shells of the Shang Dynasty (1711–1066 BC). It was first excavated by the local farmers in Xiaotun Village, Anyang, Henan Province and was sold as a kind of traditional Chinese medicine called “long” (dragon bones).

Before going on a war or a big hunt, there would be a harvest to divine the outcome by animal bones and tortoise shells. Of course, there were a few inscriptions used as simple records.

In 2005, Professor Liu Fengjun, a Chinese archaeologist and ancient characters researcher, found a small bone with an inscribed pattern in Jinan. He affirmed that the bone was the Neolithic relic and the inscriptions carved on it were the early characters. In 2007, he discovered and verified a number of bones with inscriptions collected in Changle County, Shandong Province. He first made these bones public and announced the inscriptions above were the Dongyi writing from Longshan Culture period, dating back some 4,000–4,500 years. Compared with the oracle bone script of the Yin Ruins, these inscriptions without any divination traces were used to record events. After the further research, the inscriptions carved above these bones, called “bone inscriptions”, were identified as the earliest Chinese hieroglyphs by academia. And they were also regarded as the major source of the oracle bone inscriptions.

Ancient Chinese Characters

The large seal script (Chinese: 大篆, Pinyin: dàzhuàn) is a traditional reference to all types of Chinese writing systems used before the Qin Dynasty. However, due to the lack of research achievements and precision, scholars often avoid the large seal script, instead of using more specified terms to the examples of writing. The large seal script was widely used in many vassal states in the Spring and Autumn Period (770–476 BC). It was more regular and symmetrical than bronze inscription in the writing system. From some unearthed artworks, the large seal script is generally represented by the stone drum inscription (in about 770–325 BC) which is now popularly recognized as referring to the stone inscriptions prevailed in Qin State during the Spring and Autumn period22. The stone drum inscription is considered to be a transitional form from the bronze inscription in the Zhou Dynasty to later lesser seal script in the Qin Dynasty. Now many scholars pay more attention to the stone drum inscription because it is one of the most important relics to research the development of characters and the stone-carving art.

During the new era — the Warring States Period (457–221 BC), Chinese characters used by seven states had different ways of writing. After the Qin State conquered the other six states and established the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BC), Emperor Qinshihuang unified characters in order to strengthen his control. Based on the Large Seal script and rearranging the variant forms of characters in each state, the unified characters were decreed, called lesser or small seal script (Chinese: 小篆, Pinyin: xiăozhuàn) which was the official style of characters in Qin Dynasty used for all the documents of the government. It was the result of the first extensive simplification and standardization of Chinese characters. Compared with the oracle bone script and bronze script, in the lesser seal script, the forms of characters were simpler, the writing method was consistent, and the character pattern was more orderly. Furthermore, all the characters were the rough block in shape. However, the lines composing of the characters were complicated and curved, although they were less similar to drawings. The Ancient Writing Period, from the earliest known oracle bone script to the development of the seal script, lasted about 1,160 years. And the lesser seal script marked the end of the ancient Chinese characters.

Modern Chinese Characters

In the Qin Dynasty, scholars could not have imaged that great changes in the form of Chinese characters had happened when they wrote the lesser seal script rapidly on bamboo slips or wood, i.e. clerical script or official script. After the unification of China, the seal script was still popular, but could not satisfy the needs of people because of its lengthened and curved lines being written were quite time-consuming, so another faster and convenient style of writing called “clerical script” (Chinese: 隶书, Pinyin: lìshū) appeared during the late of the Qin Dynasty and the Han Dynasty (206 BC — 220 AD). “Lì” meant a slave or prisoner in servitude, thus some scholars inferred that the new style of character was created by the slaves or prisoners serving the state which dealt with a large number of relatively official documents. In order to save time, they changed the rounded lines into straight ones which became the officially approved formal way of writing. There is also a historical legend which attributed the creation of a clerical script to Cheng Miao, who was said to have invented it on the orders of Qinshihuang.

Toward the end of the Han Dynasty, the strokes with the wavy endings and some thick curvy lines seen in the clerical script became smooth and straight. This change is known as “regularization” after which the characters called the regular script (Chinese: 楷书, Pinyin: kăishū) appeared at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25–220) and replaced the clerical script to be the major font of daily writing. The regular script could serve as an example of learning by the people generation after generation even up to the present days because it is much simpler and easier to be written than the clerical script. So many calligraphers like Zhong Yao in the Three Kingdoms Period (220–280 AD), Wang Xizhi in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317–420 AD), Ouyang Xun, Yan Zhenqing, and Liu Gongquan in the Tang Dynasty (618–907), Su Shi in the Song Dynasty (960–1279) contributed to the regular script as the standard for students to admire, imitate and learn. It has been the standard and formal writing style for more than 1,800 years with the widest and longest usage.

Reform of Modern Chinese Characters

#Chinese

2 notes · View notes

twatd · 6 years

Text

6,000 Years of Murder – Part Four: There Goes the Neighbourhood

Tim: The Wicked + The Divine #36 finally gave us a definitive list of every damn Recurrence that has occurred since Ananke first started exploding heads, so we thought we’d take a walk through the annals of history and provide some context for what was happening at the time. Welcome to 6,000 Years of Murder.

In this entry, we hit the halfway mark in our voyage through history, as we found a modern religion, celebrate the most baller of all the Pharaohs and watch thousands of years of progress get flushed into the Mediterranean Sea...

1657BC – North America It’s time for another one of our rare pre-Columbian trips to North America, and around this point, that means we’re probably in the area of modern-day Louisiana, checking out some mounds. The Poverty Point culture (an unfortunate name, but historians are a cruel and unusual lot) were a group of indigenous peoples who occupied the lower Mississippi Valley from around 2200BC to 700BC, building settlements in over a hundred sites and creating a large trading network throughout what is now the eastern United States. Mainly hunter-gatherers, they are descended from the tribes that passed through Wrangel Island and down into the continental US.

This time would have been the peak of Poverty Point culture, with work on their eponymous largest settlement just beginning. It would go on to take up 910 acres, and has been described as the “largest and most complex Late Archaic earthwork occupation and ceremonial site found in North America”. Exactly what Poverty Point was used for is heavily debated – some think it was a settlement or trading centre, while others point to its concentric rings of semi-circular mounds as suggesting a ceremonial function.

1565BC – Northern China Our last trip to Northern China saw the Xia dynasty emerging around Erlitou and the Yellow River. As we check back in, the Xia are on their way out, about to be replaced by the Shang dynasty, who will rule for around 600 years. The Shang provide us with some of our first examples of Chinese writing, and oversaw several important developments, including large-scale production of bronze; a foundation of a powerful standing military; artistic works in jade, bone and ceramic; and the construction of large walled palace complexes.

The Shang are the earliest dynasty we have concrete archaeological evidence for, with earlier dynasties existing in the weird space between oral history and folklore. Not only do we have evidence, but we have accounts of the Shang in classic Chinese literature like the Book of Documents, the Bamboo Annals and the Records of the Great Historians (although these were all written at least 1,000 years later). Sidenote: the Chinese remain great at naming things.

1473BC – Northern Indus Valley Our old friend the Indus Valley Civilisation is no more, I’m afraid. It dissipated around 200 years back, when consistent drought and aridification made agriculture more difficult, and urban settlements became harder to support. As it broke up, the people of the Indus Valley Civilisation scattered. Many headed east, while others remained, mingling with incoming Indo-European and Indo-Iranian tribes. For the next 1,000 years or so, the Indus Valley will return to a more tribal, pastoral model without a strong urban centre.

However, who needs an urban centre when you’ve got RELIGION?! Not just any religion, either – this time is known as the Vedic period, because it’s when the four central texts of Hinduism will be written, starting around this time with the Rigveda, a collection of 1,028 Sanskit hymns and 10,600 verses. Discussing cosmology, the nature of god and the virtues of charity, the Rigveda is one of the oldest extant texts in any Indo-European language, and a cornerstone of a religion that boasts 1.15bn followers today. If we’re trying to correlate Persephone fighting back with particularly momentous periods in history, the Vedic period – despite being largely pastoral – certainly qualifies.

1381BC – Central America It’s Central America. There’s a big head in the background. It must be OLMEC TIME. One of the earliest known major civilisations in Mesoamerica, the Olmecs were found in the tropical lowlands of south-central Mexico, in the modern-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco, between 1500BC and around 400BC. As the first major culture to emerge in the area, the Olmecs sort of set the template for civilisations that would follow in the area, and while that template included a complex writing system, the concept of zero, advanced calendars and a great ballgame, it also involved ritual bloodletting and, quite possibly, human sacrifice.

Let’s talk about the big heads. No known pre-Columbian texts explain their origin or purpose, and while only 17 have been unearthed to date, they have become a well-recognised symbol of the Olmecs. Once theorised to be popular ballplayers, they are now generally accepted to be portraits of rulers, although possibly dressed as ballplayers, like when Putin rides around shirtless on a horse. No two heads are alike, and they were carved from huge single blocks or boulders of volcanic basalt, with the finished products ranging in size from 4'10″ to 11' tall. Those are some big-ass heads.

1289BC – Egypt Oh Egypt, we couldn’t stay away too long, especially when you’ve been so busy. The Middle Kingdom is long over and it’s time for the New Kingdom. See if you can recognise some of the names that have come and gone while we were away. Amenhotep. Nefertiti. Tutankhamen. But if they weren’t important enough to bring us back, what could possible be around the corner? It’s only ya boi Ramesses II, aka Ramesses the Great, aka Ozymandias, Great Ancestor, king of kings, the greatest, most celebrated and most powerful pharoah of the Egyptian civilisation.

The 19th Dynasty has just begun in Egypt, and at age 14, Ramesses has been appointed Prince Regent by his father, Seti I. Within 10 years, he’ll have taken the throne, and he’ll reign for around 70 years. During that time, he’ll engage in countless military campaigns, retaking territory from the Nubians and Hittites. He’ll also sign the first recorded peace treaty, oversee a period of unprecedented construction throughout Egypt, and move the capital from Thebes to a new city named after himself that includes huge temples and a zoo. Microscopic inspection of his mummified body, which was originally buried in the Valley of the Kings, suggests he was a redhead, adding to his similarities to Cheryl Blossom.

1197BC – Hattusa We’ve mentioned that Ramesses II was going to war with the Hittites – what’s their deal? Well, at this point, their kingdom is in decline, following a lengthy war with Egypt and the rise of the Assyrian Empire. But at their height in the mid-14th century BC, they encompassed Anatolia (aka modern day Turkey), Upper Mesopotamia, the Levant and chunks of modern day Egypt. The capital city Hattusa is located in central Anatolia, surrounded by rich agricultural lands and small woods that provided wheat, barley, lentils and timber, as well as grazing lands for sheep.

During the reign of the most successful Hittite monarch, Suppiluliuma I (circa 1344-1322 BC), large walls were erected around the city that are still visible today. The city had an inner and outer section, with the inner area occupied by a citadel with large administrative buildings, temples and a royal residence, all decorated with elaborate reliefs depicting warriors, sphinxes and lions. Unfortunately, just as Ananke perfects her force field, here comes the Bronze Age Collapse, which will result in much of the city being abandoned and falling into ruin.

1106BC – Greece That long mix of a fart noise and a scream you can hear is the Late Bronze Age collapse. In between 1200-1150BC, the area surrounding the Mediterranean undergoes huge upheaval, shifting from the city-state and palace economy that has characterised the region back to small isolated villages. Wave goodbye to the Mycenaean Greeks (who just won the Trojan War finally), the Kassites in Babylon, the Hittites and the Egyptian Empire. In a 50-year span, almost every major city between Pylos in Greece and Gaza in the Levant will be violently destroyed.

What the hell caused all this chaos? There are a variety of theories, including climate change, drought, a volcanic eruption, changes in warfare, the rise of the Iron Age and a general systems collapse that encompasses all these things plus untenable population growth and soil degradation. Whatever the cause, the result is a complete shift in terms of power in the area. While Assyria and Elam will survive past the main period of collapse, they too soon shrink and fade. The Iranian people from Central Asia and the Eurasian Steppe will travel southeast, displacing the Kassites and Hurrians to become the Persian Empire, while following the Greek Dark Ages, this area will eventually re-emerge into the Classical Greek period with its many steps and columns.

1014BC – Central China While the Middle East is wondering what the hell happened, China is continuing to kick ass and take names. The Shang dynasty has come to an end, and been replaced by the Zhou dynasty, which will last longer than any other period of Chinese history, from 1046 to around 250BC. The period will see Chinese bronzeware-making at its peak, and the written Chinese script evolve from a very basic form to something close to its modern version. The Zhou dynasty is often compared to feudal Europe, with a complex system of peerage ranks and intensive agriculture carried out by serfs on land owned by nobles.

The first half of the Zhou dynasty is called Western Zhou, and begins with King Wu of Zhou overthrowing the Shangs at the Battle of Muye. Wu died shortly after and, with his son too young to rule, his brother the Duke of Zhou took command, stamping out civil wars and rebellions, conquering more territory and establishing the Mandate of Heaven, a sort of two-for-one sale that combines the divine right of kings with manifest destiny. All this upheaval and authoritarian rule is clearly approved by Ananke, who has perfected her Double Click Technique when it comes to taking out Persephones.

Like what we do, and want to help us make more of it? Visit patreon.com/timplusalex

#WicDiv #The Wicked + The Divine #the wicked and the divine #twatd #6000 years of murder

61 notes · View notes

5llowance · 2 years

Text

Archaeologists are trying to prove that the Chinese Erlitou culture and the legendary Xia dynasty are the same thing, and recent finds seem to confirm this. via /r/China

Archaeologists are trying to prove that the Chinese Erlitou culture and the legendary Xia dynasty are the same thing, and recent finds seem to confirm this. https://ift.tt/3qtGG1A Submitted January 14, 2022 at 11:10AM by guantutre via reddit https://ift.tt/3KaiqcL

#IFTTT #reddit

0 notes

chinemagazine · 6 months

Text

Xia, la dynastie légendaire de la Chine ancienne

Fondée par Yu, la dynastie Xia a instauré la première dynastie héréditaire qui trouve son origine dans l'historiographie traditionnelle

La dynastie Xia (夏朝: Xiàcháo) est la première dynastie de l’historiographie traditionnelle chinoise. Elle est la plus ancienne des Trois Dynasties de l’Antiquité (Xia, Shang et Zhou). Selon la tradition, la dynastie Xia a été fondée par le légendaire Yu le Grand, après que Shun, le dernier des cinq empereurs, lui ait donné le trône. La dynastie Xia daterait (IXe – VIe siècle avant notre ère,…

View On WordPress

#Chine #culture #dynastie chinoise #dynastie Shang #dynastie Xia #Erlitou #Henan #Histoire #historiographie chinoise #Yu le grand

0 notes

stellarflex · 3 years

Text

211208 @洛阳-旅游 Weibo

The secrets of the origins buried in the Erlitou site of the "Earliest China", the rise and fall witnessed by Yingtianmen in the "Three Outs of the Son of Heaven", the beginning of the Silk Road, the center of the canal, and the prosperity of the tea ceremony of the city, the old street soup restaurant, the sea of clouds in Funiu... ... Xiangche leaned forward, alarming Luoyang Chen. When the wind blows up, Luoyang explores the mysterious capital of God. How can we lose our "first glutton of the capital of God" Wang Yibo to show the way? 👉Follow Yibo, the image ambassador of Luoyang Cultural Tourism, and set off! Lock Luoyang-Travel, Luoluo takes you to "unlock" more local clock-in guides~

#wang yibo

1 note · View note

theworldaswedontknowit · 7 years

Text

China: Historical Overview

5000 years of history that honestly, never really gets boring

I would also like to point out my knowledge doesn't go very far after The Three Kingdoms and it is noticeable in my writing. I also wrote this while incredibly sick. Any errors please point them out.

China has a long, long history. There’s no denying it. Even if you were to ignore the mythical time of the 3 Sovereigns and 5 Emperors and the undocumented but “it probably existed” Xia Dynasty (more on that in a moment) the documented history of the country still stretches over 3600 years. There’s approximately 10 Dynasties we know existed but the country has seen multiple periods of division and in fighting, even up to the 1900s. So, with the monstrous task now ahead of me, let’s get started!

The first people who were human like to arrive in China were Homo Erectus and the estimated dates are between 2.24 million and 800,000 years ago. That’s quite a while. Tooth fragments have been found elsewhere that date back 80,000 years.

So, how about mythical beginnings? Well, one of the key mythical figures in almost every story told is the Jade Emperor. The first Chinese people came from Fu Xi and Nü Wa, brother and sister who survived a flood that swept away their homeland. The siblings came to the Jade Emperor for help and he gave them the power to create new human life. The two married and made the human race through clay models. Fu Xi then ruled over the group for 115 years, establishing the ritual of marriage and making conception a shared act, having previously been a miracle occurrence that solely involved females. There is a monument erected in his memory in Gansu Province.

There is a slight…erm. Okay let’s be frank, girls don’t win in history very often. This mythical period is known as the era of the 3 Sovereigns and 5 Emperors and there is some debate about who the three sovereigns were. While most name them as Fu Xi, Shennong and Huangdi others declare Nü Wa the first or second sovereigns but most of the time gets left out almost altogether. Sucks to us.

So, onto the next Sovereign – Shennong. Shennong is famous in Chinese mythology for introducing tea. He was also known for making himself a guinea pig and regularly testing new medicines on himself – tea being his antidote. Shennong, it should be noted, was also known as Yandi (炎帝) and is the God of Agriculture, supposedly teaching Slash and Burn techniques to his people. It should also come as no surprise that Shennong’s death is related to his habit on testing things on himself. He died after consuming a poison herb and his intestines putrefied as he was unable to reach his tea in time. There is also speculation that the title Yandi was a dynastic title and that it spanned a longer period of time, some sources recording names for the Kings of Shennong.

The final sovereign is Huangdi, for whom we have an actual name for, he is noted as Gongsun Xuanyuan which was recorded by the Grand Historian – Sima Qian. Another name, Youxiong, is also noted but the consensus seems to be that this was more of a clan name than anything else.

The myth goes that Shennong and Huangdi ruled in neighboring states – wikipedia likes to suggest than Shennong (or Yuwang) and Xuanyuan were in fact brothers, born to Lady Fu Bao and step sons of Shao Dian, a supposed ancestor of Boyi who we well get to later. Either way, during their reigns an evil spirit named Chi You attacked Shennong with 86 other tribes, so Shennong enlisted the help of little brother/neighbor Huangdi. The two defeated Chi You and joined their two lands, naming their people the Huaxia whom the main Han ethnic group all claim descent from.

However, both Emperors’ pride was damaged and the two went to war. Huangdi would win and become sole ruler of the Huaxia peoples. Huangdi would rule for 100 years – from 2698BCE – 2598 BCE – and is credited with the creation of a calender, the writing system, laws and even football. Hats off to you indeed Huangdi. One of his wives, Leizu, is also credited with teaching people how to weave silk and dye clothes.

Now, this is where things get a little weirder. 5 Emperors with almost 450 years to cover stretches the bounds of credibility just a little bit but that’s fine. There’s also something to be said about the number 5, it’s a symbol of completeness so there were probably (definitely) more than 5 Emperors but 5 have been crammed in and strung out over impossible periods of time to fit this. To confuse just about everyone and fitting this idea of 5 but there were actually more there are six potential rulers for 5 spots.

The six are: Shaohao (reigned c. 2598BCE - 2518BCE) he was the son of Huangdi and is also the one who is passed over by Sima Qian. Zhuanxu (reigned c. 2518BCE - 2440BCE) a Grandson of the Yellow Emperor and nephew of Shaohao he either followed his Grandfather or was his Uncle's assistant from the age of 10 to 20 years old. Emperor Ku (reigned c. 2440BCE - 2377BCE) the Grandson of Shaohao. Supposedly rode on Dragon back for half of the year. His four sons would ultimately all rule, two as Kings/Emperors in their own right and two who became dynastic founders of Shang and Zhou. Emperor Zhi (reigned c. 2377BCE - 2368BCE) Emperor Ku's son who was passed over for his younger brother, Yao. Promptly usurped the throne and lasted a meagre nine years. Well, you tried Zhi. Emperor Yao (reigned c. 2368BCE - 2269BCE) the younger son of Emperor Ku. He is remembered as a wise and kind ruler who those in the future sought to emulate.

Emperor Shun (reigned c. 2269BCE - 2219BCE) A distant relative of the yellow emperor through Zhuanxu he either took over from Yao peacefully after making himself well respected for his humble life. Alternatively he usurped the throne, killed Yao and banished his heir. Honestly, seen as this I mythology you can take your pick.

Finally, we get onto Dynastic China. China’s first dynasty, the Xia, is still largely considered fictional and wasn’t believed to have existed at all until the Xia-Shang-Zhou Chronology project lead to the uncovering of evidence of a culture called the Erlitou who were around the same time as the dates we’re given for the Xia.

The Xia would have a total of 17 Kings over 395 years. The first would be Yu the Great, calmer of the flood waters and his son, Qi, would begin the rule of primogenitor (as put by The History of China podcast, “the first-born son wins rule”). The final King of Xia would be Jie and they would be usurped by the Shang Dynasty whose dynastic founder was one of the sons of Emperor Ku.

The Shang Dynasty had 30 Kings over 630 years and has two names. It is known as the Shang Dynasty as that is where the rulers were from however in Korea and Japan it is known as the Yin Dynasty as that was the city where they had their capital. The first King would be Tang of Shang and the last King Zhou of Shang, a tyrant. An additional note on the Shang – this is where China’s written history begins as the Oracle bones date back to this period and provide an insight into the beliefs and lives of the Shang people.

Next come the Zhou, the longest reigning (sort of) Dynasty in Chinese History, their own Dynastic founder being the other son of Emperor Ku. I’m sure when that happened one looked at the other and said, “Thanks. Thanks a lot.” The Zhou Dynasty is split into two halves, the Western and Eastern. Western Zhou saw almost complete rule by the Kings of Zhou and lasted from 1046CE – 771BCE. In Eastern Zhou this changed, the Kings became little more than puppets and were eventually deposed in 256BCE.

During this time the two periods Spring and Autumn and Warring States would take hold of China, fracturing it once Zhou rule became nothing more than a memory. The separate states and eventually Kingdoms would spend centuries fighting for the right to be Hegemon. The period also brought the classics The Confucian Analects and The Art of War. The infighting would continue for another 30 years after the final Zhou King was deposed before the Qin Dynasty and China’s first real Emperor claimed rulership over the land.

Despite the permanent mark it left on China and the culture the Qin Dynasty was something of a blip. Qin Shi Huang would take the throne in 221BCE and rule for only 14 years before ingesting Mercury in a bid for immortality and instead, not surprisingly, dying. His eldest son, Fu Su, would be forced to commit suicide by his minister Li Si and the Eunuch Zhao Gao and his 18th son, Huhai, installed as Qin Er Shi.

Boy that went well. Qin Er Shi, only a teenager at the time, fell under the influence of the Eunuch Zhao Gao. Oh and get ready for Eunuchs, they really, really love bringing an end to Dynasties. Eventually Zhao Gao would force the young Emperor to commit suicide and pass power onto Ziying – generally accepted as another son of Qin Shi Huang – who, along with his two sons, would murder the Eunuch.

Another warring states would follow, known as the Chu-Han contention, which ended with the succession of the Han Dynasty. The Han Dynasty is undoubtedly one of China’s most famous Dynasties and left the most visible print on the country. The main ethnic group are known as the Han people, the clothes are called Hanfu and the writing system is Hanzi. The Han would rule for a little over 400 years, only facing usurpation once when the Xin Dynasty tried to take hold of the country. Han would have 30 rulers in 414 years and was followed by The Three Kingdoms.

You ever played Dynasty Warriors? Or just heard of it? I love those games, they’re what got me into this period to begin with. The Three Kingdoms – Wei, Wu and Shu – would fight for dominance over China for almost a century before all three of the ruling families (Cao, Sun and Liu) would be beaten and usurped by the Sima family. The age gave us some of the best tactical thinkers in Chinese history and some of the most badass warriors ever. If you want to know more about this period than what I’m telling you I suggest you go and read the blogs of @daolunofshiji and @the-archlich , though, you’ve probably already heard of them. Bonus they're both pretty funny.

Not that the Jin Dynasty did very well. It took two Emperors before pretty much everything went horribly wrong in the form of the War of the Eight Princes. The monarchs would ultimately become utterly powerless over the 155 year rule and the land would fragment into 16 Kingdoms. Nice going, Sima family. I can see Sima Yi shaking his head in shame.

The Northern and Southern Dynasties saw the land fragmented again for almost 180 years and eventually it culminated into the Sui Dynasty. The Sui were another blip in history, lasting for only 37 and going through three emperors it was something of a Qin 2.0. It had reunited China after a long period of division and had only three Emperors. The Eunuchs seem to be missing from this time, it was more a demand of labor that brought the Sui down.

Tang would take over from the Sui and last for 289, seeing 21 Emperors and the first and only Empress of China, Wu Zetian who would rule as Empress Dowager Wu of Tang and then Empress of Zhou. Two of her sons would sit on the throne and another would be given the title of Emperor posthumously. I’d personally argue she was one of the most powerful women of the time.

After the Tang, China would fracture once again into the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms which would shrink to just four. Song, Liao, Xia and Jin. Song would reign triumphant eventually, splitting into two periods, Northern Song (960 – 1127) and Southern Song (1127 – 1279) after which it was conquered by Kublai Khan and brought in the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty.

The Yuan dynasty, beginning officially in 1279, was the first foreign Dynasty to rule China. Headed by Kublai Khan, a Grandson of Genghis Khan, it consisted of most of modern day China, Mongolia and Korea. During the Yuan dynasty Princes from Korea would spend several years at the Yuan court, allowing for greater culture exchange. The Dynasty would begin to falter in the early 1300s with onsets of famine and general unrest. For the other Khanates, the Yuan had become “too Chinese” and distrusted them while the populace saw them as foreigners and so they were untrusted by both parties. It would fracture in 1368 into the Northern Yuan and Ming Dynasty.

While the Northern Yuan retreated to Mongolia (although it would keep right on going until the Qing Dynasty) the Ming set up in Beijing and were the last Dynasty that was ethnically Han Chinese. They’re known well throughout the world, especially for their vases. The Ming also saw much increased trade with other countries both in Europe and nearby Japan. The 276 reign of the Ming dynasty saw 18 emperors before being taken over by China’s final dynasty, the Manchu Qing Dynasty.

The Qing dynasty is the one no one seems to have heard of but everyone knows exactly what they look like? They’re the ones where the men’s hair is braided and shaved at the front. The Qing dynasty was turbulent at best, it’s when my country (yay Britain…christ I hate this) decided that we’d sell Opium to them and there’s a political cartoon of European countries and Japan dividing up China and I’ll be honest that is basically what happened. Towards the late 1800s there were multiple rebellions and the Dynasty finally fell in 1912 when Emperor Puyi abdicated, although there was a botched attempt to reinstate the dynasty 1917 which went…swimmingly.

The Republic of China was ushered in and would continue until 1949. The period was also devastating, seeing civil war, the Japanese invasion and the second world war. In 1949 the Communist Party of China would come to power under Mao Zedong. There are endless, endless books you can read on this period and it’s common knowledge that this was perhaps some of the darkest years of Chinese history. After Mao’s death in 1976 and the student protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989 China has turned around. Though still legally communist, the economic make up of the country takes it further from this definition often as it moves toward the status of super power, industrializing and producing most of the world’s goods.

What a ride that was.

86 notes · View notes