Early Chinese Civilizations Ch 3 Sec 3

Learning Goal I will be able to describe the early civilizations in Ancient China

Impact of Geography Fertile valley between Huang He(yelllow) River and the Chang Jiang(Yangtze)River is where China’s first civilizations developed Only 10% is suitable for crops Geographical barriers- mountains and deserts- isolated China from other parts of Asia

The Shang Dynasty Mainly a farming society ruled by an aristocracy Lasted from 1750bc to 1045bc Shang king ruled from capitol city Anyang Land divided into territories governed by a Warlord picked by king

Shang Dynasty Social Structure Royal Family Aristocracy- chief landowners peasants- worked the lands Artisans, Merchants and slaves also were included in the society

Shang Dynasty Religion and Culture They believed in supernatural forces which could help the rulers in worldly affairs Believed important to treat spirits of ancestors well because the spirits could bring good or bad fortune. Best remembered for mastery of bronze

Zhou Dynasty Lasted from 1045bc to 256bc Longest-lasting dynasty in Chinese history- 800yrs Same political structure as the Shang Dynasty- territories governed by warlords Zhou king was link between heaven and earth by Mandate of Heaven - authority to rule by heaven

King was expected to rule the people with goodness and efficiency King was expected to rule according to the proper “Way” or Dao. had to keep gods pleased Mandate of Heaven was closely tied to the pattern of dynastic cycles.

Family Life At the heart of the concept of family in China was the idea of Filial piety. this meant every family member had his or her own place in the family. Men were the dominant figure Women raised the children and worked in the home

Zhou Accomplishments large scale water projects were set in motion to control the flow of rivers and spread water evenly to the fields Iron plowshares-increased land available for farming Trading of silk reached as far as Greece

Most important cultural contribution of ancient China to later Chinese society was the creation and development of the Chinese written language Started out as pictographs(picture symbols) and ideographs(characters that combine two or more pictographs together)