Ancient China Geography

China China is located on the continent of Asia. The climate in ancient China includes seasons similar to those in North America.

U.S.A China

Alone For thousands of years, the ancient Chinese thought they were alone on the planet Earth. They knew there were people to the north, the Mongols - but they did not know that other advanced ancient civilizations existed anywhere else. 

Isolated China's natural barriers to the west, south, and east helped to protect these early people from invasion. China's natural barriers include mountains, deserts, rivers, and sea’s.   Making them isolated. Isolated means separated from other people; alone

China’s Natural Barriers to the East China's natural barriers to the East includes- the China Sea and the  Yellow Sea, both located in the Pacific Ocean. These seas provide a huge coastline, which provided trade routes and easy access to food.  

China’s Natural Barriers to the South and West The Himalayan Mountains are not located in modern day China. They run along the border to the south. In ancient times, these mountains helped to protect the early Chinese people from invasion. The Himalayan Mountains to the south are very rugged. Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world! The Himalayas include ten (10!) of the highest peaks in the world.

China’s Natural Barriers to the North The Gobi Desert is one of the driest deserts in the world. The Taklamakan Desert, China's other desert, is nicknamed the Sea of Death. It offers poisonous snakes, frequent sand storms, boiling days, freezing nights, and intense water shortages. The Sea of Death is not a small desert. In fact, it is the second largest desert in the world. 

China’s Rivers Not all of China's geography acted as barriers. Some of their natural features provided fertile soil and safe drinking water. China has two major river systems - the Yellow River (Huang He) and the Yangtze River (Long River).  These early people called all rivers in China by the nickname "The Great Sorrow".  That is because each year during the flood season, all homes along the rivers were destroyed. Each year, the ancient Chinese had to rebuild their homes and their lives. 

The Yellow River The Yellow River gets its name because of the yellow windborne clay dust called loess that is blown into the river and gives it a yellow appearance. The Yellow River is about 3000 miles long. It also floods each year. The banks along the Huang He River are low. Civilization in ancient China began along the Yellow River about 5000 years ago. 

Yangze River The Yangze River is the longest in China and third longest in the world. The Yangzi River irrigates the rice growing regions in the south of China.