Ch. 7, Sec. 1 China’s First Civilizations Vocabulary Dynastyaristocratpictograph Ideographbureaucracymandate Dao

China’s Geography China has 2 great rivers : (pg. 225) 1._______________--or Yellow River. Flows for 2,900 miles. River would flood the land, killing people & destroying homes, but also left rich farming soil. 2._______________--Longer than Huang He, about 3,400 miles across central China. China has little farm land due to __________ mountains and the ______ desert.China has little farm land due to __________ mountains and the ______ desert. These geographic barriers separated Chinese from other peoples. Over time, Chinese people united to form one kingdom called the _______________.

Shang Dynasty Archaeologists believe Huang He valley was center of Chinese civilization. –First rulers were probably part of _____ dynasty (little known). Found huge walls, palaces, & royal tombs—belonging to time of the ________ dynasty. Ruled from about 1750 B.C. to 1122 B.C. __________was China’s first capital—built during Shang. People were divided into groups:

Shang Dynasty Believed in many spirits and _____. They honored their ancestors & gods w/offerings to keep them happy (food & other goods). Angry gods might cause bad farming or battle losses. Shang kings believed they received ________ and _______ from gods, spirits, and ancestors. Kings asked for gods’ help by having priests scratch questions on animal bones— some of earliest known examples of Chinese writing. Earliest writing used __________, or characters that stand for objects.Earliest writing used __________, or characters that stand for objects. Also used _________, which are two or more pictographs put together to represent an idea. Shang are best known for their works of _________.

Zhou Dynasty Rule of Shang = big gap between rich & poor. Lost support of the people. Aristocrat named ___________ rebelled against Shang dynasty & created ______ dynasty. Zhou dynasty ruled longer than any other Chinese dynasty (over 800 years). Kings served at head of govt. –Under him was a large _____________, which are officials who are responsible for different areas of govt. Zhou copied Shang system by dividing kingdom into smaller territories. Each territory was led by an aristocrat. When aristocrat died, his son or another relative would take over.

Zhou Dynasty Zhou kings thought to be link between gods & people. Kings chief duty was to carry out religious rituals—which strengthened link between them & gods. Because of this power, the kings said they ruled China b/c they had the _____________________________. Mandate of Heaven was a heavenly law that gave Zhou kings the power to rule. Worked in 2 ways: 1.People expected king to rule the proper way, called the ________. 2.It gave the people rights of their own. Developed flood-control and __________ systems. Advances such as the ____ plow allowed for better farming. Meant more food and population growth.

Zhou Dynasty Trade grew w/farming. Important trade item was _____. Rulers of Zhou territories became powerful—ended up setting up own states. Almost 200 yrs. the states battled, called the “___________________________”. Used large armies of foot soldiers. Fought w/swords, spears, & crossbows. Chinese invented saddle & stirrup to let soldiers ride horses and fight.

Vocabulary Dynasty—_______________________________________________ ________________________. Aristocrat—_____________________________________________ ________________________. Pictograph—_____________________________________________ ________________________. Ideograph—______________________________________________ ________________________. Bureaucracy—____________________________________________ ________________________. Mandate—______________________________________________ ________________________. Dao—_________________________________________________.