Chinese History

The earliest men living in China can be traced back to 1.7 million years ago. After long evolving, the ancient hominid commenced to step into civilization society. With a recorded history of nearly 4000 years, China is known as one of the oldest civilizations in the world. Cultivating the main Chinese civilization for thousands of years, the Yellow River and The Yangtze River are seen as Mother Rivers by Chinese people, with the Yellow River also being hailed as "the cradle of Chinese civilization". For thousand of years, colorful cultures of Chinese ethnic groups have been lasting, blending and developing, creating the glorious civilization of China.  

A Brief Chinese Chronology 

Era / Dynasty
Reign
The era of the Yuanmou hominid
(scientific name: Homo erectus yuanmouensis)
about 1.7 million years ago
The era of the Lantian hominid
(scientific name: Homo erectus lantianensis)
about 0.8 million years ago
The era of the Peking hominid
(scientific name: Homo erectus pekinensis)
about 0.2-0.7 million years ago
The era of Shandingdong hominid
(scientific name: Upper Cave Man)
about 18,000 years ago
The era of Hemudu Banpo Culture
(Matriarchal Clan Commune)
about 5000-7000 years ago
The era of Dawenkou Culture
(paternal Clan Commune)
about 4000-5000 years ago
The era of Three Emperors and Five Sovereigns
about 4000 ago
Xia Dynasty
2070 BC – 1600 BC
Shang Dynasty
1600 BC – 1046 BC
Western Zhou Dynasty
1046 BC – 771 BC
Eastern Zhou Dynasty (Spring and Autumn Period)
770 BC – 476 BC
Eastern Zhou Dynasty (Warring States Period)
475 BC – 221 BC
Qin Dynasty
221 BC – 207 BC
Western Han Dynasty
206 BC – 24 AD
Eastern Han Dynasty
25 AD – 220 AD
Three Kingdoms Period (Wei, Shu, Wu)
220 AD – 265 AD
Western Jin
265 AD – 316 AD
Eastern Jin
317 AD – 420 AD
The Northern and Southern Dynasties
420 AD – 589 AD
Sui Dynasty
581 AD – 618 AD
Tang Dynasty
618 AD – 907 AD
The Five Dynasties
907 AD – 960 AD
Northern Song Dynasty
960 AD – 1127 AD
Southern Song Dynasty
1127 AD – 1279 AD
Yuan Dynasty
1271 AD – 1368 AD
Ming Dynasty
1368 AD – 1644 AD
Qing Dynasty
1644 AD – 1911 AD
Republic of China
1912 AD – 1949 AD
People’s Republic of China (PRC)
Since 1949

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Top Topics

Chinese Kung Fu

Far and wide known as Kungfu (功夫) all over the world, Chinese martial art is also called Wugong (武功) or Wushu (武术) at home by Chinese people. It ca...

Chinese Tea

Being a vivid Chinese cultural specialty as well as Kungfu and traditional Chinese medicine, Chinese tea has been being developed in China for a long ...

Chinese Cuisine

"Food is the first necessity of the people" is a famous Chinese old saying, which reflects that Chinese have had paid much attention to food si...