A NCIENT C HINA – G EOGRAPHY S HAPES A NCIENT C HINA Students analyze the geographic, political, economic, social, and religious structures of the civilizations of Ancient China.

V OCABULARY  Oracle Bones – animal bones used by the Shang Kings to communicate with the gods.  Pictographs – pictures or drawings that represent words or ideas.

The Chinese dynasties would rise and fall in a pattern that historians called the Dynastic Cycle. When life was good…..the Chinese people believed that the rulers had the “Mandate of Heaven” and had heaven’s favor! When “bad” things began happening….well, the emperor “lost” the “Mandate of Heaven” and a new emperor made his way into power.

D YNASTY – FAMILY OR GROUP THAT RULES In about 1766 BC, Shang kings began to control areas of China and they set up a dynasty.

E AST C HINA S EA, Y ELLOW S EA, E AST C HINA S EA, AND P ACIFIC O CEAN Gobi and Taklimakan Deserts Pamir, Tian Shan, and Himalaya Mountains

China has been geographically isolated For many centuries…and it still is!

T WO R IVER S YSTEMS  Two major rivers flow through China – the Chang Jiang (Yangtze) and the Huang He (the Yellow River).  In ancient times most of the farming was done between the two rivers Their floodwaters deposited silt and made the farmland very fertile. The land is known as the center of the Chinese civilization.

China has a varied climate. The climate of China is much like the United States. Western China is much like the western United States. Northeast China’s climate is much like the New England states and southern China is much like the southern United States.

T HE SHANG D YNASTY Around 2000 B. C. farming settlements along the Huang He (Yellow) began to grow into cities. *Historians consider China to be the oldest CONTINUOUS civilizations in the world.  Shang Kings – Shang family kings began to control some cities and their dynasties began. They told their people that the gods had given them permission to rule. They had great respect for family and their ancestors. They would sacrifice animals in honor of the father’s ancestors and men ruled within the family. The Shang kings claimed that the gods spoke to them through oracle bones. Later the Shang developed a system of writing with pictographs.

O RACLE B ONES --- BONES ON WHICH THE S HANG KINGS WERE TO HAVE RECEIVED MESSAGES FROM THE GODS. Pictographs --- drawings that represented words or ideas. To be able to read and write a person should know at least 1,500 characters and an educated person should know at least 10,000 characters.

T HE Z HOU D YNASTY  The fought the Shang and in about 1027 B. C. they defeated the Shang.  Dynastic Cycle – the rise and fall of dynasties

M ANDATE OF H EAVEN  This was the idea that a good ruler had the approval from the gods. When a ruler was bad or foolish, the approval of the gods would be taken away. The Chinese people believed that invasions, floods, or earthquakes meant that the gods were not happy and that the Mandate of Heaven had been taken away. It was time for a new government.

T HE Z HOU AND THE TIME OF THE WARRING STATES  The people fought among themselves because the Zhou did not have a strong central government. Nomads from the north and west invaded China and in 771 B.C. the king was killed. The lords fought amongst themselves and this led to the time called the Time of the Warring States in 403 B.C.

S ECTION 1 A SSESSMENT  Explain the importance of: Oracle bones Pictographs Dynastic cycle Mandate of Heaven List the Natural Barriers of China Why did the Shang settlements begin along the Huang He? How did the Shang develop a Chinese language? How did the Chinese people know that a ruler had lost the Mandate of Heaven? How did the development of a written language help to unify China? In what ways was the settling of the Huang He Valley similar to settlements in other world regions?

1. C HINA ’ S GEOGRAPHIC FEATURES MEANT THAT ITS CULTURE  A. Developed slowly  B. Developed with few outside influences  C. Spread rapidly to other regions  D. Was similar to other cultures

2. T HE LAND AT THE HEART OF C HINESE CIVILIZATION IS CALLED  A. The Gobi Desert  B. The Indus Valley  C. The North China Plain  D. The Tian Shan Mountains

3. F ARMING SETTLEMENTS AROUND THE H UANG H E BEGAN TO DEVELOP INTO CITIES AROUND  A B.C.  B B.C  C. A.D  D. A.D. 2000

4. T O RULE CHINA, THE S HANG K INGS ESTABLISHED A ( N )  A. Bureaucracy  B. Democracy  C. Dynasty  D. Oligarchy

5. A N ORACLE BONE WAS  A. An ancestor’s bone sacred to a Chinese family  B. An animal bone or shell used to communicate with the gods.  C. A bone belonging to Confucius worshiped by his followers  D. A decoration worn by Shang emperors (page 149 under “Developing Language.”

6. T HE SYSTEM OF WRITING WITH PICTOGRAPHS  A. Was developed after paper  B. Existed in China before farming  C. Is illustrated in Chinese caves  D. Used drawings to represent words (page 149 – next to last paragraph on the page).

7. T HE TERM DYNASTIC CYCLE DESCRIBES THE  A. Pattern of Chinese dynasties  B. Order of claims to the throne  C. Way emperors chose the next ruler  D. Steps emperors took to extend their dynasty

8. T O JUSTIFY THEIR RULE, THE Z HOU USED  A. The dynastic cycle  B. The Favor of Law  C. The Mandate of Heaven  D. An oracle bone (page last paragraph).

9. A N EMPEROR WHO HELD THE MANDATE OF H EAVEN  A. Could do no wrong  B. Was a god  C. Had the god’s approval  D. Was the head of the church (Page last paragraph).

10. T HE C HINESE BELIEVED A DYNASTY HAD LOST THE MANDATE OF HEAVEN IF  A. An emperor died young.  B. An emperor mistreated people.  C. A ruler behaved foolishly  D. An earthquake occurred