2. Geography of China Natural barriers- mountains, deserts, rivers, seas
Isolated them for thousands of years
Protected them from invasion

3. Mountains Himalayan Mountains Very rugged
Contain Mt. Everest, the highest mt. in the world

4. Deserts The Gobi Desert The Taklamakan Desert The “Sea of Death”
Poisonous snakes, sand storms, boiling days, freezing nights, water shortages
2nd largest desert in the world
One of the driest in the world
You can find an oasis, but it’s rare

5. Chinese Rivers Provided fertile soil and safe drinking water.
Yangtze River- 3rd longest in the world. (4000 miles)
-floods yearly leaving silt
-high banks keeps homes safe
2. Huang He (Yellow River)- 3,000 miles
- floods yearly ?
-low banks made floods dangerous
- “The Great Sorrow”
Provided fertile soil and safe drinking water.

6. Seas & Oceans
Yellow Sea, China Sea (E&S)and Pacific Ocean provide a huge coastline
Access to trade routes
Easy supply of food
For thousands of years, the ancient Chinese thought they were pretty much 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. 
China's natural barriers to the west, south, and east helped to protect these early people from invasion.
China's natural barriers include seas - 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.