China river dynasties

Chinese River Dynasties

The culture that took root during ancient times still affects Chinese ways of life today

In 2000 B.C, the "Xia Dynasty" was the first Chinese dynasty, led by Yu, who helped tame the Huang He & its tributaries so that settlements could flourish

The Zhou Dynasty lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history. It brought new ides to the Chinese civilzation that helped their cities develop & advance. The construction of roads & canals, helped improve trade & agriculture. Coined money was introduced as well, which also enhanced trade. This progress in economy led to more advanced cities.

Advanced Cities

The earliest forms of writing were pictographs. Major advantage would be that people all over China could learn the same system, even if they spoke different languages Thus, the written language helped unify a large & diverse land, & made control much easier. The disadvantage of the Chinese system was that a person needed to know over 1,500 characters to be barely literate

Specialized workers included farmers, traders, merchants, government officials, artisans, blacksmiths, priests, warriors, etc.

Specialized Workers

The Zhou Dynasty governed the vast area that stretched beyond the Huang He to Chang Jiang through feudalism. Feudalism is the system in which nobles are given the use of lands that legally belong to the king. In return, the nobles owed loyalty & military service to the king & protection to the people in the estates.

Complex Institutions

The Zhou eventually developed a cast iron prod. They used iron to create weapons, as well as tools for agriculture & productivity. The ability to grow more food helped Zhou farmers support thriving cities

Advanced Technology

Record Keeping

Oracle Bone