HSITORY OF EAST ASIA

kOJIKI

details Amaterasu's grandson founding the imperial line.

Samguk yusa"

narrates Hwanung fathering Tan'gun, founder of Old Choson.

Tibetan, altaic, vietnamese

East Asia Languages

Monosyllabic

characters are pronounced as single syllables and are individual units of meaning. Longer compound words are formed by combining two or three characters.

Polysyllabic

words compounded out of simple basic syllables piled up in an agglutinative manner to make sophisticated grammatical distinctions, such as the distinction between currently doing something and having done it in the past.

Vietnamese language

classified as Austroasiatic and is distinct from the Chinese language family

Erlitou culture

n enigmatic precursor to the Shang dynasty.

Central Plain of northern china

stands as a testament to the profound impact of geography and agricultural innovation on the course of human history.

Fuxi and Nuwa

are siblings credited with the creation of humanity. ___ i is associated with the invention of writing, fishing, and trapping, ___ is recognized as the goddess who mended the heavens and created human beings from clay.

Shennong

Revered as the Divine Farmer

Yellow Emperor

holds a significant place in Chinese mythology. Regarded as a cultural hero, he is associated with advancements in medicine, astronomy, and the development of Chinese martial arts.

sage rulers

characterized by legendary leaders known for their wisdom, virtue, and contributions to governance. These rulers, including Yao, Shun, and Yu the Great, are celebrated for their moral leadership and administrative prowess.

Great Yu

especially noteworthy for his role in flood control.

Zhou

people conquered the Shang Dynasty around the year 1045 B C E

Jiang Yuan.

According to the Zhou legend, the first ancestor of the Zhou people was conceived by a woman named

Hou ji

"The Lord of Millet"

Zhou Dynasty

considered the formative era of Chinese civilization.

Who is Confucius?

Founder of Confucianism

Daoism

The word "dao" means "path" or "road". While in a more philosophical sense, it came to mean "The Way".

Laozi

An older contemporary of Confucius

Zhuangzi

A real historical figure

The book that bears his name is a collection of parables and tall tables

The Way

is the most important concept in Daoism but it is inexpressible in words according to Laozi. It is inescapable, pervading and shaping all things.

LEGALISM

One of the three major schools of thought in late Zhou China

Sunzi Bingfa

which is the original Chinese title for the famous work known in English as "The Art of War."

Ying Zhen

Qin leader who named himself Qin Shi Huangdi

expanded the Qin empire to the NORTH and SOUTH.

Started with the victory of rebel leader Liu Bang, posthumously known as Emperor Han Gaozu, against the Qin

Xiongnu

a confederation of tribes, including different ethnic and linguistic groups

Ruan Ji

Pose of habitual drunkenness and remote philosophical abstraction

^ Escapes from murderous political intrigue