Ancient and Modern China Review

These flashcards cover key historical dynasties, cultural figures, major festivals, geographical facts, and modern political developments of China as discussed in the lecture notes.

Qin Shi Huang

The founder of the Qin Dynasty ($221$ BC–$206$ BC) and China’s first unified feudal dynasty who unified the written language, currency, weights, and measures.

The Great Wall

A defensive structure ordered by Qin Shi Huang to resist northern nationalities’ aggression, with resources distributed across $15$ cities and provinces.

Terra cotta army

A collection of sculptures discovered near Xi'an in the Shaanxi province, dating back to around $210$ B.C.

Silk Road

Established during the Han Dynasty, it facilitated growing economic and cultural exchanges between China and the West.

Seismographs

An instrument designed to record seismic waves caused by earthquakes.

Wu Zetian

The only orthodox female emperor in Chinese history, who ruled during the Tang Dynasty ($624$-$705$).

Zheng He

A court eunuch of the Ming Dynasty who led seven voyages to the Western Seas with the world’s largest fleet at the time, utilizing the compass.

Xinhai Revolution

The $1911$ revolution that overthrew the Qing rule in China.

Puyi

The last emperor of the Qing Dynasty and Chinese history who became a puppet controlled by Japanese forces.

Closed-door policy

A form of isolationism adopted in the Qing Dynasty that restricted foreign exchanges, causing China to fall behind Western countries.

Imperial Examination System

The most influential contribution of the Sui Dynasty, impacting China's education and society for more than a thousand years.

Open University of China

An educational institution characterized by easy access, flexible study times, and no upper age limit.

Confucius Institutes

An important means for people in many countries to learn Chinese language and culture and understand contemporary China.

China’s Four Great Ancient Capitals

The cities of Xi’an, Nanjing, Beijing, and Luoyang.

May Fourth Movement

A $1919$ student protest in Beijing triggered by the rejection of China’s proposals at the Paris Peace Conference, paving the way for the CPC.

Golden Week

A seven-day holiday observed in China starting October 1st to celebrate the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in $1949$.

One Country, Two Systems

The policy applied by the Chinese government to the Special Administrative Regions (SARs) of Hong Kong and Macao.

Reform and Opening-up

A transformation policy launched in $1978$ under Deng Xiaoping that established a sound socialist market economy.

The Four Great Inventions

Ancient Chinese contributions consisting of the compass, gunpowder, paper-making, and printing.

The Four Great New Inventions

Refers to modern China's high-speed railways, mobile payment, shared bicycles, and online shopping.

Five-Starred Red Flag

The national flag of China, where the large star represents the CPC and the four small stars represent the four revolutionary classes.

Putonghua

The modern standard Chinese language based on Beijing pronunciation and the northern dialect; it is one of the six working languages of the United Nations.

Jiaguwen

Also known as Oracle bone inscriptions, these are the earliest known Chinese characters carved onto tortoise shells and animal bones.

Pictophonetic characters

Characters formed by a semantic component and a phonetic component, making up more than $80$ percent of all Chinese characters.

Shousui

The traditional custom of staying up late through New Year’s Eve during the Spring Festival.

Lantern Festival

Celebrated on the $15$th day of the $1$st lunar month, featuring activities like eating Tangyuan and guessing lantern riddles.

Qu Yuan

A Patriotic Poet commemorated during the Dragon Boat Festival (May $5$th of the Lunar Calendar).

The Art of War

Also known as Sun Tzu’s Military Strategies, a book on winning battles that discourages rulers from pursuing war.

Yangtze River

Also known as the Changjiang River, it is the longest river in China.

Yellow River

The second-longest river in China, known as the mother river of the Chinese people.

Harbin

Known as the 'Ice City,' it is famous for its Ice and Snow Festival featuring carved ice sculptures.

Taoism

The only major religion originating in China.