Chapter 6 - Quiz 1 Flashcards
What did the Chinese call their kingdom, and why?
Middle Kingdom. (They thought they were the center of the Earth)
Why was the Huang He often called “China’s Sorrow”?
It flooded a lot and killed thousands of people and destroyed farms
What protected China from its enemies and made it so isolated?
Mountains
jungles
desert
ocean
What were China’s four early Dynasties?
Shang - 1500B.C
Chou - 1000 B.C.
Qin - 250 B.C.
Han - 250 A.D.
Along what river did the Shang Dynasty people live?
Huang He (Yellow River)
What was the nickname for the Huang He River, and why?
“China’s Sorrow” - because its floods killed thousands of people and ruined harvests.
What type of religion did the Shang people practice?
ancestor worship.
What give the Huang He River its yellow color?
The silt (dirt)
Who did the Shang people believe controlled the weather, floods, and had magic powers over them?
Their ancestors
What did the Shang people give their ancestors to please them?
HINT: bronze cups to cook meat for a sacrifice.
Tings (or dings)
The Shang people were very superstitious. Besides ancestor worship, they also used these things to predict the future:
Oracle bones
What advisors did Kings talk with before making big decisions about planting, fighting and building? How did these “advisors” make decisions?
Priests
Heated an oracle bone and interpreted cracks
What did rulers write on oracle bones?
Questions
Why is it difficult for many Chinese people to become Christians?
Chinese: family over God. They think they must perform certain duties for their ancestors to have the proper afterlife.
What three metals were used to make bronze?
copper, tin, and lead
Show map: where to build a bronze plant
What did the Chou leaders use to justify their rebellion against the Shang dynasty?
The Mandate of Heaven
The mandate allowed the people to seize control from a bad ruler
What type of art were ancient Chinese very skilled in crafting?
Metalwork
Besides bronze, what other products did the Shang people create?
Jade, Silk, clay dishes and vases, chopsticks
Where did archeologists learn a lot about the Shang Dynasty?
royal tombs discovered in Anyang
In many ancient dynasties, the throne was usually passed from father to the son. How was it different in the Shang dynasty?
rule passed from older brother to younger brother
Around 1,000 B.C. they conquered the Shang Dynasty and lasted longer than any other dynasty in
China history.
37 kings in eight hundred years
Chou
This is a time in a civilization’s history that is thought to be its high point of cultural development and achievement
Classic age
What dynasty was in power during China’s “Classical Age”?
Chou
The Chou believed that heaven, the supreme force of nature, gave the king his right to rule. What is this belief called?
Mandate of Heaven
What is a Mandate of Heaven?
Says heaven gave the king his right to rule.
If a king failed to act properly, he lost his right to rule.
True or False: the Chou rulers gave land and property to peasants to farm if they gave some of the crops and goods back to the rulers
True
What Chou ruler conquered the Shang?
King Wu
How has Chinese culture lasted so long over the years?
Strong Family
Under what dynasty did the Chinese start writing system?
Chou (remember Classic Age)
How is Chinese writing different than English writing?
It’s more Art than text. (paint brush)
Chinese writing is not based on a simple alphabet. Instead, it consists of over 65,000 characters that represent ideas, objects, and sounds. Writers well respected because most only know 4,000 characters
(See photo)
