Post on 16-Dec-2015
28-1 ChinaEarly History
• China’s history dates back to more then 4,000 years ago.
• It has been ruled by many dynasties.
• The first dynasty was the Shang, which arose during the 1700s B.C.
• This family ruled for over 600 years, until it was overthrown by the Zhou Dynasty.
• The next important dynasty was that of the Han.
• They pushed the size of the empire into new lands once controlled by nomadic warriors.
• In 1644, the last dynasty came to power, the Qing Dynasty.
• In 1911 they were overthrown by revolutionaries.
China Opens up to the World
• China and Europe had few contacts until the 1800s.
• Then, European powers wanted access to Chinese markets.
• Europe imposed treaties that granted them special privileges.
• Trade in China was divided into spheres of influence.
• In the Boxer Rebellion in the 1900, Chinese militants attacked and killed Europeans in China.
• After the attempted Rebellion, the Manchu rulers tried to reform the government.
• It was to late. • During the 1920’s and 30’s, the
Communist Party became increasingly powerful.
• In 1949, the Communist party led
by Mao Zedong took control. • They named the country the
People’s Republic of China.
Rural and Industrial Economies
• When the Communist Party came to power in 1949, it promised to modernize China.
• It planned to encourage the growth of industry.
• This approach failed. • Since the 1980s, China has allowed
the marketplace and the consumer to play a role in the economy.
• China remains largely rural. • About 60% of China’s workers work
on farms, but only about 13% of the land is usable for farming.
• The Industrial heartland is in the Northwest part.
• Here, important resources to manufacturing, such as coal, iron ore, and oil are found.
A rich and Complex Culture
• The Chinese invented paper, printing, gunpowder, the compass an d cloth made from silk.
• China has three major religious or ethnical traditions.
• Confucianism – is based on the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius.
• Confucius lived in the 500s BC.
• Taoism got its name from a book called the Tao Te Ching.
• The book is said to be based on the teaching of Lao Tzu, who also lived in the 500s BC.
• Buddhism came to China from India.
• It had grown into an important religion by 300 A. D.
• Both religions influenced Buddhism as it developed in China.
The Most Populous Country
• China is the most populous country in the world.
• Its estimated population in 2010 was over 1.3 billion.
• China has been able to provide health-care to all its people.
• Villages have clinic with trained medical workers called “barefoot Doctors”.
A History of Nomads and Traders
• The Mongols were nomadic herders for thousands of years.
• In 1206, Genghis Khan united the Mongol clans an lead them in conquering Central Asia.
• The Empire broke up in the 1300s. • In the 1600s, the Chinese gained
control of Mongolia.
• In 1911, the Mongolians finally pushed the Chinese out.
• With Russia’s guidance Mongolia became a communist country in 1924.
• After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1989, the communist party in Mongolia lost its power.
• Over the centuries, many groups from China came to the island of Taiwan.
• The Japanese seized Taiwan after winning a war with China in 1895.
• Japan kept it until their lost in WWII.
• The Nationalist party in China that had lost to the Communist party fled to Taiwan.
• There they established the Republic of China.
• However, China’s Communist government has never recognized Taiwan as a separate country.
Taiwan's Economy• Taiwan is considered one of the
economic tigers of Asia, along with Singapore and South Korea.
• Taiwan is one of the prosperous, industrialized nations of the Pacific Rim.
Cultures of Mongolia and Taiwan
• The culture of Taiwan is Chinese. • The island has many universities and
about 30 daily newspapers. • Most people speak Mandarin, the
official language of Northern China. • In Taiwan, about half of the people
practice a blend of Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism.
Daily Life
• Many people of Mongolia are farms or nomadic.
• While Mongolia remains isolated, Taiwan has opened itself up to many Western influences.
• For example, baseball has become popular in Taiwan and many other Asian countries.
The Koreas: North The Koreas: North and South and South
The Koreas: North The Koreas: North and South and South
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A Divided Peninsula• Korea is a peninsula. • The ancestors of today’s Koreans
came to the peninsula at least 5,000 years ago form Manchuria and North China.
• About 100B.C., China conquered the northern half of the peninsula.
• This began a history of conquest and invasions by China and Japan.
• Korea was partially conquered by China. Koreans gradually won back their territory.
• By the late 300’s AD, the three kingdoms had formed on the peninsula.
• Koguryo was the kingdom in the Northeast.
• Paekche was in the Southwest• Silla was in the Southeast.• Silla conquered the other two and
controlled the peninsula for hundreds of years.
• In 1910 Japan, took control of the peninsula.
• And controlled the country until after WWII.
• After WWII the northern part became under the control of the Soviet Union. – communist
• The southern half came under the influence of the US.
• In 1950 North Korean troops invaded South Korea.
• This started the Korean war.
• Fighting stopped in 1953 • A treaty was signed that divided
the peninsula between the communist North and the democratic South.
• In 2000 the two countries started to talk about reuniting.- those talks have gone stalled.
Influences on Korean Culture
• In philosophy and religion, Korea has adapted many ideas from China.
• Since WWII two major influences have had a profound effect on Korea– Communism in the North– Western Culture in the South
Economic and Human Resources
• Before the Korean War, the economies of North and South Korea were agricultural.
• After the war, industry gained in importance in both countries.
• If North and South reunite, they would form an economic powerhouse.
• The North would supply the raw materials the industries of the South needs.
• South Korea, like Taiwan, is one of the economic tigers of Asia.
• Most people in Korea live on plains along the coast or in river valleys among the mountains.
• SK has 45% of the land, but it has about 66% of the people.
• Of Korea’s cities, Seoul is by far the largest.
• It has a population of more then 10 million.
• The largest city in the north is Pyongyang.
• Its population is near 2.5 million.
Samurai and Shogun• Japan was close enough to China to
feel its civilizing effects. • However, they were far enough
away to be protected from invasion.• Some evidence suggests that the
ancestors of today’s Japanese came across Siberia to Japan.
• Until well into the 300s AD, Japan was not a unified country.
• By the 400’s AD, the Yamato clan had become the ruling clan.
• By the 600’s AD, the leaders of the Yamato clan called themselves emperors of Japan.
• In 794, the rulers moved their capital to Heian (modern Kyoto)
• The era from 794 to 1185 is called the Heian period.
• Japan had a strong central government.
• However, in time, the great landowners and clan chiefs acted as independent rulers.
• Professional soldiers called samurai served the landowners and clan chiefs as bodyguards and warriors.
• In 1192, after a struggle between two powerful clans, the Japanese emperor created the position of shogun.
• The shogun was the general of the emperor’s army
• Rule by the shoguns lasted for about 700 years.
• In 1853, they received Commodore Matthew Perry from the United States.
• Perry’s arrival ended Japan’s isolation.
• During the late 1800’s, Japan’s government began bringing Japan into the modern age.
• By the early 1900s, Japan had become a major power.
• In the first part of 1900s, Japan expanded its empire.
• On December 7, 1941, the Japanese made a surprise attack at Pearl Harbor.
• This attack brought the US into WWII.- Japan surrendered in 1945.
An Economic Powerhouse
• The population of Japan is about 126 million.
• About 75% of Japan’s people live in cities.
• Japan has few minorities.• Most of Japan’s population and
most of its industry are on the east coast of the main island of Honshu.