L02 - The First Dynasties

Neolithic village cultures began to consolidate into larger geographic and political units over the period from about 7,000 to 5,000 years ago. By 4,000 years ago (2000 .), the first of the Bronze Age cultures that can be seen as directly ancestral to historical Chinese civilization had taken shape along the Yellow River in what are now Henan, Hebei, and Shanxi provinces. Later Chinese refer back to the first “dynasty” as the Xia, which was succeeded about 1500 . by the Shang or Yin dynasty. The Xia provides the first indication of a highly stratified society with a ruling elite dominating a population of farming villages. A bronze industry was developed, which the Shang raised to much greater heights of technical and aesthetic achievement. This bronze industry, along with military forces and the royal ritual cult, became the defining features of early Chinese society.