In Chinese writing, historical events and important figures are dated by the Dynastic Period they occurred in, and/or the Emperor at the time. For example, a book's publication date might be "The 12th year of Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty". However, the names of these Dynasties themselves have come to carry special meanings of their own, based on their central thrust, e.g., of prosperity or negotiation or other values. As such, to know the meanings of these words in Chinese, one can look directly to the Dynasties themselves.
The Chinese Character and Meaning of the Ancient Chinese Dynasties
Accepted Chinese history is normally described in relation to Dynasties beginning with the Qin Dynasty. Before the Qin dynasty, there were numerous confederations developed by various tribes, normally summarized and represented as the three Dynasties, Xia, Shang, and Zhou.
The founder of the Xia Dynasty, Yu, wasa minister of King Kang. He was appointed as Count Xia for successfully dealing with a flood caused by the Yellow River, and his regime was named accordingly.
Although it was the name of a region, the semantic meaning of the word “xia” is “summer”. As this is the time when things grow prosperously, this was ascribed to this Dynasty, and subsequently carries this meaning in Chinese. According to archeological findings, the Xia Dynasty existed from approximately 2205BCE to 1500 BCE.
The founders of the Shang and Zhou dynasty were respectively conferred their sovereignty at Shang, in Henan province, and Zhou, in the Shan-xi Province.
The Chinese character for “Shang” is depicts “a mouth, in a well-decorated window, under a grand roof”. (See the Illustration) This conveys the idea of “negotiating”, which subsequently became the character for “discussion” or “business”, clearly very powerful terms in Chinese.
In turn, the writing for “Zhou” is a combination of “the extended boundary of fields” and “city wall”, thus suggesting “circumference” or “boundary”. (See the Illustration)
The archeological findings indicate that the Shang Dynasty existed from 1800BCE to 1020BCE. Written history on the other hand shows that the Zhou Dynasty lasted from 1121 BCE to 221 BCE.
Toward the end of the Zhou Dynasty, there was the epoch of “Spring and Autumn” (770 BCE -464BCE) and the era of “Warring States” (464-221BCE). The name “Spring and Autumn”, means “the years”, and comes from the ancient Chinese Annals of that period of time. (See the Illustration) On the other hand, the term “Warring States” is of self-explanatory, as the various states at the time were constantly fighting with each other.
Qin Dynasty in Chinese History Aimed at Harvesting
Disregarding the family name given by one of the kings in Zhou Dynasty, the creator of the Qin Dynasty chose an auspicious word to name his kingdom.
The Chinese character for “Qin” portrays two hands holding a pestle, pounding on the grains and thus depicting an extremely successful harvest. (See the Illustration) The creator of the Qin Dynasty was the king of the Qin State from 246BCE to 221BCE (during the Warring States Period), and the emperor of the unified China under the name of “Qin”. He also designated himself as “the First Emperor” (Shi Huang Di).
Qin Shi Huang, with his fellows’ help and at the expense of many lives, succeeded in a series of economic and political reforms. They also began the project of the Great Wall. In addition, he not only standardized the Chinese written script, currencies and measurements, but also established the system of prefectures and counties. His Mausoleum is renowned for the life-sized terracotta army it contained, which has come to be regarded as the eighth wonder of the world.
However, despite rooting the meaning of ‘harvest’ and ‘prosperity’ for the Chinese in this way, in order to ensure the stability of his empire, Qin Shi Huang outlawed scholars and burned most books. As such, the grinding of the pestle was also there. And after he ruled the realm as emperor for 11 years (221BCE-210BCE), having therefore reigned for some 36 years in all, his son only managed to maintain the kingdom for another 4 or 5 years ( 221-206 BCE).
As such, the names for the Chinese dynasties were derived from the names of tribes, tribal alliances, noble titles, and the origin, location or regime of the founders. Yet at the same time, these names also had auspicious meanings, whether arrived at intentionally or not.
Read more:
An Efficient Way to Learn the Chinese Language
Chinese Dynasty Names From Han to Sui
The Five Classic Elements in China are Tangible
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