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c. 5000 – 1600 BCE
China's origins: Neolithic cultures (Yangshao, Hongshan, Liangzhu, Longshan), the legendary sage-kings and the Xia question.
c. 1600 – 1046 BCE
The Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BCE): Yinxu at Anyang, oracle bones (the earliest known Chinese writing), ritual bronzes and Fu Hao.
c. 1046 – 256 BCE
The Zhou dynasty (c. 1046–256 BCE): the Mandate of Heaven, Spring and Autumn, the Warring States, Confucius, Laozi, Sunzi and the spread of iron.
221 – 206 BCE
The Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE): Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor, one script and one currency, the early long walls and the Terracotta Army.
206 BCE – 220 CE
Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE): Liu Bang, Emperor Wu, Confucianism, Zhang Qian, the Shiji, paper, and why 汉字 and 汉语 bear its name.
220 – 589 CE
Three Kingdoms and Six Dynasties (220–589): Red Cliffs, the Jin, North and South, the Buddhist caves of Yungang and Longmen, Wang Xizhi.
581 – 907 CE
Sui and Tang (581–907): the Grand Canal, the imperial exams, Taizong, Wu Zetian, Xuanzang, Li Bai and Du Fu, the An Lushan rebellion.
960 – 1279
Song dynasty (960–1279): from Kaifeng to Hangzhou, the scholar-officials, Bi Sheng's movable type, paper money, Su Shi, Yue Fei and the Mongol conquest.
1271 – 1368
Yuan dynasty (1271–1368): Genghis Khan and Kublai, Dadu (Beijing), the four classes, Marco Polo, Guan Hanqing's theatre and the Red Turbans.
1368 – 1644
Ming dynasty (1368–1644): Hongwu, Yongle and the Forbidden City, Zheng He's voyages, the Great Wall, Matteo Ricci, porcelain and the fall of 1644.
1644 – 1912
Qing dynasty (1644–1912): the Manchu conquest and the queue, Kangxi and his dictionary, the Opium Wars, the Taiping, the Boxers, Cixi and Puyi's abdication.
1912 – 1949
Republic of China (中华民国), 1912–1949: the 1911 Revolution, warlords, May Fourth, the vernacular, zhuyin, the war with Japan and the civil war.
1949 – today
People's Republic of China (中华人民共和国) since 1949: land reform, putonghua and pinyin, the Great Leap, the Cultural Revolution, Deng, Tiananmen.
孙悟空
Classic novel · 11 min read
Sun Wukong, the Monkey King of Journey to the West (1592): born from stone, he wreaks havoc in Heaven, then escorts a monk to India.
三国演义
Classic novel · 8 min read
Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the 14th-century novel of Liu Bei, Cao Cao and Zhuge Liang: what is history, what is legend, and the sayings it left.
牛郎织女
Legend · 5 min read
The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl (牛郎织女): two stars of the Shijing who became lovers parted by the Milky Way, meeting at Qixi on a bridge of magpies.
白蛇传
Legend · 6 min read
Legend of the White Snake (白蛇传): Bai Suzhen, a snake spirit in love with Xu Xian, from Feng Menglong's 1624 story to the opera and Leifeng Pagoda.
梁山伯与祝英台
Legend · 5 min read
The Butterfly Lovers, Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai (梁祝): a girl disguised as a boy, an impossible love, a tomb that opens and two butterflies.
孟姜女
Legend · 6 min read
Lady Meng Jiang (孟姜女), whose tears bring down the Great Wall: from Qi Liang's wife in the Zuo Zhuan (550 BCE) to the Qin legend.
花木兰
Legend · 6 min read
Hua Mulan (花木兰), who went to war in her father's place: the Ballad of Mulan, its two hares, the surname Hua and the Disney films.
盘古开天辟地
Myth · 6 min read
Pangu is born in a cosmic egg, separates heaven and earth, and his body becomes the world: a myth first written down in the 3rd century CE.
女娲
Myth · 5 min read
Nüwa mends the broken sky with five-coloured stones and shapes humans from yellow earth: the myth and the ancient texts that tell it.
嫦娥与后羿
Myth · 8 min read
Chang'e (嫦娥) steals the elixir of immortality and flees to the Moon, Hou Yi shoots down the suns: the ancient texts, their versions and legacy.
大禹治水
Myth · 7 min read
Yu the Great (大禹) tames the flood by opening channels where his father Gun had failed: the myth, the classical tradition and what archaeology says.
夸父与精卫
Myth · 6 min read
Kuafu (夸父) races the sun until he dies of thirst, Jingwei (精卫) sets out to fill the sea: two myths from the Shanhaijing and the idioms they left.
成语故事
Idioms · 15 min read
Chengyu (成语), Chinese four-character idioms, often sum up an ancient fable. The stories behind ten of them, told from their original texts.
春节
1st day of the 1st lunar month (Jan. 21–Feb. 20) · 8 min read
Chinese New Year (春节): why the date moves, the reunion dinner, red envelopes, the Nian legend and the greetings to know, with audio.
元宵节
15th day of the 1st lunar month (Feb.–early March) · 7 min read
Lantern Festival (元宵节): the year's first full moon, lantern riddles, tangyuan vs yuanxiao, lion dances and two 元夕 poems, with audio.
清明节
5th solar term, around 4 or 5 April · 6 min read
Qingming (清明节), in early April: sweeping the ancestors' tombs, spring outings, kites and the legend of Jie Zitui.
端午节
5th day of the 5th lunar month (late May–June) · 6 min read
Dragon Boat Festival (端午节), 5th day of the 5th lunar month: boat races, zongzi, mugwort and the legend of the poet Qu Yuan.
中秋节
15th day of the 8th lunar month (Sept.–early Oct.) · 6 min read
Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋节): the full moon and family reunion, the real history of mooncakes, Chang'e, Su Shi's poem and greetings, with audio.
重阳节
9th day of the 9th lunar month (usually in October) · 6 min read
Double Ninth Festival (重阳节): why the 9th of the 9th month, the Huan Jing legend, chrysanthemums, Wang Wei's poem and the day for the elderly, with audio.
十二生肖
7 min read
The Chinese zodiac (十二生肖): 12 animals tied to the earthly branches, the 60-year cycle, the lunar new year, the cat legend and your 本命年.
二十四节气
5 min read
The 24 solar terms (二十四节气) divide the year by the sun's path in 15° steps: their history, the full list and their 2016 UNESCO inscription.
书法
6 min read
Chinese calligraphy (书法): the Four Treasures of the Study, the five scripts, Wang Xizhi, Yan Zhenqing, the eight strokes of 永 and practice today.
茶
6 min read
Chinese tea (茶): Lu Yu's Classic of Tea, the six types (black tea is "red tea", 红茶, in Chinese), gongfu tea, and why we say both chá and tea.
太极拳
7 min read
Tai chi (太极拳) and kung fu (功夫): what gōngfu means, the Chen village, the Zhang Sanfeng legend, the Shaolin Temple and wushu as a sport.
京剧
7 min read
Peking opera (京剧): the Anhui troupes of 1790, kunqu before it, the 生 旦 净 丑 roles, painted-face colours, Mei Lanfang and UNESCO.
围棋、象棋、麻将
7 min read
Go (围棋), Chinese chess (象棋) and mahjong (麻将): origins, rules, the river on the board, AlphaGo, and the verbs 下棋 and 打麻将.
民间艺术
6 min read
Chinese folk arts: paper cutting (剪纸), window flowers (窗花) and the wedding 囍, shadow puppetry (皮影戏) and the kites of Weifang.
中国菜
5 min read
Chinese cuisine (中国菜): the eight great cuisines, northern wheat and southern rice, chopstick etiquette, 干杯 and useful restaurant words.
姓名
6 min read
Chinese names (姓名): family name first, Wang, Li and Zhang at the top, the Hundred Family Surnames, and how to ask someone's name: 您贵姓？
吉利数字
6 min read
Lucky numbers in Chinese: why 8 is loved, 4 feared and 520 means "I love you", gifts to avoid, puns and hand gestures, with audio.
The pages are written from encyclopedias, museums, UNESCO, academic work and the ancient texts themselves, listed at the end of each one. Myths exist in several versions: each page says which text its version comes from, and early dates are approximate.