Chapter 7 Section 1Geography and Early China

China’s Physical Geography

• China covers an area of nearly 4 million sq. miles, about the same size as the United States. China’s boundaries isolated it from the rest of the world for thousands of years. What are China’s physical boundaries? (look in your book,pg 182)

Physical Boundaries

• Mountains

• Deserts

• Oceans

• Characteristics: rivers, plains, plateaus

Physical Map of China

Regions of China

• What is the weather like in the different regions of China?

• Northwest• Northeast -Southeast

Weather

• Northwest

• Northeast

• Southeast

Huang He RiverWhat is its other name?

• What was important about the Huang He river?

It flooded and layered the ground with silt.

The Chang Jiang River

• What did the Chang Jaing River do?

• It helped connect eastern and western China.

• Flooded and provided silt.

What is another namefor thisriver?

Flooded rivers in China left silt deposits.

• What happened as a result of this?

• Farmers were able to farm:

• Along the Huang He they farmed cereals like millet and wheat

• Along the Chang Jaing they farmed rice

Civilization Begins in China

Huang Heriver produced

farming andcivilizations.

• Good farming• Lg. amts. of rain• Rice is main crop

Mountainsand desertmade traveldifficult and

isolated China.

Summary

The Xia (Shah) Dynasty What was significant about the Xia dynasty?

Yu theGreat

Dynasty: series of rulers from the same family.

Their stories helped explain geography, and told about how kings worked with people to help solve problems.

Shang Dynasty

Shang Dynasty

How was their social hierarchy organized?

What was significant about the oracle bones?

What advances did the Shang dynasty make?

Check your Shang facts!!!

• *The social order under the Shang Dynasty was: nobles, artisans, farmers, slaves. *

• *Priests carved questions about the future on bones or shells which were heated, causing them to crack, Priests believed they could predict the future by interpreting cracks on oracle bones. *

• *The Shang were the first people in China to develop a writing system. *

China TodayLarge cities

Of China

Summary…

Write Your Own!!!!

Huang HeRiver