Chinese

Perspective History – History of China and Taiwan (5000 BC – 2000)

China has 5 Autonomous Regions and 2 Special Autonomous Regions

China

Prehistoric History

The south west of the city of Beijing was inhabited by primitive humans 500,000 years ago.

[10,000 BC] Humans in China began developing agriculture, possibly influenced by

developments in Southeast Asia.

[5000 BC] Neolithic Period

[5000 BC] There were Neolithic village settlements in several regions of China.

[2205-1570 BC] Xia dynasty

[1697] Yellow Lord (Huang Di) - King Yu

[1766 – 1066 BC] Ancient Bronze Age China

[1570 - 1045 BC] Shang Dynasty

A king was the religious and political head of the society. He ruled through dynastic alliances

[221 - 206 BC] Qin Dynasty - Qin Shihuangdi(First Emperor)

[1045-256 BC] Zhou Dynasty

First three Zhou rulers:

* King Wen (the Cultured King) expanded the Zhou domain

* King Wu (the Martial King), conquered the Shang

* King Wu's brother, Zhou Gong (often referred to as Duke of Zhou), consolidated the

conquest and served as loyal regent for Wu’s heir.

[1000 BC] Developed as a frontier trading town for Mongols, Koreans, Shangdong and

central China

[551-479 BC] Kongzi – Confucius, great thinker and teacher, ethics and statecraft

[453-221 BC] Warring States Period Beijing was the capital of the Yan Kingdom was called

Ji.

[479-438 BC] Mozi – religious piety and universal love

[371-289 BC] Mengzi – disciple of Confucius

[221 - 214 BC] Great Wall

Silk Road

[145-90 BC] Sima Qian wrote a comprehensive history of China from the time of the Yellow

Lord to his own day

[105] Paper invented by Cai Lun

[65] Buddishm in Northern China

[206 - 220 AD] Han Dynasty - Liu Bang (King of Han, Emperor Gaozu)

[220-265 AD] Three Kingdoms Period

[386-534 AD] Northern Wei dynasty

[220-589 AD] Six Dynasties (Nanjing – Capital)

[222-280] Wu - Cao Cao put his son on the throne of the kingdom of Wei, which

controlled northern China, Wu Kingdom was established in the south, with its capital

at Nanjing

[317-420] Jin Dynasty - Northern State Wei - Sima Yan, a Wei general, first of the

Jin emperors

[420-479] Liu Song

[479-502] Qi

[502-557] Liang

[557-589] Chen

Xianbei tribe

[581 - 618 AD] Sui Dynasty

Yang Jian, Emperor Wen

Yang Guang, Emperor Yang

[618 - 907 AD] Tang Dynasty

Li Yuan, Emperor Gaozu

Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong

During this time was the height of wealth and power there are 300 prefectures.

[960 - 1279 AD] Song Dynasty

Zhao Kuangyin, Emperor Taizu

[916-1125 AD] Laio Dynasty Beijing was referred to as Yanjing (Capital of Yan)

1275 – Marco Polo visits China

[1279-1368] The Mongol Yuan Dynasty

Mongolian expansion

[1368-1644] The Ming Dynasty

Zhu Yuanz, Hongwu Emperor, Zhu marched north and seized the Yuan capital near Beijing

Zhu Di, Yongle Emperor, created elaborate palace compound known as the Forbidden City

Imperial Capital was situated in Nanjing

[1402] “Kangnido”, World Map in Korea (compiled from Korean, Japan, China)

[1592 AD] Ming sent its armies in support of Korea, seven-year war against Japan

[1601] Jesuit Ricci arrives in Beijing

[1644-1911] The Manchu Qing Dynasty

Abahai

Qianlong Emperor

Beijing was expanded and renovated with summer palaces, pagodas, and temples.

China’s borders also expanded. Manchuria, Mongolia, Xinjiang, Tibet, and Taiwan

[1783] Catholicism in Korea: Yi Seung-hun was sent to Beijing where he was baptism and

established the first Korean Catholic church.

[1839-1842] Opium War

[1850-1864] Taiping Rebellion

[1894-1895] First Sino-Japanese war – China / Japan

Tributary ties to neighboring countries: Burma (now Myanmar), the Ryukyu Islands (now part of Japan), Korea, and northern Vietnam, Treaty of Shimonoseki, concluded on April 17, 1895, China was forced to acknowledge the complete independence of Korea; to cede the island of Taiwan, the Penghu Islands, and the Liaodong Peninsula in northeastern China to Japan

[1900] China Boxer Rebellion was against Empress Dowager Cixi

[19th century] Large-scale Asian immigration to the United States began in the. Drawn by economic opportunity, Asians migrated across the Pacific to the continental United States or Hawaii. The Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, Filipinos, and Asian Indians were prominent among early immigrants from Asia.

[1927 to 1937] China Civil War Phase I

[1939] Board an express train in Pusan and travel all the way to Europe - through old

Pyongyang, across the Yalu, into Hargin, thence via the Trans-Siberian railway on to

Moscow, a day in Leningrad, on to Prague, Berlin, and then Paris.

[1945-1949] Chinese Civil War Phase II (PRC and Taiwan)

[1947] Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

[1949] Mao Zedong (PRC) and People Liberation Army and People Republic of China in Tiananmen Square

[1949] Taiwan General Chiang Kai shek

[1950-1961] Chinese Civil War Phase III

[1954, 1958] Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region

[1954–1955] Taiwan Strait Crisis

[1955] Uygur Autonomous Region

[1958] Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region

[1958] Taiwan Strait Crisis II

[1965] Tibet Autonomous Region 

[1971] Henry Kissenger visits China, Nixon sign the Shanghai Joint Commnique, bilateral relations

[1973] Deng Xiaoping (PRC)

[1975] Yen Chia Kan

[1978] Taiwan Chiang Ching Kuo

[1978 and 2018] China reduced extreme poverty by 800 million people.

[1979] Taiwan Relations Act

[1979] Deng Xiaoping visits US, Mao protege

[1980] China opened up and westerners were able to see the past 30 year’s progress.

[1984] Taiwan Chiang Ching Kuo

[1984] Sino-British Joint Declarations signed - Hong Kong

[1985] Gorbachev and Reagan held a series of summit talks beginning in 1985, and in 1987 the two leaders agreed to denuclearization.

[1987] Sino-Portuguese Joint Declarations signed - Macau

[1989] Zhao Ziyang

[1989] Student protests in Tiananmen Square

[1991] Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States and the end of the Cold War period

[1993] Jiang Zemin

[1994] Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian

[1995] Taiwan President Lee Teng Hui visit his alma mater Cornell University

[1996] Taiwan Strait Crisis III

[1996] Taiwan President Lee Teng Hui is a again chosen president

[1997] Hong Kong became a SAR special administrative region under "One Country, Two Systems," promising autonomy and capitalist system for 50 years. Proposed by Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping to facilitate the return of territories like Hong Kong and Macau.

[1997] Asian Financial Crisis

[1999] Portugal returned Macau to China on December 20, 1999, becoming a Special Administrative Region (SAR) under the "one country, two systems" principle, promising autonomy and capitalist system for 50 years. Proposed by Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping to facilitate the return of territories like Hong Kong and Macau.

[2000] China gets permanent normal trading status from US Congress

[2000] Taiwan President Chen Shui Bian

[2001] China joins WTO

[2003] Hu Jintao (PRC)

[2003] First Chinese Manned Spaceflight

[2008] Taiwan President Ma Ying Jeou

[2008] Beijing Olympics in China.

[2008] China sends Martin Luther King Jr Statue to US.

[2012] New Chairman, US Chinese Ambassador: Gary Locke

[2013] Xi Jinping (PRC)

[2015] China announces the end of its one-child policy.  Now, all couples can have two children.

[2016] Taiwan President Tsai Ing Wen

[2019] Coronavirus

[2019] Taiwan and Hong Kong demonstrations related to China integration 

[2020] TAIPEI Act

[2020] RCEP - Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership

[2021] China launched Tian Gong space station 

[2024] Taiwan President Lai Ching Te

[2024] TSMC reaches $1 trillion

Taiwan Presidents

[1949] Taiwan General Chiang Kai shek

[1978] Taiwan Chiang Ching Kuo

[1984] Taiwan Chiang Ching Kuo

[1994] Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian

[1995] Taiwan President Lee Teng Hui visit his alma mater Cornell University

[1996] President Lee Teng Hui is a again chosen president

[2000] Taiwan President Chen Shui Bian

[2008] Taiwan President Ma Ying Jeou

[2016] Taiwan President Tsai Ing Wen

[2024] Taiwan President Lai Ching Te

Chinese Language

Consonants 

c 

ch 

h 

q 

r 

sh 

x 

z 

zh 

Vowels 

a 

ai 

ao 

e 

ei 

i 

ian 

ie 

o 

ou 

u 

ui 

uo 

yu 

u 

Language: 

Mandarin=Beijing 

Cantonese=Hong Kong

Min=Taiwan

Dungan

Wu

Shanghainese

Wenzhounese

Yue

Cantonese

Taiwanese

Teochew

Fuzhounese

Puxian

Hakka

Xiang

Gan

Chinese Dictionary 

Ni hao=Greeting, Hello, or How are you?

Zaijian=Good bye

Zai jian=Good bye - I'm on way out

Xian sheng, Furen, Xiajie=Sir, Maam, Miss

Ni hao=How are you?

Wan an=Good night

Xie Xie=Thank you

Thank you very much=Bukeqi

You're welcome=Shi de, Xie Xie

Yes, thank you=Bu shi

Duibuqi=Pardon me

Duibuqi=I'm sorry 

Wo ting bu dong=I don't understand

Dong ma=Do you understand

yi=1

er=2

san=3

si=4

wu=5

liu=6

qi=7

ba=8 

jiu=9 

shi=10

Shi Yi=11

Shi Er=12

Shi San=13

Shi Si=14

Shi Wu=15

Shi Liu=16

Shi Qi=17

Shi Ba=18

Shi Jiu=19

Er Shi=20

San Shi=30

Si Shi=40

Wu Shi=50

Liu Shi=60

Qi Shi=70

Ba Shi=80

Jiu Shi=90

Yi Bai=100

Yi Qian=1000

Yi Wan=10000

Xing qi yi=Monday

Xing qier=Tuesday

Xing qisan=Wednesday

Xing qisi=Thursday

Xing qiwu=Friday

Xing qilian=Saturday

Xing qilian=Sunday

Yi yue=January

Er yue=February

Sang yue=March 

Si yue=April

Wu yue=May

Liu yue=June

Qi yue=July

Ba yue=August

Jiu yue=September

Shi yue=October

Shi yi yue=November

Shi er yue=December 

Baba=Father

Mama=Mother

Ge ge=Older Brother

Jie jie=Older Sister

Wo=Me

Didi=Younger Brother

Mei mei=Younger Sister

Peng you=Friend

Zhang fu=Husband 

Tai tai=Wife

Shen me=What?

Shen me shihou=When?

Shei=Who

Zen me=How?

Duo shao= How much is it?

Zai nail=Where?

Neige=Which

Qing wen=May I ask you a question?

Jidian zhong=What time is it?

Zhong wu=It is noon.

Zai (Hour) dian zhong=It is one o'clock

Zai (Hour) dian zhong=It is two o'clock

Zai (Hour) dian zhong=It is three o'clock

Zai (Hour) dian zhong=It is four o'clock

Ban xiao shi=Half past the hour

Sidian ershi fen=It is 4:20

Liudian sanshi fen=It is 6:30

Wudian ershi wu fen=It is 5:25

Wu ye=It is midnight

Zai zao shang=Morning

Zai xia wu=Afternoon

Zai wan shang=After sundown

Wan shang=Night

Chinese Cities

Beijing 

Hong Kong

Taiwan

Chinese Provinces

Northern

Heilongjiang

Jilin

Liaoning

Inner Mongolia

Beijing

Tianjin

Central

Hebei

Shangdong

Shanxi

Nigxia

Gansu

Qinghai

Shaanxi

Hana

Anhui

Jiangsu

Shanghai

Zhejiang

Hubei

Western

Tibet

Xingjang 

Southern

Fujian

Jiangxi

Hunan

Sichuan

Guizhou

Yunnan

Guangxi

Guangdong

Hainan