Week 2: “Chinese” and “Non-Chinese”

The Making of Inner Asia

I. Logic of Engagement

  1. Geography
  2. Economy
  3. Social organization

II. History of Engagement

  1. The first empire—Qin (221-207 BCE) . . . Han (207 BCE–220 CE) . . . Xiongnu . . . tributary system
  2. Period of disunity—Northern Wei (386–534 CE) . . . Tabgach/Tuoba/Xianbei
  3. The second empire—Tang (618–907) . . . Silk Road . . . Bohai . . . Khitans . . . Turks . . . Uighurs . . . Tibet . . . Nanzhao

III. At the (Tang) Empire’s End

  1. Decentering China—Khitans . . . Tanguts . . . Jurchens

Two Sons of Heaven

I. Context

  1. Disintegration of the Tang (618–907) empire
  2. The confederations of Inner Asia
  3. “Five dynasties and ten kingdoms”

II. The Song state (960–1276)

  1. Background—Later Zhou (951–960) . . . Zhao Kuangyin (r. 960–976)
  2. Nature of the Song state
  3. Major concerns

III. The Khitan/Liao state (ca. 907–1125)

  1. Background
  2. Nature of the Liao state
  3. Relations with the Song and other neighboring states

IV. The Tangut/Xia state

Discussion

    1. Consider Weiming Yuanhao's letter and the preface by Gule Maocai. What do they seek to emphasize? And why do you think it was important for them to do so?
    2. What were some of the common motifs found in the ci poems you read this week?
    3. Let's see what you can find out about Li Qingzhao (1084–c. 1155), whose poems you read this week. To what extent was she extraordinary?

Maps

External links to Maps:

Rainfall | Han Dynasty | Northern Wei | Silk Road | Northern Song

Physical Map

Map of Modern China: Physical Geography

Source: National Museum of Chinese History, ed., A Journey into China's Antiquity, vol. 1 (Beijing: Morning Glory Publishers, 1997), pp. 8–9.

 

Physical Map by Satellite

Map of Modern China: Physical Geography

Administrative Map

Map of Modern China: Administrative Divisions

Source: SACU

 

Images

 

References

  • Barfield, Thomas J. The Perilous Frontier: Nomadic Empires and China, 221 BC to AD 1757. Cambridge, Mass.: Blackwell, 1989.
  • Di Cosmo, Nicola. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asia. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001.
  • Franke, Herbert, and Denis Twitchett, eds. The Cambridge History of China. Vol 6: Alien Regimes and Border States 907-1368. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994.
  • Standen, Naomi. Unbounded Loyalty: Frontier Crossings in Liao China. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 2007.
  • Wright, David Curtis. From War to Diplomatic Parity in Eleventh-Century China. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2005.

Top

Spam prevention powered by Akismet