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Yellow River (Huang He)	River where early Chinese civilization began		world-ancient-china
Yangtze River	China's longest river		world-ancient-china
Dynasty	A line of rulers from one family		world-ancient-china
Shang Dynasty	Early dynasty known for bronze and oracle bones, about 1600-1046 BCE		world-ancient-china
Oracle bones	Animal bones with the earliest Chinese writing, used to ask the gods questions		world-ancient-china
Zhou Dynasty	Long dynasty that introduced the idea of the Mandate of Heaven		world-ancient-china
Mandate of Heaven	Belief that Heaven gave a just ruler the right to rule and could take it away		world-ancient-china
Confucius	Teacher (551-479 BCE) who stressed respect, learning and good government		world-ancient-china
Confucianism	Philosophy of proper behavior, family loyalty and education		world-ancient-china
Filial piety	Respect and care for parents and elders		world-ancient-china
Daoism (Taoism)	Philosophy of living in harmony with nature, linked to Laozi		world-ancient-china
Laozi	Traditional author of the Daodejing		world-ancient-china
Yin and yang	Opposite forces that balance each other		world-ancient-china
Legalism	Philosophy that strong laws and harsh punishment keep order		world-ancient-china
Warring States Period	Time of war among rival Chinese states, ending in 221 BCE		world-ancient-china
Qin Dynasty	First dynasty to unite China, 221-206 BCE		world-ancient-china
Qin Shi Huang	First emperor of a unified China		world-ancient-china
Great Wall of China	Long defensive walls begun by Qin and rebuilt by later dynasties		world-ancient-china
Terra-cotta Army	Thousands of clay soldiers buried with Qin Shi Huang		world-ancient-china
Standardization	Qin made weights, measures, money and writing the same across China		world-ancient-china
Han Dynasty	Long dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE) that expanded China and grew trade		world-ancient-china
Han Wudi	Han emperor who expanded the empire and started the Silk Road trade		world-ancient-china
Silk Road	Network of trade routes linking China with the Mediterranean		world-ancient-china
Zhang Qian	Han envoy whose travels helped open the Silk Road		world-ancient-china
Silk	Fine cloth made by silkworms; China kept the method secret for centuries		world-ancient-china
Paper	Invented in China, improved by Cai Lun around 105 CE		world-ancient-china
Printing	Woodblock printing began in China by the Tang era; movable type came later		world-ancient-china
Gunpowder	Developed in China, first used for fireworks and later for weapons		world-ancient-china
Compass	Magnetic tool invented in China for finding direction		world-ancient-china
Four Great Inventions	Paper, printing, gunpowder and the compass		world-ancient-china
Seismograph	Zhang Heng's device (132 CE) for detecting earthquakes		world-ancient-china
Civil service exam	Test used to choose government officials by merit		world-ancient-china
Tang Dynasty	618-907; a golden age of poetry, art and trade		world-ancient-china
Li Bai	Famous Tang poet		world-ancient-china
Du Fu	Tang poet known for poems about people's hardships		world-ancient-china
Wu Zetian	Only woman to rule China as emperor, in the Tang era		world-ancient-china
Chang'an	Tang capital, one of the world's biggest cities		world-ancient-china
Song Dynasty	960-1279; saw paper money, movable type and great cities		world-ancient-china
Paper money	First widely used in Song China		world-ancient-china
Grand Canal	Long waterway linking northern and southern China, begun in the Sui era		world-ancient-china
Sui Dynasty	Short dynasty that reunified China in 589 and built the Grand Canal		world-ancient-china
Mongols	Nomadic people who conquered China under Kublai Khan		world-ancient-china
Genghis Khan	Founder of the Mongol Empire		world-ancient-china
Kublai Khan	Mongol ruler who founded the Yuan Dynasty in 1271		world-ancient-china
Yuan Dynasty	Mongol-led dynasty in China, 1271-1368		world-ancient-china
Marco Polo	Italian merchant who wrote about his travels in Asia		world-ancient-china
Ming Dynasty	1368-1644; Chinese rule restored; built the Forbidden City		world-ancient-china
Zheng He	Admiral who led huge treasure fleets across the Indian Ocean in the early 1400s		world-ancient-china
Forbidden City	Imperial palace complex in Beijing		world-ancient-china
Beijing	Capital of China from the Ming era onward		world-ancient-china
Qing Dynasty	Last dynasty, 1644-1912, ruled by Manchus		world-ancient-china
Manchus	People from northeast China who founded the Qing		world-ancient-china
Queue	Braided hairstyle men were required to wear under the Qing		world-ancient-china
Opium Wars	Conflicts with Britain in the 1800s over trade that weakened Qing China		world-ancient-china
Taiping Rebellion	Massive 1850-1864 uprising during the Qing era		world-ancient-china
Boxer Rebellion	1899-1901 uprising against foreign influence		world-ancient-china
Puyi	Last emperor of China, who gave up the throne in 1912		world-ancient-china
Sun Yat-sen	Leader of the 1911 revolution that ended imperial rule		world-ancient-china
Republic of China	Government that began in 1912		world-ancient-china
Chinese characters	Writing system in which each symbol stands for a word or idea		world-ancient-china
Calligraphy	Art of beautiful brush writing		world-ancient-china
Abacus	Counting frame with beads		world-ancient-china
Acupuncture	Medicine practice using thin needles in the body		world-ancient-china
Porcelain	Fine ceramic called 'china' in English		world-ancient-china
Terraced rice paddies	Stepped fields for growing rice on hills		world-ancient-china
Rice	Main food in southern China		world-ancient-china
Millet	Main grain in early northern China		world-ancient-china
Tea	Drink used in China for thousands of years		world-ancient-china
Chinese New Year	Major holiday based on the lunar calendar		world-ancient-china
Lunar calendar	Calendar following the Moon's phases		world-ancient-china
Chinese zodiac	Twelve-year cycle of animals		world-ancient-china
Dragon	Symbol of imperial power and good fortune		world-ancient-china
Great Wall length	All its sections together measure thousands of miles		world-ancient-china
Shi Huangdi's tomb	Large burial complex near Xi'an		world-ancient-china
Xi'an	City near where the Terra-cotta Army was found in 1974		world-ancient-china
Han Chinese	Largest ethnic group in China		world-ancient-china
Peasant	Farmer; most people were peasants		world-ancient-china
Scholar-official	Educated person who served the government		world-ancient-china
Cultural Revolution	1966-1976 political campaign in China that caused great disruption		world-ancient-china