Classical ChineseClassical Chinese, also known as Literary Chinese (; or , meaning "literary language/speech"; modern vernacular: , meaning "literary language writing"), is the language of the classic literature from the end of the Spring and Autumn period through to either the start of the Qin dynasty or the end of the Han dynasty, a written form of Old Chinese (). Classical Chinese is a traditional style of written Chinese that evolved from the classical language, making it different from any modern spoken form of Chinese.
Six DynastiesSix Dynasties (; 220–589 or 222–589) is a collective term for six Han Chinese-ruled Chinese dynasties that existed from the early 3rd century AD to the late 6th century AD, between the end of the Han dynasty and beginning of the Sui dynasty. The Six Dynasties period overlapped with the era of the Sixteen Kingdoms, a chaotic warring period in northern China after the collapse of the Western Jin dynasty.
First Opium WarThe First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of their ban on the opium trade by seizing private opium stocks from merchants at Canton and threatening to impose the death penalty for future offenders. Despite the opium ban, the British government supported the merchants' demand for compensation for seized goods, and insisted on the principles of free trade and equal diplomatic recognition with China.
Terracotta ArmyThe Terracotta Army is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE with the purpose of protecting him in his afterlife. The figures, dating from approximately the late 200s BCE, were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in Lintong County, outside Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. The figures vary in height according to their rank, the tallest being the generals. The figures include warriors, chariots and horses.
Yuan dynastyThe Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; Mongolian: , Yeke Yuwan Ulus, literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai (Emperor Shizu or Setsen Khan), the fifth khagan-emperor of the Mongol Empire from the Borjigin clan, and lasted from 1271 to 1368. In Chinese history, the Yuan dynasty followed the Song dynasty and preceded the Ming dynasty.
TeaTea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of Camellia sinensis, an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and northern Myanmar. Tea is also made, but rarely, from the leaves of Camellia taliensis. After plain water, tea is the most widely consumed drink in the world. There are many different types of tea; some have a cooling, slightly bitter, and astringent flavour, while others have profiles that include sweet, nutty, floral, or grassy notes.
Xia dynastyThe Xia dynasty () is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, the Xia dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great, after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors, gave the throne to him. In traditional historiography, the Xia was later succeeded by the Shang dynasty. There are no contemporaneous records of the Xia, who are not mentioned in the oldest Chinese texts, since the earliest oracle bone inscriptions date from the late Shang period (13th century BC).
GuangdongGuangdong (UKgwæŋˈdʊŋ, USgwɑːN-), formerly romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.84 million (as of 2021) across a total area of about , Guangdong is the most populous province of China and the 15th-largest by area as well as the second-most populous country subdivision in the world (after Uttar Pradesh in India).
SichuanSichuan (sɪtʃˈwɑːn; , sɹ̩̂.ʈʂhwán; ; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the Sichuan Basin and the easternmost part of the Tibetan Plateau between the Jinsha River on the west, the Daba Mountains in the north and the Yungui Plateau to the south. Sichuan's capital city is Chengdu. The population of Sichuan stands at 83 million. Sichuan neighbors Qinghai to the northwest, Gansu to the north, Shaanxi to the northeast, Chongqing to the east, Guizhou to the southeast, Yunnan to the south, and the Tibet Autonomous Region to the west.
ShanxiShanxi (ʃænˈʃiː; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi and Datong. Its one-character abbreviation is "" (), after the state of Jin that existed there during the Spring and Autumn period. The name Shanxi means "West of the Mountains", a reference to the province's location west of the Taihang Mountains.