What area does "Dongyi" refer to?
The name "Yi" was coined in the Xia Dynasty, and was called together with "Hua" and "Xia" for the purpose of carrying out Chinese culture. The distinction between Yi and Xia. In the oracle bone inscriptions of the Shang Dynasty, the word "Yi" often appears, generally referring to the tribes living in the ruling center and outside the periphery. It was only under Qu Li in "Book of Rites" that "Yi" began to mean "people from the East". The chapter "Kingdom" says: "The East is called Yi". Xu Shen's "Shuowen" of the Eastern Han Dynasty also said: "The Yi are the people of the East." This statement is even more clear. We know that the ruling center of Xia and Shang was in the middle reaches of the Yellow River in present-day Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Henan. Since "Dongyi" was to the east outside this ruling center, Dongyi could only be the eastern region centered on present-day Shandong.
The development stages and main achievements of Dongyi culture
Dongyi culture started from Houli Culture 8,300 years ago, and went through Beixin Culture (about 7,300 years ago), Dawenkou Culture (about 6,500 years ago), Longshan Culture (about 4,500 years ago), and Yueshi Culture (about 3,900 years ago) are all different stages of culture created by the Dongyi people.
In the long prehistoric stage, the Dongyi people relied on their intelligent and intelligent minds and hard-working and dexterous hands to create practical and exquisite stone tools, bone tools, jade and other production tools and daily necessities; Eggshell pottery that is as thin as paper, as black as lacquer, and as sound as a mirror was produced; textiles with fine grain and high density were woven; copper smelting, primitive calendars, and the oldest writing were invented; on the basis of primitive agriculture , the poultry breeding industry and the brewing industry emerged. As early as the Longshan Culture period, the Dongyi people had entered a class society and a country emerged, marking the beginning of a civilized society.
What are the main tribes of the Dongyi people, and what are their historical contributions?
According to the Records of the Bamboo Book and the Biography of Dongyi in the Book of the Later Han Dynasty, there are nine types of Yi. In ancient times, nine did not actually mean exactly nine, but meant "a large number". In other words, the Dongyi tribe is not a complete and unified tribe, but a huge tribe and tribal alliance composed of many large and small tribes. Among them, the most important tribes are: Feng tribe, Jiang tribe, Ying tribe, Yao tribe, etc. The Dongyi tribes mainly use dragons, snakes, phoenixes, birds, and the sun as their totems, and most of them use bird totems.
In the history of the Dongyi people, the most famous tribal leaders include Taihao, Chiyou, Shaohao, Dashun, etc.
Taihao, Fuxi's surname is Feng, with dragon as his totem. According to the Daoji records of "Baihutong" and "Xinyu", Fuxi established the way of humanity and created the Eight Diagrams. He also invented musical instruments such as the fifty-stringed harp and Tao?o, divided officials into responsibilities, made rituals and music, and entered a civilized society. .
Chi You, surnamed Jiang, is a descendant of Emperor Yan. His tribe consists of 81 clans. During the Chiyou period, copper smelting technology improved unprecedentedly, and copper-making tools emerged in large numbers. Chi You used copper to make a large number of knives, halberds, crossbows and other weapons, which enhanced the lethality of the weapons and was an epoch-making progress. According to legend, Chi You was brave and skilled in battle, and was so powerful that he conquered nine countries in one fell swoop, and then conquered twelve countries in one fell swoop. Later, he suffered a disastrous defeat in the battle with Huangdi and was buried in Dongping after his death. Later, he was gradually deified and became one of the Eight Gods of Qi, the Lord of War and War.
Shaohao, named Zhi, also known as Jintian, is a descendant of the Yellow Emperor and has the surname Ying. Because he practiced Taihao's method, he was called Shaohao. His residence center is in Qufu and his footprints are all over Shandong. The Shaohao clan uses phoenixes and other birds as their totems. It has a strict organization with officials and responsibilities. It is very orderly and the degree of socialization has reached a very high level.
Shun is called Yushun in ancient books, and his surname is Yao. "Mencius" Li Lou said that Shun was born in Zhufeng, which is now Zhucheng in Shandong Province. It is said that Shun personally led the Dongyi people to vigorously develop agriculture, animal husbandry, fishery and pottery industry. Due to Shun's noble moral character and good governance, the Dongyi people's population increased sharply, their society developed, and their culture flourished. Not only did cities appear and create early urban civilization; they also perfected the original astronomical calendar and created music culture represented by "Da Shao". After Shun's death, he abdicated the throne to Yu, and Shun became an ancient sage praised by later generations of Confucians.
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