According to legend, the first dynasty in the history of China was the Xia Dynasty. The ancestors of the ancient Yellow River valley called themselves "Huaxia" for short, "Hua" and "Xia". The word "Huaxia" first appeared in the twenty-sixth year of "Xianggong" in Zuo Zhuan (547 BC): "Chu lost Huaxia". Kong Ying Da of the Tang Dynasty: "China is also China". In terms of meaning, the word "Hua" has a beautiful meaning, and the word "Xia" has a grand meaning. Together, it is really a beautiful word. "Huaxia" refers to the vassal of the Central Plains and the predecessor of the Han nationality, so "Huaxia" is another name for China.
First, the original meaning of the word "China"
Huaxia people call their four ethnic groups barbarians, barbarians, Rong and Di, and call themselves "China". The word "China" first appeared in the documents of the Zhou Dynasty, and later it has different meanings with different objects. Generally speaking, there are six concepts as follows: First, it refers to the capital, such as the Book of Songs. People's Labor "Note:" China is also the capital ". Second, it refers to the areas directly ruled by the Emperor of Heaven. For example, Zhuge Liang said to Sun Quan, "If we can compete with China with the people of wuyue, it is better to retreat as soon as possible. ".3 refers to the Central Plains, such as historical records. Biography of East Vietnam: "Dongou invited the whole country to be China's disciples". Four refers to the mainland and China, as recorded in historical records. Biography of Emperor Wu: "Eight famous mountains in the world, three barbarians and five Huaxia". Fifth, it refers to the areas where Xia people live, such as the Analects of Confucius: "In the summer, China is also". Six refers to the country established by China or Han nationality, and this title often appears in Historical Records and Hanshu. Therefore, since the Han Dynasty, people often refer to the Central Plains Dynasty established by the Han people as "China". Because of this, when ethnic minorities entered the Central Plains, they called themselves "China". For example, the Northern Wei Dynasty, founded by Xianbei people, called itself "China" and the Southern Dynasty called it "Island Yi". At the same time, although the Southern Dynasties established by the Han nationality moved away from the Central Plains, they still called themselves "China", called the Northern Dynasties "Rousseau" and the Northern Wei Dynasty "Wei Lu". For another example, the Song Dynasty, the Liao Dynasty, the Northern Song Dynasty, the Jin Dynasty and the Southern Song Dynasty all called themselves "China" and did not recognize each other as "China".
Second, the evolution of the regional concept of the word "China".
The scope referred to by the word "China" has experienced an expanding process from small to large with the passage of time. When "China" appeared in Shangshu, it was only the name people used to address the Guanzhong and Heluo areas where they lived in the Western Zhou Dynasty. In the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the region to which Zhou belonged could also be called "China", and the meaning of "China" extended to the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, including the vassal states. With the territorial expansion of vassal states, "China" became the title of all countries. Since the Qin and Han Dynasties, the area not belonging to the Yellow River basin but within the jurisdiction of the Central Plains regime was called "China", and the name "China" eventually became the common name of China. Since the middle of19th century, "China" has become a special term, which refers to all the territories of our country.
In fact, although the name "China" has a written history of 3,000 years, it is only a regional concept. From Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties to the end of Qing Dynasty, no dynasty or regime took "China" as its official name. As a country name, "China" began after the Revolution of 1911. 19 12 On New Year's Day, the Republic of China was founded and internationally known as the Republic of China ("China"). At this point, the name "China" became the official name with the concept of modern country. Greater People's Republic of China (PRC) was founded in 1949, and the concept of "China" has been perfected and enriched to today's meaning.
Three, the alias of the word "China".
In addition to the above-mentioned "Huaxia", China is also called "China", "Kyushu", "Four Seas" and "Shenzhou". "China" originally refers to the Yellow River basin, and the word "China" first appeared in Pei's annotation in the History of the Three Kingdoms. With the expansion of the territory, all the places under the jurisdiction of the Central Plains Dynasty are collectively called "China", which refers to the whole country. In the Tang Dynasty, Han's poems said that "China went to the border town and foreign clouds came from the island", and "China" was compared with "foreign". Therefore, "China" is also called "China" for short, and China people living abroad are called "overseas Chinese".
The name "Kyushu" originated in the mid-Warring States period. At that time, there were constant disputes and wars between countries, and people longed for reunification, so the idea of dividing up the Central Plains came into being, including Ji, Yan, Qing, Xu, Yang, Jing, Yu, Liang and Yong Jiuzhou. Other ancient books such as Er Ya. Li Zhoudishi. Professional side ","Lv Chunqiu. There are also records of "Kyushu" such as Introduction. Although the specific state names are different, they are all recorded in Kyushu. "Zhou" officially became an administrative region in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The later States became more and more detailed, and the jurisdiction was smaller, but the central area was roughly equivalent to the scope of Kyushu in the Warring States Period. So "Kyushu" became the name of China, which has been used ever since.
In ancient times, China was known as the "Four Seas", which was named after the sea around it. Inspired by overseas traffic, Zou Yan, a Qi man in the Warring States Period, boldly put forward the theory of "Great Kyushu". He believes that "Gong Yu" Kyushu can only be counted as a state, called "Chixian Shenzhou"; Nine states of the same size are just a small Kyushu surrounded by the sea. There are nine such small Kyushu * * *, which constitutes the big Kyushu; Kyushu is surrounded by Daying County. Therefore, "Shenzhou" only accounts for 8 1% of the world. Although the facts of later generations prove that this is only a hypothesis, the name "Shenzhou" has been used to this day.
Fourth, the name of "China" in world culture.
In ancient India, Greece, Rome and other countries, China was honored as Cina, Bo and Sinai. Many developed countries almost always call China by terms close to it. Chinese transliteration: zhina, zhina, zhina, Heini, Sinian, etc. These are the foreign language equivalents of Qin, or they are thought to be derived from the pronunciation of Si, and some people think that they are derived from China or tea in Minnan dialect.
China is called "Khitan" by the Russians, which obviously comes from another source. The Liao Dynasty established by the Khitans was powerful and controlled the whole Mongolian Plateau and its surrounding areas, and the fighters were invincible wherever they went. At that time, the Russians, who had just made their mark in the Eastern European Plain, first heard that there was only Khitan in the East, and called China "Khitan", which has been in use ever since.