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List of Neolithic cultures of China

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{{Neolithic}}

{{History of China}}

This is a list of Neolithic cultures of China that have been unearthed by archaeologists. They are sorted in chronological order from earliest to latest and are followed by a schematic visualization of these cultures.

It would seem that the definition of Neolithic in China is undergoing changes. The discovery in 2012 of pottery about 20,000 years BC indicates that this measure alone can no longer be used to define the period.{{cite journal |last1=Wu |first1=Xiaohong |last2=Zhang |first2=Chi |last3=Goldberg |first3=Paul |last4=Cohen |first4=David |last5=Pan |first5=Yan |last6=Arpin |first6=Trina |last7=Bar-Yosef |first7=Ofer |display-authors=3 |title=Early Pottery at 20,000 Years Ago in Xianrendong Cave, China |journal=Science |date=29 June 2012 |volume=336 |issue=6089 |pages=1696–1700 |doi=10.1126/science.1218643 |pmid=22745428 |bibcode=2012Sci...336.1696W |s2cid=37666548 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228089260 |access-date=26 April 2022 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20220426180328/https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Paul-Goldberg-3/publication/228089260_Early_Pottery_at_20000_Years_Ago_in_Xianrendong_Cave_China/links/0912f508ec8ac242a1000000/Early-Pottery-at-20-000-Years-Ago-in-Xianrendong-Cave-China.pdf |archivedate=26 April 2022}} It will fall to the more difficult task of determining when cereal domestication started.

List

class="wikitable"
align="center"

! Dates (BCE)

! English name

! Chinese name

! Modern-day name and location

18000–7000

| Xianren Cave culture
(Paleolithic)

| {{zh|labels=no|c=仙人洞、吊桶环遗址}}

| Wannian County, Shangrao, Jiangxi

8500–7700

| Nanzhuangtou culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=南莊頭遺址}}

| Yellow River region in southern Hebei

7500–6100

| Pengtoushan culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=彭頭山文化}}

| central Yangtze region in northwestern Hunan

7000–5000

| Peiligang culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=裴李崗文化}}

| Yi-Luo river basin valley in Henan

6500–5500

| Houli culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=後李文化}}

| Shandong

6200–5400

| Xinglongwa culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=興隆洼文化}}

| Inner Mongolia-Liaoning border

6000–5000

| Kuahuqiao culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=跨湖桥文化}}

| Zhejiang

6000–5500

| Cishan culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=磁山文化}}

| southern Hebei

5800–5400

| Dadiwan culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=大地灣文化}}

| Gansu and western Shaanxi

5500–4800

| Xinle culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=新樂文化}}

| lower Liao River on the Liaodong Peninsula

5400–4500

| Zhaobaogou culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=趙宝溝文化}}

| Luan River valley in Inner Mongolia and northern Hebei

5300–4100

| Beixin culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=北辛文化}}

| Shandong

5000–4500

| Hemudu culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=河姆渡文化}}

| Yuyao and Zhoushan, Zhejiang

5000–3000

| Daxi culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=大溪文化}}

| Three Gorges region

5000–3000

| Majiabang culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=馬家浜文化}}

| Lake Tai area and north of Hangzhou Bay

5000–3000

| Yangshao culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=仰韶文化}}

| Henan, Shaanxi, and Shanxi

4700–2900

| Hongshan culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=紅山文化}}

| Inner Mongolia, Liaoning, and Hebei

4100–2600

| Dawenkou culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=大汶口文化}}

| Shandong, Anhui, Henan, and Jiangsu

3800–3300

| Songze culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=崧澤文化}}

| Lake Tai area

3400–2250

| Liangzhu culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=良渚文化}}

| Yangtze River Delta

3100–2700

| Majiayao culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=馬家窯文化}}

| upper Yellow River region in Gansu and Qinghai

3100–2700

| Qujialing culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=屈家嶺文化}}

| middle Yangtze region in Hubei and Hunan

3000–2000

| Longshan culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=龍山文化}}

| central and lower Yellow River

2800–2000

| Baodun culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=寶墩文化}}

| Chengdu Plain

2500–2000

| Shijiahe culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=石家河文化}}

| middle Yangtze region in Hubei

1900–1500

| Yueshi culture

| {{zh|labels=no|c=岳石文化}}

| lower Yellow River region in Shandong

1600–1400

|Erligang culture

|{{Zh|c=二里崗文化|labels=no}}

|North China Plain

Schematic outline

File:Neolithic china.svg

These cultures existed during the period from 8500 to 1500 BC. Neolithic cultures remain unmarked and Bronze Age cultures (from 2000 BC) are marked with *. There are many differences in opinion on the dating for these cultures, so the dates chosen here are tentative:

class=wikitable
bgcolor='#FFFFFF'

! Year
(BC)

! North-east
China
(1)

! Upper
Yellow River
(2)

! Middle
Yellow River
(3)

! Lower-
Yellow
River
(4)

! Lower-
Yangtze
(5)

! Middle-
Yangtze
(6)

! Sichuan (7)

! Southeast
China
(8)

! South-west
China
(9)

8500

| rowspan="13" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

| rowspan="12" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

| rowspan="6" bgcolor="#FFA07A" align="center" | Nanzhuangtou
8500–7700

| rowspan="12" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

| rowspan="15" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

| rowspan="9" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

| rowspan="31" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

| rowspan="12" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

| rowspan="37" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

8000
7500

| rowspan="6" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

7000

| rowspan="8" bgcolor="#E0E0FF" align="center" | Pengtoushan
(including
Chengbeixi
and Zaoshi)
7000–5800

6500

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#EOFFFF' align='center' | Dadiwan

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#EOFFFF' align='center' | Peiligang

| colspan="1" rowspan="7" bgcolor="#FFFFE0" align="center" | Houli
6500–5500

| colspan="1" rowspan="6" bgcolor="#FFE0E0" align="center" | Zengpiyan
7000–5500

| rowspan="6" bgcolor="#FFA07A" align="center" | Xinglongwa
6200–5400

| bgcolor='#EOFFFF' align='center' | Laoguantai

| bgcolor='#EOFFFF' align='center' | Cishan

| colspan="1" rowspan="7" bgcolor="#EOFFFF" align="center" | Baijia
6500–5000

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#EOFFFF' align='center' | Jiahu

6000

| colspan="1" rowspan="6" bgcolor="#EOFFFF" align="center" | Lijiacun
6500–5000

| colspan="1" rowspan="6" bgcolor="#32CD32" align="center" | Kuahuqiao
6000–5000

| colspan="1" rowspan="4" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  
5500

| colspan="1" rowspan="3" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#EEEEEE' |  

| colspan="1" rowspan="5" bgcolor="#B0AFFF" align="center" | Beixin
5300–4500

| colspan="1" rowspan="3" bgcolor="#OOFEEO" align="center" | Xinle
5300–4800
5000

| colspan="1" rowspan="11" bgcolor="#O0E0FF" align="center" |  

| rowspan=12 bgcolor='#O0E0FF' align='center' | Yangshao
5000–3000

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#E0EFOO" align="center" | Hemudu
5000–3400

| rowspan=9 bgcolor='#FFE4B5' align='center' | Daxi
5000–3300

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#B0C4DE' align='center' | Dapenkeng

| colspan="1" rowspan="11" bgcolor="#B0C4DE" align="center" | Fuguodun
5000–3000
| colspan='1' bgcolor='#EEEEEE' |  

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#E0EFOO" align="center" | Majiabang
5000–4000

4500

| colspan="1" rowspan="4" bgcolor="#FFFFEO" align="center" | Zhaobaogou
4500–4000

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#EEEEEE' |  

| colspan="1" rowspan="10" bgcolor="#FF8367" align="center" | Dawenkou
4300–2600

| colspan="1" rowspan="7" bgcolor="#E0EFOO" align="center" | Songze
4000–3000

4000
| colspan="1" rowspan="3" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  
3500

| colspan="1" rowspan="4" bgcolor="#OOFEEO" align="center" | Qujialing
3500–2600

| colspan="1" rowspan="7" bgcolor="yellow" align="center" | Hongshan
(incl. Fuhe)
3400–2300

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#FF99FF" align="center" | Yingpanshan
3100–?

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#O0E0FF" align="center" | Majiayao
3300–2700

| colspan="1" rowspan="9" bgcolor="#CC99CC" align="center" | Liangzhu
3200–1800

3000

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#EEEEEE' |  

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#EEEEEE' |  

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#BFFACD' align='center' | Tanishan

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="O0E0FF" align="center" | Banshan
2700–2400

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#3EEE3F' align='center' |

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#F4A460" align="center" | Shijiahe
2500–2000

| rowspan=6 bgcolor='#FFE0E0' align='center' | Baodun
2800–2000

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#BFFACD' align='center' | Shixia

| colspan="2" rowspan="3" bgcolor="#3EEE3F" align="center" | Longshan
2800–2000

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#BFFACD' align='center' | Nianyuzhuan

2500

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#O0E0FF" align="center" | Machang
2400–2000

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#BFFACD' align='center' | Qinglongquan

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#BFFACD' align='center' | Qinglongquan

| colspan="1" rowspan="3" bgcolor="#3EEE3F" align="center" | Longshan
2400–2000

| colspan="1" rowspan="5" bgcolor="#BFFACD" align="center" | Hedang
3000–?

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#FFBCE99" align="center" | Baiyangcun
2200–2100

| colspan='1' bgcolor='#EEEEEE' |  

| colspan="1" rowspan="3" bgcolor="#FFE0E0" align="center" | *Qijia
2300–1800

| colspan="2" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#3EEE3F" align="center" | *Shimao
2300–1800

2000

| rowspan=7 bgcolor='#DEB887' align='center' | *Xiajiadian
2000–300

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#FFBCE99" align="center" | Dalongtan
2100–2000

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="yellow" align="center" | *Erlitou
1900–1500

| colspan="1" rowspan="3" bgcolor="#3FE0E0" align="center" | *Yueshi
1900–1500

| colspan="1" rowspan="3" bgcolor="yellow" align="center" | *Panlongcheng
1900-1400

| colspan="1" rowspan="2" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

| rowspan="2" bgcolor="#F08080" align="center" | *Siba
1950–1500

| rowspan="3" bgcolor="#FFFACD" align="center" | *Maqiao
1800–1200

| rowspan="5" bgcolor="#EEEEEE" |  

1500

| rowspan="2" bgcolor="yellow" align="center" |*Erligang
1600–1400

| rowspan="2" bgcolor="#CCFF00" align="center" | *Sanxingdui
1700–1150

| rowspan=4 bgcolor='yellow' align='center' | *Wucheng
1600-?

| bgcolor='#EEEEEE' |  

| bgcolor='yellow' |  

| rowspan="3" bgcolor="yellow" align="center" | *Wucheng
1400-?

| rowspan=2 bgcolor='#EEF907' align='center' | *Siwa
1350-650

| colspan="2" bgcolor="yellow" align="center" | *Huanbei
1350-1300

| rowspan="2" |

| bgcolor='#CCFF00' align='center' | *Shi'erqiao
1200-800

1000

| colspan="2" bgcolor="yellow" align="center" | *Zhou dynasty
1046–256

| bgcolor='yellow' |  

For this schematic outline of its neolithic cultures China has been divided into the following nine parts:

  1. Northeast China: Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning.
  2. Northwest China (Upper Yellow River): Gansu, Qinghai and western part of Shaanxi.
  3. North-central China (Middle Yellow River): Shanxi, Hebei, western part of Henan and eastern part of Shaanxi.
  4. Eastern China (lower Yellow River): Shandong, Anhui, northern part of Jiangsu and eastern part Henan.
  5. East-south-eastern China (lower Yangtze): Zhejiang and biggest part of Jiangsu.
  6. South-central China (middle Yangtze): Hubei and northern part of Hunan.
  7. Sichuan and upper Yangtze.
  8. Southeast China: Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangdong, Guangxi, southern part of Hunan, lower Red River in the northern part of Vietnam and the island of Taiwan.
  9. Southwest China: Yunnan and Guizhou.

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

Further reading

  • {{cite book | last=Chang | first=Kwang-chih | author-link= K. C. Chang | title=The archaeology of ancient China | publisher=Yale University Press | publication-place=New Haven, Conn | year=1986 | isbn=0-300-03784-8 }}
  • {{cite book | editor1-last =Loewe | editor1-first=Michael | editor1-link = Michael Loewe| editor2-last=Shaughnessy|editor2-first= Edward L. |editor2-link= Edward L. Shaughnessy |title=The Cambridge history of ancient China:from the origins of civilization to 221 B.C | publisher=Cambridge University Press | publication-place=Cambridge, UK; New York | year=1999 | isbn=0-521-47030-7 }}
  • {{cite book | first1=Zhonghu | last1=He | last2=Bonjean | first2=A.P.A.| date=2010 | title=Cereals in China | publisher=International Maize and Wheat Improvement Organization (CIMMYT)| isbn=978-970-648-177-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zios7h2tu2YC | access-date=2017-07-16}}
  • {{cite book | last=Higham | first=Charles | title=The Bronze Age of Southeast Asia | publisher=Cambridge University Press | publication-place=Cambridge England | year=1996 | isbn=0-521-49660-8 }}
  • {{cite book | last=Liu | first=Li | title=The Chinese neolithic:trajectories to early states | publisher=Cambridge University Press | publication-place=Cambridge, UK New York | year=2004 | isbn=0-521-81184-8 }}
  • Liu, Li; Chen, Xingcan (eds). 2012. The archaeology of China: from the late paleolithic to the early bronze age. Cambridge University Press. {{ISBN|978-0-521-64310-8}}
  • Underhill, Anne P (ed). 2013. A companion to Chinese archaeology. Blackwell Publishing. {{ISBN|978-1-4443-3529-3}}
  • {{cite book | last=Maisels | first=Charles | title=Early civilizations of the old world:the formative histories of Egypt, the Levant, Mesopotamia, India, and China | publisher=Routledge | publication-place=London New York | year=1999 | isbn=0-415-10976-0 }}
  • {{cite book | last=Scarre | first=Christopher | title=The human past:world prehistory & the development of human societies | publisher=Thames & Hudson | publication-place=New York, N.Y | year=2005 | isbn=0-500-28531-4 | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/humanpastworldpr0000unse }}

::chapter 7, Higham, Charles, 'East Asian Agriculture and Its Impact', p.234-264.

::chapter 15, Higham, Charles, 'Complex Societies of East and Southeast Asia', p.552-594

External links

  • {{commonscatinline|Neolithic cultures of China}}

{{Neolithic cultures of China}}

{{Prehistoric Asia}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:List of Neolithic Cultures Of China}}

Neolithic cultures