As a son and daughter of China, it would be a little embarrassing if you didn't know why China is called China.
So, where did the name of the motherland come from?
Geographical concept, not country name
Around the time of the Shang Dynasty, the ancient people began to use the term "China". It's just that China in this period did not refer to state power, but to the concept of geography.
Therefore, in the ancient book "Book of Songs" of the pre-Qin Dynasty, there will be a saying that "the inner is in China, and the ghost is in the party".
In addition, Sima Qian also used "China" to refer to the territory of the Yin and Zhou dynasties in the "Historical Records", which is written in the book, "China from the south of the rivers and mountains".
Why, then, did the ancients think of using the word "China" to describe the region? This also begins after the victory of King Ji Fa of Zhou.
According to legend, after Ji Fa overthrew the brutal and unkind Yin Shang Dynasty, he began to investigate the region, trying to find the "center of the world". In the view of this Zhou Tianzi, only by setting the capital here will it attract all the subjects of the world to gather in the capital.
And King Wu of Zhou would have such an idea, which was also based on the primitive worship of the sky in ancient times. The ancients believed that the brightest North Star was the most noble star in the sky. This is why in the Analects there is a saying that "like the North Star, and the stars are together".
It can be seen that the ancients regarded the North Star as the center of the sky. Therefore, Ji Fa felt that the subjects of the world were like stars, and if the Zhou Dynasty could be in the center of the earth like the North Star, the people of the world would close to the Zhou Dynasty.
Because it is the "center", the Zhou people called the area where the capital is located "Central Plains" or "Zhongzhou" and "Middle Earth". Then, during the Warring States period, the ancients began to call the Central Plains region "China".
In addition, it is written in the article "The Family of the Taigong of Qi" in the Han Dynasty that the state of Qin under the rule of Qin Mugong during the Warring States Period was remote and did not belong to China. Moreover, it is also mentioned in the "Historical Records of Heavenly Officials" that Qin Shi Huang swept Liuhe and "merged China".
Looking at this, it can be found that although the ancients had different views on the territorial scope of "China", they all felt that "China" was a geographical term and did not represent a regime.
Alien invasion, calling itself China
After 221 BC, this stage was under the rule of the Great Qin Empire. Therefore, Qin, who was previously excluded from "China", has now become the master of "China".
Thus, from this time on, the geographical scope of "China" expanded.
However, Qin's reign did not last as long as Qin Shi Huang had envisioned, and he died only in his second life. And the inheritance of the Qin "legacy" was the Liu family, who established the Han dynasty.
It was also from this dynasty that the ancients began to use "China" to refer to the feudal empire founded by the Han people in the Central Plains.
Seeing this, some people may also want to ask, where is the "China" that the ancients said?
During the Western Anniversary, China was in the Guanzhong and Heluo areas. Later, the Eastern Zhou Dynasty regarded the regions attached to it as "China".
Later, in the Qin and Han dynasties, the ancients called the areas under the jurisdiction of the Central Plains Dynasty "China".
Later, after the invasion of the Central Plains by foreign ethnic minorities, they were originally called "Waiyi", but when they established their own regime in the Central Plains, they also called themselves "China", such as the Northern Wei Dynasty of the Xianbei people during the Northern and Southern Dynasties.
After the Northern Wei Dynasty called itself "China", it called the "Southern Dynasty" that opposed it "Daoyi". And the Southern Dynasty was also not to be outdone, still calling itself "China", after all, the rulers of the Southern Dynasty were all Han Chinese. At the same time, the Southern Dynasty called the Northern Dynasty "Suolu".
Why, then, did the North and the South see each other only as "China"?
This is actually because the Chinese national name has a great centripetal force.
Before the Northern and Southern Dynasties, although there were many regime changes in the Central Plains, they were all "China". In addition, compared with the surrounding alien races, the Central Plains region has more advanced politics, economy, culture, etc., which has attracted the admiration of these alien races.
For example, in the early years of the Han Dynasty, because the state was not strong enough, the rulers, after weighing the pros and cons, chose to make peace with other races, so that the Han Dynasty could have time to recuperate.
But most of the alien races who are friendly are very respectful of China, such as the ancestors of the Jurchen people, the Tatar people.
After having a relationship with the Han, the Ya people also changed their Han costumes.
In addition, everyone knows that the prosperous era of the Tang Dynasty has attracted foreign countries from far and wide to come to worship.
It can be seen that China is indeed as expected by the Zhou people, like a Big Dipper that can absorb all ethnic groups.
Therefore, these foreign regimes call themselves "China", which is also to emphasize that they are the legitimate dynasty, and to win the hearts and minds of the world.
Thousands of dynasties, each with its own country name
So, since China symbolizes the Central Plains regime, why did the ancient dynasties still have their own national name?
This is also because in the minds of the ancients, China represents a geographical sphere. And the meaning of the country name like "Qin" is the regime of a dynasty. The new name of the country after the rule of different dynasties was also to announce to the world that the new regime had replaced the incumbent regime.
This can also be seen from the words of Zhu Yuanzhang, the Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, who said, "The Yuan Lord China has been in China for a hundred years...... It's all up to him."
Zhu Yuanzhang will recognize the power of the Yuan Dynasty, which is nothing more than to inform the people of the world that the Yuan Dynasty is an orthodox regime. But the Yuan rulers were corrupt and brutal, so the Ming Dynasty took advantage of the trend and replaced the Yuan Dynasty.
Therefore, the Ming Dynasty, which received the Yuan Dynasty, was also orthodox.
It can be seen that Zhu Yuanzhang just found a "reasonable" excuse for his rule.
So, when did China become the name of the country?
It was after the Xinhai Revolution that ended the dark rule of the Qing Dynasty.
According to the literature, in 1921, the Republic of China was founded, referred to as China.
So, why did you choose "China" as the name of the country?
This is because people from ancient times to the present day have regarded "China" as the foundation, and using this name can awaken the consciousness of all ethnic groups. Therefore, this is why Sun Yat-sen said that "although China is in danger, it is not difficult to save it".
In addition, China represents a sovereign country in the hearts of all ethnic groups, after all, the feudal rulers of ancient times have tried their best to maintain China's status as a sovereign state.
Therefore, the use of "China" is also to send a message to those foreign colonizers that China's territory and sovereignty are inviolable.
"China" is the common name of the Chinese nation, so when the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949, the abbreviation "China" was still used.
After seeing this, do you understand why China is called China? If you don't even know the origin of the name of the motherland, isn't it a little embarrassing?