【Historical Trace】The spatio-temporal scope of Chu culture

@秦楚刊号

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Chu culture is a unique regional culture that emerged in the pre-Qin period of mainland China. More than 2,000 years ago, Chu culture created achievements comparable to ancient Greek and Roman cultures, both in the fields of humanities and science and technology.

(1) Family origin

The Chu people are an ancient people, and the origin of this nation can be traced back to the time of the Yellow Emperor. Sima Qian said in "Historical Records of the Chu Family" that the Chu people are the descendants of "the grandson of the Yellow Emperor and the son of Changyi". This statement was also confirmed by Qu Yuan, a great poet of the Chu State. Qu Yuan mentioned in the opening chapter of "Lisao": "Emperor Gaoyang's Miao descendants, Emperor I am called Boyong." "Gao Yang refers to 颛顼. Among the descendants of Zhuan Xuan, a person named Ji Lian appeared, and Ji Lian was an iconic figure in the formation of the Chu nation. "Historical Records of the Chu Family": The ancestor of Chu came from Emperor Gaoyang, Gaoyang, the grandson of the Yellow Emperor, and the son of Changyi. Gao Yangsheng said, called the birth of the volume, the volume of the chapter of the birth of Chongli, Chongli for the emperor Gao Xin Juhuozheng, very meritorious, can shine in the world, the emperor Yu ordered to say 'Zhu Rong', Gonggong clan chaos, the emperor made Chongli punish and inexhaustible, the emperor is to Geng Yin day to punish Chongli and his younger brother Wu Hui for Chongli, and then reinstate Huozheng for Zhurong. Wu Hui gave birth to Lu Zhong, Lu gave birth to six sons, and he gave birth by caesarean section. The first is called Kunwu, the second is called Shenhu, the third is called Peng Zu, the fourth is called Huiren, the fifth is surnamed Cao, the sixth is called Jilian, and the surname Chu is also ......

（2）芈姓

Ji Lian's surname is Mi (Ji Lian is from his mother's family name, which is the surname Mi). Ji Lian's descendants all inherited this surname Mi (the later Chu people inherited the surname Mi from Ji Lian). At the end of the Shang Dynasty and the beginning of the Zhou Dynasty, a leader named Mane Xiong appeared among the descendants of Ji Lian surnamed Mi. There is a difference between the surname of the pre-Qin period and the surname we call today, the surname of the pre-Qin period has a strict distinction between the surname and the surname, the surname is inherited from the maternal line, and the surname is inherited from the father's name, and the situation of surname indistinguishment only appeared after the Han Dynasty.

(3) Mr. Kuma

Among the descendants of Chu Zu Mane Bear, one of them takes the word "bear" of the bear, and the bear is their clan name, such as the son of the bear, called Xiong Li, Lizi Xiong Mad, Crazy Xiong Yi, etc., Xiong is the name of the Chu royal family later. The Chu people are surnamed Mi, Xiong. Now it is often said that the surname of the Chu people is Xiong, which is a saying that there is no distinction between surname and surname.

(4) Chu people

As for why the Chu people are called Chu people. What does this Chu have to do with the Chu people? Once upon a time we had all sorts of assumptions and speculations. In the newly unearthed Warring States Chu Jian "Chu Ju", there is a new theory for why the Chu people are named after Chu. "Tsinghua Jane Chuju" ...... Acupuncture is late in Jingzong, and he is in the middle of the river, and he is a wife, and he is a wife, and he is a nephew and a liji. Li does not follow the (vertical) line, the collapse comes out of the threat, Yan Repin is in the sky, and the witch threatens Chu, and arrives at the Chu people.

The Chu people took "Chu" as the name of the clan and the country, which is related to the birth of Xiong Li, the son of the bear. According to the record of "Chu Ju", Xiong Li's mother died in childbirth (Xiong Li was born by breaking through the ribs under his mother's armpit, which is a bit mythical when everyone hears it. What is the truth of the history behind the myth? - The wizard performed a caesarean section on Xiong Li's mother, Xiong Li was born, and her mother died. At that time, supplies were very scarce, so the wizard found some wattles, banded the great mother briefly, and buried her. In order to commemorate this great mother, the Chu people took "Chu" as their clan name or country name. In ancient times, Jing and Chu both refer to the same plant, this Jing Tiao also refers to Chu, we talk about Jing Chu land today, Jing Chu culture, Jing and Chu here are the same meaning.

（5）楚国

After the establishment of the Western Zhou Dynasty, the system of sub-feudalism was implemented, and when King Cheng of Zhou (Zhou Cheng Wang Ji Yu (1055 BC - 1021 BC), Ji surname, name Chan, son of King Ji Fa of Zhou Wu) was crowned as a prince, "the heir of the industrious civil and military forces" was rewarded, that is, the descendants of the ministers who had contributed to the Zhou Dynasty during the time of King Cheng of Zhou and King Wu of Zhou were rewarded. In this reward list, there is Xiong Yi, the great-grandson of Mane Bear, because Chu Zu Mane Bear was the teacher of King Wen of Zhou and was a figure who contributed to the Zhou Dynasty. "Historical Records of the Chu Family" contains: "When Xiong Yi became the king of Zhou, he raised his literary and martial arts to be the heir, and sealed Xiong Yi in Chu Man, and sealed the field of Zinan, surnamed Mi, and lived in Danyang. "Xiong Yi was enthroned and officially established the state of Chu. The contents of the sub-seal are: 1. The title of the monarch of Chu is viscount; 2. The fief of the Chu State "Fifty Miles of the Land of Zinan"; 3. The capital of Chu is Danyang.

From the founding of the state of Chu in the early Western Zhou Dynasty to the destruction of the state of Chu by the Qin state in 223 BC, the state lasted for 800 years.

The Western Zhou Dynasty (1046–771 BCE) was a dynasty in Chinese history that succeeded the Shang dynasty,[1] founded by Ji Fa, the king of Zhou Wu. Since the founding of the Western Zhou Dynasty, there have been 11 generations and 12 kings, and they have enjoyed the country for 275 years. In the early years of the Western Zhou Dynasty, the political situation of Chengkang's rule was stable, but in the later period, the social contradictions became increasingly intensified, and the struggle for land and political power accelerated the demise of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and the rebellion of the Chinese people directly shook the foundation of the Western Zhou rule. In 771 BC, King You of Zhou was killed by the dog Rong, and the Western Zhou perished. The Western Zhou Dynasty integrated various tribes in the territory and gradually formed the Huaxia people, which became the predecessor of the modern Han nation, and its feudal system, patriarchal system, ritual music system, and Jingtian system had a profound impact on later generations.

Eastern Zhou Dynasty (770 BC – 256 BC): A dynasty in Chinese history after the Western Zhou Dynasty, the princes proclaimed the deposed prince Yijiu as king, known as King Ping of Zhou, with the capital of Luoyi. In the first half of the period, the princes competed for hegemony, which was called the "Spring and Autumn Period", and in the second half, the princes fought against each other, which was called the "Warring States Period". The Eastern Zhou Dynasty was a period of transformation of China's social system, marked by the widespread use of iron tools.

Pre-Qin Period: A general term for the era before the Qin Dynasty in China (i.e., before 221 BC). The pre-Qin period covers the period from China's entry into the era of civilization to the establishment of the Qin Dynasty, mainly referring to the history of the Xia, Shang, Western Zhou, Spring and Autumn periods, and the Warring States period, and is the period when China's politics was in the tribal co-ownership or feudal system.

Qin Dynasty (221 BC–207 BC): The first unified dynasty in Chinese history, which developed from the Qin state during the Warring States period, and enjoyed the reign for fifteen years. After King Yingzheng of Qin ascended the throne, he conquered the six kingdoms and completed the great cause of unification, and was called the emperor in history. The Qin Dynasty set up three princes and nine secretaries in the central government, abolished the local feudal counties, and implemented the same text, the same track, and unified weights and measures. In 209 BC, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang launched an uprising, and the world responded, and the Qin Dynasty fell two years later.

(6) Chudi

In the 800-year history of the Chu State, the land area of the Chu State was uncertain. At the youngest, it was only 50 li of the son's field, and at the largest, the place was 5,000 li. The land area is constantly expanding. People usually refer to the area ruled by the state of Chu as the land of Chu. There are two understandings of Chu land: broad sense: the area that Chu once governed in the history of the state (all called Chu land).

In a narrow sense: some core areas that the state of Chu once governed, specifically referring to some regions such as Hunan, Hubei, Anhui, and Henan today.

The year 318 BC (during the reign of King Huai of Chu) was the most powerful period of the Chu state, which covered the area of land under the jurisdiction of 11 provinces in present-day China. The state of Chu began with King Su of Chu, after nearly 60 years of recuperation, and when King Huai of Chu ascended the throne, the state reached its peak, and the rising Qi and Qin were listed as the three major powers, and the state of Chu became the largest country among the princes at that time, and it was also the country with the richest resources, the largest population, and the strongest army at that time. King Huai of Chu (Xiong Huai, c. 355–296 BC), surnamed Mi, Xiong, named Huai, was born in Guangling, Hubei, the son of King Wei of Chu, and the monarch of Chu during the Warring States Period.

(7) Chu culture

Chu culture refers to the sum of the material civilization and spiritual civilization created by the Chu state or Chu people in the pre-Qin period, and is an ancient civilization with its own personality and characteristics formed by taking the Central Plains culture as the main body and absorbing the culture of the southern ethnic minorities. The temporal distribution of Chu culture is mainly the 800 years of the existence of the Chu State, and its spatial distribution is mainly the areas once governed by the Chu State, including Hubei, Hunan, Anhui, southern Henan and other places.