TheHistoryOfChina,asdocumentedinancientwritings,datesbacksome3,300years.Modernarchaeologicalstudiesprovideevidenceofstillmoreancientoriginsinaculturethatflourishedbetween2500and2000B.C.inwhatisnowcentralChinaandthelowerHuangHe(orYellowRiver)ValleyofnorthChina.Centuriesofmigration,amalgamation,anddevelopmentbroughtaboutadistinctivesystemofwriting,philosophy,art,andpoliticalorganizationthatcametoberecognizableasChinesecivilization.Whatmakesthecivilizationuniqueinworldhistoryisitscontinuitythroughover4,000yearstothepresentcentury.

　　TheChinesehavedevelopedastrongsenseoftheirrealandmythologicaloriginsandhavekeptvoluminousrecordssinceveryearlytimes.Itislargelyasaresultoftheserecordsthatknowledgeconcerningtheancientpast,notonlyofChinabutalsoofitsneighbors,hassurvived.

　　Chinesehistory,untilthetwentiethcentury,waswrittenmostlybymembersoftherulingscholar-officialclassandwasmeanttoprovidetherulerwithprecedentstoguideorjustifyhispolicies.Theseaccountsfocusedondynasticpoliticsandcolorfulcourthistoriesandincludeddevelopmentsamongthecommonersonlyasbackdrops.ThehistoriansdescribedaChinesepoliticalpatternofdynasties,onefollowinganotherinacycleofascent,achievement,decay,andrebirthunderanewfamily.

　　Oftheconsistenttraitsidentifiedbyindependenthistorians,asalientonehasbeenthecapacityoftheChinesetoabsorbthepeopleofsurroundingareasintotheirowncivilization.Theirsuccesscanbeattributedtothesuperiorityoftheirideographicwrittenlanguage,theirtechnology,andtheirpoliticalinstitutions;therefinementoftheirartisticandintellectualcreativity;andthesheerweightoftheirnumbers.TheprocessofassimilationcontinuedoverthecenturiesthroughconquestandcolonizationuntilwhatisnowknownasChinaProperwasbroughtunderunifiedrule.TheChinesealsoleftanenduringmarkonpeoplebeyondtheirborders,especiallytheKoreans,Japanese,andVietnamese.

　　AnotherrecurrenthistoricalthemehasbeentheunceasingstruggleofthesedentaryChineseagainstthethreatposedtotheirsafetyandwayoflifebynon-Chinesepeoplesonthemarginsoftheirterritoryinthenorth,northeast,andnorthwest.Inthethirteenthcentury,theMongolsfromthenorthernsteppesbecamethefirstalienpeopletoconquerallChina.AlthoughnotasculturallydevelopedastheChinese,theyleftsomeimprintonChinesecivilizationwhileheighteningChineseperceptionsofthreatfromthenorth.Chinacameunderalienruleforthesecondtimeinthemid-seventeenthcentury;theconquerors--theManchus--cameagainfromthenorthandnortheast.

　　ForcenturiesvirtuallyalltheforeignersthatChineserulerssawcamefromthelessdevelopedsocietiesalongtheirlandborders.ThiscircumstanceconditionedtheChineseviewoftheoutsideworld.TheChinesesawtheirdomainastheself-sufficientcenteroftheuniverseandderivedfromthisimagethetraditional(andstillused)Chinesenamefortheircountry--Zhongguo(),literally,MiddleKingdomorCentralNation.Chinasawitselfsurroundedonallsidesbyso-calledbarbarianpeopleswhoseculturesweredemonstrablyinferiorbyChinesestandards.ThisChina-centered("sinocentric")viewoftheworldwasstillundisturbedinthenineteenthcentury,atth