The Birth of China - Hunters on the Yellow River (20000 BCE to 7000 BCE)

Sources for today's episode (in order of appearance): 1. Scotese CR (2013) Last Glacial Maximum Globe 2. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 30-37, 42-44 3. Scarre C (2018) The Human Past, pp. 231-233 4. Scarre C (2018) The Human Past, pp. 240 5. Liu L et al. (2015) The Earliest Unequivocally Modern Humans in South China. Nature 526, pp. 696-700 6. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 127-128 7. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 42-51 8. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 127-156 9. Gilligan I (2018) The Technology of Paleolithic Clothes. In Climate, Clothing, and Agriculture in Prehistory: Linking Evidence, Causes, and Effects, Cambridge University Press, pp. 66-79 10. Bednarik RG (2013) Pleistocene Palaeoart of Asia, Arts, pp. 46-76 11. D’Errico F et al. (2021) Zhoukoudian Upper Cave personal ornaments and ochre: Rediscovery and reevaluation, Journal of Human Evolution. 12. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 155-162 13. Zhang JF et al. (2011) The paleolithic site of Longwangchan in the middle Yellow River, China: chronology, paleoenvironment and implications, Journal of Archaeological Science, pp. 1537-1550 14. Elston RG & Brantingham PJ (2008) Microlithic Technology in Northern Asia: A Risk-Minimizing Strategy of the Late Paleolithic and Early Holocene. Archeological Papers of the American Anthropological Association, 12, pp. 103-116 15. Ikawa-Smith (2017) Conclusion: In Search of the Origins of Microblades and Microblade Technology. In Origin and Spread of Microblade Technology in Northern Asia and North America, SFU Archaeology Press, 189-198. 16. Song et al. (2019) Re-thinking the evolution of microblade technology in East Asia: Techno-functional understanding of the lithic assemblage from Shizitan 29 (Shanxi, China), PLOS ONE 14(2), e0212643. 17. Wang FG et al. (2022) Innovative ochre processing and tool use in China 40,000 years ago, Nature 603, pp. 284-289. 18. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 147-152 19. Liu et al. (2015) Plant exploitation of the last foragers at Shizitan in the Middle Yellow River Valley China: Evidence from grinding stones 20. Liu L et al. (2018). Harvesting and processing wild cereals in the Upper Palaeolithic Yellow River Valley, China, Antiquity 92(363), pp. 603-619 21. Chen et al. (2016) Function and behaviour: use-wear evidence from Upper Paleolithic tools in southern Shanxi Province, North China, Documenta Praehistorica XLIII, 499-506. 22. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 58-61 23. Scarre C (2018) The Human Past, pp. 240-242 24. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 154, 160 25. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 150 26. Cohen DJ et al. (2017) The emergence of pottery in China: Recent dating of two early pottery cave sites in South China, Quaternary International, pp. 36-48 27. Boaretto E et al. (2009) Radiocarbon dating of charcoal and bone collagen associated with early pottery at Yuchanyan Cave, Hunan Province, China, PNAS 106, 9595-9600. 28. Wu X et al. (2012) Early Pottery at 20,000 Years Ago in Xianrendong Cave, China, Science 336, pp. 1696-1700 29. Lu TL-D (2011) Early Pottery in South China, Asian Perspectives 49(1), pp. 1-42 30. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 64-70 31. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 51 32. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 160-162 33. Zhushchikhovskaya I (1997) On Early Pottery-Making in the Russian Far East. Asian Perspectives 36(2), pp. 159-174 34. Scarre C (2018) The Human Past, pp. 233, 240-241 35. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 30-38 36. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 157, 160 37. Wu et al. (2012) 14C chronology of early pottery and stratigraphy in Yuchanyan archaeological site, Daoxian County, Hunan, Relics South (3), pp. 7-17 (In Chinese) 38. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 58-59, 76 39. Zhijun (1998) The Middle Yangtze region in China is one place where rice was domesticated: Phytolith evidence from the Diaotonghuan Cave, Northern Jiangxi. Antiquity, 72(278), pp. 885-897 40. Scarre C (2018) The Human Past, pp. 234 41. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 51-57 42. Wang Y et al. (2015) Lijiagou and the earliest pottery in Henan Province, China, Antiquity, 89(344), pp. 273-291 43. Bettinger RL (2001) Holocene hunter-gatherers, in G.M. Feinman & T.D. Price (ed.) Archaeology at the millennium: a sourcebook, pp. 137-95. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers 44. Binford LR (1980) Willow Smoke and Dogs’ Tails: Hunter-Gatherer Settlement Systems and Archaeological Site Formation, American Antiquity 45(1), pp. 4–20. doi.org/10.2307/279653 45. Zhao C et al. (2003) A Study on an Early Neolithic Site in North China. Documenta Praehistorica XXX, pg. 169-173 46. Zhao C (2020) The Climate Fluctuation of the 8.2 ka BP Cooling Event and the Transition into Neolithic Lifeways in North China, Quaternary 3(3), pp. 23 47. Liu et al. (2010) A Functional Analysis of Grinding Stones from an Early Holocene Site at Donghulin, North China, Journal of Archaeological Science, 37(10), 2630-2639 48. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 183-185 49. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 72-73 50. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 60, 64 51. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 166-185 52. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 51-58, 56 53. Barnes GL (2015) Archaeology of East Asia: The Rise of Civilisation in China, Korea and Japan, pp. 157-159 54. Scarre C (2018) The Human Past, pp. 180-185 55. Yang X et al. (2012) Early Millet use in Northern China, Anthropology 109(10), 3726-3730 56. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 96-98 57. Olsen SJ & Olsen JW (1977) The Chinese Wolf, Ancestor of New World Dogs, Science 197(4303), pp. 533-535 58. Scarre C (2018) The Human Past, pp. 182 59. Jiang L & Liu L (2006) New evidence for the origins of sedentism and rice domestication in the Lower Yangzi River, China, Antiquity 80(308), pp. 355-361 60. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 61-64 61. Long (2022) Contrasting developments of the cultural complexes south and north of Hangzhou Bay, eastern China, controlled by coastal environmental changes, Quaternary International 623, pp. 94-100 62. Scarre C (2018) The Human Past, pp. 243-244 63. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 70-73 64. Wang J and Jiang L (2021) Intensive Acorn Processing in the Early Holocene of Southern China, The Holocene 32(11) 65. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 66-67 66. Zheng Y & Jiang LP (2007) Remains of Ancient Rice Unearthed from the Shangshan Site and Their Significance, Chinese Archaeology 9(1), pp. 159-163 67. Liu L and Chen X (2013) The Archaeology of China, pp. 75-82 68. Zuo et al. 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As someone who grew up in the countryside, I can say that the village is often encircled by an accumulation of garbage, forming a prolonged ring of earth. Within this landfill, plants inevitably sprout, nourished by the discarded remains. Interestingly, due to the fertile soil, these plants tend to grow exceptionally large. It is fascinating to think that the origins of agriculture may have originated from such circumstances.

Its so easy to limit my historical perspective to just the past 3000 years but videos like this remind me that it goes back so much further.

My jaw dropped when I saw this video, and it dropped even further when I realized that it’s the first in a new series! I absolutely loved the Birth of Civilization series and as an American, I’ve always felt woefully uneducated about ancient Chinese history. I have attempted to educate myself on the topic on numerous occasions, but Chinese history is so long, nuanced, and complex that it always posed an insurmountable obstacle for me on my own. I absolutely cannot wait to dive into this series! I cannot think of a better channel than Histocrat to give this incredible region the detailed and thoughtful historical treatment it so well deserves. I am beyond excited!

I am SO EXCITED to watch this!!!! The Birth of Civilization video series is one of my all time favorites, and I am constantly in search of ancient/prehistorical content that can live up to the incredibly high standards the Histocrat has set!

This is something we need on Hisotry Channel, not the Pawn Stars, Truck Night, Oak Island, Ancient Aliens and all those things unrelated to the history.

With content like this, no other streaming service is required. Thank you for all your time and work.

这是一部精彩而透彻的中国古代纪录片。 非常感谢您发布它。 這是一部精彩而透徹的中國古代紀錄片。 非常感謝您發布它。 This is a wonderful and thorough documentary of ancient China. Thank you so much for posting it.

I was looking for things about ancient China, both bronze age and before, and this was just perfect. Having just watched this video I immediately subscribed and plan to watch not only the whole series but most content on your channel. The presentation and level of detail are perfect, and the inclusion of source references in the comments really sets an example to follow. The only thing that put me a little off was how long the intro went on for. I understand it was the introduction not only to this video but to the whole series, but the 8 minutes spent talking about a very different period than that mentioned in the title of the video felt excessively long. That said I still watched, so that's a testament to the quality of the presentation!

Thanks dad love you

I’m still amazed at how little we know of China in the west. Most of this is due I am sure to old prejudices we’ve never let go. It is high time we did and learned more about these people. Thank you for this video.

Incredibly fascinating video, you guys. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the series.

I'll probably end up watching this later as I have a backlog of things to watch. I've followed your channel for a while, I really like history from dinosaurs to ancient rome. I don't comment enough but your videos are so well presented.

I’ve been hanging out for a new documentary from you guys and you certainly don’t disappoint. Thank you so much for what you do, the quality of your documentaries far surpasses anything I see on TV.

I was looking forward to this! 😍😍 You’re SO amazing.. thank you for all your hard work! It’s greatly appreciated!!!

This is going straight to my playlist. Already know it's gonna be amazing. Thank youuuu!

I stumbled upon this fantastic video today and immediately hit the subscribe button. As a novice YouTuber with a channel focused on Chinese history, I gained so much knowledge from watching your video. Thank you for creating such valuable content!

Thank you so much! I'm excited for the rest of the series! Great job unlocking the Archeological Record! I'm eager to see how it compares to the written/oral traditions in later episodes!

Excellent introduction, now anticipating the extremely interesting subject of your second episode! Thank you!

So excited for this series! Can’t wait to see what you research regarding oracle bones and early writing! Hyped.