Wu (state)
| State of Wu | ||||||||
| 吳國 | ||||||||
| Kingdom | ||||||||
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| Capital | Wu (modern-day Suzhou, Jiangsu province) | |||||||
| Languages | Proto-Wu | |||||||
| Religion | Chinese folk religion, ancestor worship | |||||||
| Government | Monarchy | |||||||
| • | 11th century BC | Taibo | ||||||
| • | 495 – 473 BC | Fuchai | ||||||
| Chancellor | ||||||||
| • | Late 6th century BC – 484 BC | Wu Zixu | ||||||
| Historical era | Zhou Dynasty | |||||||
| • | Foundation by Taibo | 11th century BC | ||||||
| • | Defeated by Yue | 473 BC | ||||||
| Currency | Ancient Chinese coinage | |||||||
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| Wu | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
.svg)
"Wu" in seal script (top), Traditional (middle), and Simplified (bottom) Chinese characters
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| Traditional Chinese | 吳 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Simplified Chinese | 吴 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Wú |
| Wade–Giles | Wu2 |
| IPA | [ǔ] |
| Wu | |
| Suzhounese | Ńg (col.) Ghóu (lit.) |
| Yue: Cantonese | |
| Yale Romanization | Ngh |
| Jyutping | Ng4 |
| Southern Min | |
| Tâi-lô | Ngôo |
| Middle Chinese | |
| Middle Chinese | Ngu |
| Old Chinese | |
| Baxter-Sagart | *ŋʷˤa |
Wu (Chinese: 吳; Old Chinese: *ŋʷˤa) was one of the states during the Western Zhou Dynasty and the Spring and Autumn period. It was also known as Gouwu (勾吳) or Gongwu (工吳) from the pronunciation of the local language.
Wu was located at the mouth of the Yangtze River east of the State of Chu. Its first capital was at Meili (probably in modern Wuxi) and was later moved to Gusu (within modern Suzhou) and then Helu City (the old town of present-day Suzhou).
The rulers of the State of Wu had the surname Ji (姬), the same as the Zhou royal family. According to the Records of the Grand Historian, this was because the rulers of Wu are descended from Taibo, the elder uncle of King Wen. Realizing that his youngest brother, Jili, was wiser than he and deserved to inherit the throne, Taibo fled to Wu and settled there with his other brother Zhongyong. They established their first capital at Meili (梅里), believed to be today's Meicun in Wuxi.
The State of Jin aided Wu's rise to power as a useful ally against the State of Chu. In 584 BC, Wu rebelled against Chu upon the advice of Wuchen, a Jin minister who defected from Chu.
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