Yangtze civilization

Yangtze civilization is a generic name for various ancient Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures from the Yangtze basin of China, the representative civilization of the Chinese alongside the Yellow river civilization.

Many remains having been found in Yellow River basin since Yangshao culture of the Hwang Ho civilization was discovered in the early 20th century, a viewpoint was dominant that the origin of the Chinese civilization was Yellow River basin, and it gradually opened afterwards in the neighboring areas such as Yangtze basin.

However, this opinion was overturned by Hemudu culture in Yuyao, Zhejiang discovered by the excavation in the 1970s. This culture was estimated to be from 6000 BCE to 5000 BCE, and signs of the rice growing such as a large quantity of rice chaff were discovered. The houses were raised-floor-style for rice growing.

In this way, Hemudu culture has characteristics clearly different from the Hwang Ho civilization, and overturned a previous established theory called "the Chinese civilization equals Hwang Ho civilization".

Furthermore, a vestige of the civilization has been discovered around the northeastern Liao, so now, Chinese ancient civilization is classified into around Liao and Upper, Middle and Lower basin of Yellow river and Yangtze. They are thought to have affected each other and accomplished original developments.

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