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Unsurprisingly, Descendant of the Loong is just a title derived from purely mythology and traditional cultural identity, with zero anthropological basis.

Yea, dragons don’t exist.

However, there are a few names used by Chinese people that actually have historical basis. I will talk about a few of those in their chronological order (starting from 2700 BCE, rather than the Neolithic 7000 BCE Yangshan culture [仰韶文化], because 7000 BCE stone throwing activities isn’t as fun to talk about).

Mythical Ancestors: Yan Huang (炎黄)

Prehistoric Era: Yanhuang (炎黄, 2700–2600 BCE) — Yandi (炎帝 Yándì, “Flame Emperor”) and Huangdi (黄帝 Huángdì, “Yellow Emperor”)

Collectively known as “The Two Emperors of Yan and Huang” (炎黄二帝 Yán Huáng èr dì), the two mythical rulers are said to be the ancestors of the Han Chinese people. At this point, China has already began to shape its identity from neolithic people, and was slowly moving towards establishing civil societies.

To call them emperors is a bit inaccurate, as they predate the dynastic eras, and were more likely to be tribal leaders. The Flame Emperor, Yandi, ruled before Huangdi, was known for his advanced agricultural techniques and worshipped fire (hence “Flame”). Huangdi defeated Yandi and united the early tribes to establish early forms of government and laws in northern China, near the Yellow River basin. Together they formed the foundation of ancient Chinese society, before the dynasties existed. Due to the limited archaeological evidence, they are regarded as legendary figures, and all information about them should be treated as a mixture of truth and myth.

As a result, one of the names we Chinese call ourselves is:

The Descendants of Yan and Huang (炎黄子孙 Yán Huáng zǐsūn)

Just as a bonus, I’ll add some more information about ancient Chinese mythological figures – Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors (三皇五帝 Sān Huáng Wǔ Dì), because I think that’s pretty interesting too:

• Three Sovereigns (三皇): semi-divine cultural heroes, basically the Olympians
  1. Fuxi (伏羲): taught fishing, hunting, marriage, writing.
  2. Nuwa (女娲) 🫶: created humanity, repaired the sky; the mother of humanity
  3. Shennong (神农): The Divine Farmer; agriculture, herbal medicine; Commonly associated with the Flame Emperor.
     
• Five Emperors (五帝): wise rulers and tribal leaders, existed before the Xia Dynasty (the first official dynasty)
  1. Huangdi (黄帝): as discussed above
  2. Zhuanxu (颛顼): Huangdi’s grandson; promoted order, suppressed shamanism, rule of law
  3. Di Ku (帝喾): promoted music and education
  4. Yao (尧): Sage-king; humility; consulted wise ministers to rule
  5. Shun (舜): chosen by Yao to succeed him; promoted meritocracy and filial piety
     
• In case it was not immediately clear, these legendary figures essentially established (almost) all values and virtues that guided Chinese culture, prominent even today – Agriculture, herbal medicine, law and order, meritocracy, filial duty, and education

Now we move onto a time period more substantiated by archaeological discoveries:

Early Civilizations: Huaxia (华夏) and Dynasties

Ancient Era: Huaxia Civilization (华夏文明 Huáxià Wénmíng, 2070–1600 BCE)

• Hua (华): elegance, grace, and refinement of early Chinese people; a character commonly used to identify the Chinese ethnic culture, notably in “中华” as in “China” in “People’s Republic of China”
• Xia (夏): refers to the first dynasty – the Xia Dynasty
  
  This time period followed immediately after the rules of the Five Emperors, around 2070 BCE, in the Central Plains Region (中原地区), modern day Henan, Shaanxi, and Shanxi (yes, Shaanxi and Shanxi are two different provinces). This is around the Yellow River (黄河) area, hencewhy the Yellow River is known as the cradle of Chinese civilization.

Huaxia Civilization consists of the following:

• Xia Dynasty (夏朝): 2070 BCE – 1600 BCE; early state-level of society; founded by Yu the Great
• Shang Dynasty (商朝): 1600 BCE – 1046 BCE; oracle bones, bronze ritual vessels, writing system
• Zhou Dynasty (周朝): 1046 BCE – 256 BCE; feudal structure, Confucianism, “Mandate of Heaven” _{(天命 – the emperor was considered to be the son of heaven, meant to rule over all; a form of religious belief in the emperor; the “Heaven” imagery comes up pretty often throughout Chinese history in terms of how its government refers to itself, e.g. “Heavenly Dynasty / Celestial Court” (天朝 -Tian Chao) in Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644), which later became “Celestial Empire above all nations” (天朝上国 – Tian Chao Shang Guo) in Qing Dynasty (1368 – 1912). Widely considered to reflect the egotistical nature of the ancient Chinese empire)}
  

In essence, Huaxia Civilization built on top of what the Yanhuang era had, and elevated ancient Chinese society in many ways: agriculture, writing systems, ancestral worship, bronze tools, rituals, elder respect, and most importantly, a refinement in philosophy through Confucianism, Taoism, and legalism – ideologies that guided social hierarchies that maintained harmony, now seen as feudalistic but provided a necessary structure for that time period.

Hence, Chinese people also refer to ourselves as:

Sons and Daughters of Huaxia (华夏儿女 Huáxià érnǚ)

The Great Force of Unification: Qin (秦)

Imperial Era: Qin Dynasty (秦朝 Qíncháo, 221 BCE – 207 BCE)

What followed the Huaxia era was the Qin Dynasty, when Qin Shi Huang (秦始皇 – lit. Founding Emperor of Qin), 259 BCE – 210 BCE unified a China that more resembles the modern day definition, stretching China from the Central Plains of Yellow River, to Yangtze River, all the way down to the southern Baiyue region (modern day Guangdong province, my home). He also invented the title of Emperor (皇帝 – Huang Di), whereas previous rulers called themselves “kings” (王 – wang) and Overlords (共主 – Gong Zhu), although some titles of “emperor”, pre Qin Shi Huang, was given by historians. This idea of “Emperor” would be used by millenia by all Chinese emperors that followed. Qin Shi Huang was a brutal dictator that heavily taxed his subjects, and was succeeded by a useless son that basically lost to farmer’s revolutions immediately, and ended an extremely short dynasty of just 13 years. Despite its short time, Qin is said to be how “China” got its name in the west: Qin -> Chin -> Chine -> China (modernized + anglicized).

Qin Shi Huang’s most notable achievement is his military conquest. After defeating the 6 other warring states, he expanded southward and took over the southern Baiyue (百越; hundreds of tribes in southern China; my ancestors). He also secured the northern border against the Xiongnu (匈奴) and connected loose walls that would later be referred to as the “Great Wall“ (万里长城).

Qin Shi Huang demanded to be buried in his mausoleum with over 8000 stone soldiers, chariots, and horses – known as the Terracotta Army (兵马俑 bing ma yong). This massive project involved over 700,000 conscripted workers at the time. Not only does it tell us much about cruel ways of the imperial Qin dynasty, it also exposes Qin Shi Huang’s deepest insecurity – his fear that retribution would eventually catch up to him, even after death.

Qin was a transition period that laid the ground work for a unified China. What followed was an era of historic prosperity, a dynasty that cemented itself as the absolute, unchallenged central identity of the Chinese ethnicity:

A Real Mandate of Heaven – Han Dynasty (汉朝)

Imperial Era: Han Dynasty (汉朝 Hàncháo, 206 BCE – 202 CE)

Han Dynasty — as in Hanzu (汉族 Hànzú, Han Chinese People), Hanfu (汉服 Hànfú, traditional Chinese clothing), and Hanzi (汉字 Hànzì) — the foundation of Japanese Kanji (漢字) and Korean Hanja (한자), the written forms derived from Chinese characters. Compared to the short-lived Qin Dynasty of just 13 years the Han Dynasty endured for approximately 400 years.

The Han Dynasty’s governance swiftly pulled China out of the dark ages of chaos, uncertainty, and an archaic social structure — and into an era of order, prosperity, harmony… with a slightly less archaic social structure. They officially replaced Qin’s brutal legalism _{(the belief that people must be constrained with law and punishment)} with Confucianism, a system that interprets legal frameworks through moral and ethical values and takes individual circumstances into considering – a significantly more humane system. The shift to a more spiritual and philosophical society has began to blossom. In addition, a clear path to civil servitude through moral and intellectual characteristics was established, though no testing route has been implemented yet. As a result, literarcy rates rose, society became more educated, and people started churning out discoveries and inventions left and right – paper, clocks, seismographs, tools, calendars, star charts, while exotic goods like silk and jade were being traded on the Silk Road to Central Asia, Middle East, and the Roman Empire.

Notable emperor of that time was Emperor Wu of Han (汉武帝 Hàn Wǔ Dì — lit. “Martial Emperor of Han”). He was able to gather much power and expanded Han’s empire territory significantly. The Wu reign lasted for 54 years; a record for the longest reign by a single emperor for the next 1800 years in Chinese history, broken only by Kangxi Emperor (康熙帝 Kāngxī Dì — lit. “Emperor of Lasting Prosperity”) of Qing Dynasty (1654 – 1722). The Han capital city Chang’an (长安), modern day Xi’an (西安), had roughly 250,000 to 400,000 at its Han era peak (100 BCE~), with state of the art city planning, and extensive trades network – a megacity rivaled only by the likes of Rome of the Roman Empire and Ctesiphon of Persia at that point.

Han Dynasty brought on a level of prosperity that was unseen in Chinese history up until that point, and is the reason why Chinese people refer to their ethnicity as:

Han Ethnicity (汉族 Hànzú) or Han People (汉人 Hànrén)

After the fall of the Han Dynasty, there were a bunch of eras and dynasties that messed around for about 400 years, including the iconic Three Kingdoms (三国 Sānguó, 220 CE –280 CE), and the other ones that nobody cares about like Jin, North and South Dynasties, Sui. Each lasting no more than 200 years, no motion, no aura, let’s move on.

The Zenith of Power: Tang Dynasty (唐朝)

Imperial Era: Tang Dynasty (唐朝 Tángcháo, 618 CE – 907 CE)

If there is one Chinese dynasty worth studying in detail, it would be the Tang Dynasty. In terms of relative strength, prosperity, cultural influence, etc. to the rest of the world, Tang Dynasty definitely represents the zenith of China’s historical dominance.

During the Tang Dynasty, China’s population ranged from 50 to 80 million—approximately 25% of the world’s total population at the time. Its capital, Chang’an (长安; lit. Eternal Peace), was a bustling metropolis home to an estimated 1.5 million people, representing roughly 0.8% to 1% of the global population. This made Chang’an the most densely populated city in human history, a record unlikely to be surpassed.

The city was incedibly well designed. The “ward” system divided the city into 108 sections, each with their own distinct walled blocks, with intricate main roads and canals connecting them. Due to its strategic position on the Silk Road, which was especially bustling during the peak of Tang Dynasty, there were estimated of 1 million foreign residents from Central Asia, South Asia, and the Middle East living in China, with half of them in Chang’an or its surrounding region.

Chang’an, for its time, prided in itself with progressive views with regards to accepting foreign cultures. Cultural imports such as Persian Bazaars or Western theatres, dances, fashion, foods could be found all over central Chang’an. It would be easy to find Indians, Persians, Turks, Africans, Arabs, Syrians, Nepalese, and Sogdians- Sogdia being an extinct civilization in present-day Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, & Kyrgyzstan, living and thriving in Chang’an. The entire city was also covered coast to coast with religious grounds, boasting 111 Buddhist monastaries, 41 Taoist abbeys, 38 unknown shrines, and countless other temples for Judaism, Neo-Christianity, Zoroastrianism, etc.

Economic and cultural prosperity also brought on many social changes, with Tang Dynasty being one of the most socially progressive eras in Chinese history, particularly the status of women. Powerful women were often seen wearing men’s clothing with male hairstyle. Women were allowed to choose their own partners in marriage, dissolve their unions, participate in political affairs, operate a business independently, own property and choose to whom it’d be passed down. Though it’s worth noting most of these privileges were unsurprisingly limited to royalty, nobility, and the upper classes.

Under the rule of Emperor Tang Taizong (唐太宗 – reign: 598 CE – 649 CE) , Empress Wu Zetian (武則天 – reign: 660 CE – 705 CE) (also yes, EMPRESS, as in a female emperor. The first and only one in Chinese history. Her name roughly translates to “Heaven’s Martial Rule”, aura), and Emperor Tang Xuanzong( 唐玄宗 – reign: 713 CE – 741 CE), Tang prospered and achieved the following:

• economic and bureaucratic reforms
• strengthened the central government
• encouraged more merit based system over just birth given privileges
• valued spirituality in Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism
• established the Tang Code (唐律 Táng Lǜ): systematically combined legal framework with Confucian moral values; used as a basis in many East Asian societies such as Vietnam, Korea, and Japan
• promoted talented women in government roles
• encouraged scholarships for competent individuals in arts and culture, producing some of the most influential philosophers, artists, and poets such as Li Bai (李白 – the undisputed GOAT of Chinese poetry).

Tang Dynasty saw unprecedented prosperity (estimated to be 25% – 30% of global GDP at its peak), during which neighboring countries like Korea, Vietnam, and Japan sent scholars to study politics, law, science, math, engineering, architecture, religion, and more. The striking similarity of Japanese and Korean architectural designs to China can be largely attributed to the Tang Dynasty. Notably, the ancient Japanese capital of Heijo-kyo, modern day Nara, was modeled after Chang’an’s urban planning.

Tang Dynasty inspired Chinese people to come up with another name for ourselves:

Tang People (唐人 Táng Rén): also used in 唐人街 (lit. Tang Ren Street), used globally by the Chinese diaspora to refer to “Chinatown”,

Conclusion: Cultural Legacy and Identity

Whew, this was quite a long post. I hope you enjoyed reading about some defining eras in Chinese history, especially the four names we use to call ourselves:

1. The Descendants of Yan and Huang (炎黄子孙 Yán Huáng zǐsūn)
2. Sons and Daughters of Huaxia (华夏儿女 Huáxià érnǚ)
3. Han Ethnicity (汉族 Hànzú) or Han People (汉人 Hànrén)
4. Tang People (唐人 Táng Rén)

I will wrap up this post with a little fun thing – all emperors had at least one era name that represented their vision for their reign. Here are some of my favorites:

1. Jianyuan (建元 Jiànyuán): Emperor Wu of Han, meaning Establishing the Origin
2. Yongle (永乐 Yǒnglè): Emperor Chengzu of Ming, meaning Eternal Happiness
3. Qianlong (乾隆 Qiánlóng): Emperor Gaozong of Qing: Heavenly Prosperity
4. Longshuo (龙朔 Lóng Shuò: 704 CE – 705 CE): Empress Wu Zetian, meaning Dragon’s Radiance

Thank you for reading! ^_^