The Battle of Zhuolu (涿鹿之戰) is said to be the second recorded battle in Chinese history, fought in the 26th century BC between the Yellow Emperor (Huang Di) and Chi You. The battle was fought in Zhuolu, near the present-day border of Hebei and Liaoning. The victory for the Yellow Emperor here is often credited as the establishment of the Han Chinese civilization. Huaxia (Chinese: 華夏, pinyin: Huáxià) is a proper name originating in Chinese; it can refer to: In the narrow, historical sense, Huaxia refers to the core group of people who later became known as the Han ethnic group of China. ... The Hmong, also known as Miao (considered derogatory by some: see below) (Chinese: è‹—; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Vietnamese: Mèo or HMông; Thai: แม้ว (Maew) or ม้ง (Mong); Burmese: mun lu-myo), are an Asian ethnic group speaking the Hmong language, whose homeland is in the mountainous regions of southern China (especially... Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor or Huang Di (Chinese: 黃帝, Simplified Chinese: 黄帝, pÄ«nyÄ«n: huángdì) is a legendary Chinese sovereign and cultural hero who is said to be the ancestor of all Han Chinese. ... In Chinese and Korean mythology, Chi You is a war deity. ... China is the worlds oldest continuous major civilization, with written records dating back about 3,500 years and with 5,000 years being commonly used by Chinese as the age of their civilization. ... (27th century BC - 26th century BC - 25th century BC - other centuries) (4th millennium BC - 3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC) Events 2900 - 2334 BC – Mesopotamian wars of the Early Dynastic period. ... Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor or Huang Di (Chinese: 黃帝, Simplified Chinese: 黄帝, pÄ«nyÄ«n: huángdì) is a legendary Chinese sovereign and cultural hero who is said to be the ancestor of all Han Chinese. ... In Chinese and Korean mythology, Chi You is a war deity. ... Hebei (Chinese: 河北; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Ho-pei; Postal System Pinyin: Hopeh) is a northern province of the Peoples Republic of China. ... Liaoning (Simplified Chinese: 辽宁; Traditional Chinese: 遼寧; pinyin: ) is a northeastern province of the Peoples Republic of China. ... Han Chinese (Simplified Chinese: 汉族; Traditional Chinese: 漢族; Pinyin: hànzú) is a term which refers to the majority ethnic group within China and the largest single human ethnic group in the world. ...

Background

In prehistoric China, the tribes of Yellow Emperor rose to power on the plains of Guanzhong and merged with Yan Emperor's tribes following the battle of Banquan. The Huaxia tribes, as the merged tribes were known as, spread along the Yellow River towards the East China Sea. The Jiuli tribes, led by Chi You, developed near the present-day borders of Shandong, Hebei, and Henan and expanded towards the west. The Huaxia and Jiuli tribes were in conflict over the fertile land in the Yellow River valley, and thus they fought in the plains of Zhoulu. Chi You's tribes were fierce in war and skilled at making weapons; allying themselves with the Kua Fu tribe and the Sanmiao (三苗) tribe, they first attacked the Yan Emperor's tribe, driving them into the lands of the Yellow Emperor. The Yellow Emperor was angered by this and went to war with Chi You. Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor or Huang Di (Chinese: 黃帝, Simplified Chinese: 黄帝, pÄ«nyÄ«n: huángdì) is a legendary Chinese sovereign and cultural hero who is said to be the ancestor of all Han Chinese. ... Location within China Guangzhou is the capital of Guangdong Province in southern China. ... Shennong (Traditional Chinese: 神農; Simplified Chinese: 神农; pinyin: Shénnóng), sometimes known as the Yan Emperor (炎帝), is a legendary emperor and culture hero of Chinese mythology who is believed to have lived some 5,000 years ago and who taught the ancients the practices of agriculture. ... Huaxia (Chinese: 華夏, pinyin: Huáxià) is a proper name originating in Chinese; it can refer to: In the narrow, historical sense, Huaxia refers to the core group of people who later became known as the Han ethnic group of China. ... The Yellow River, (Chinese: 黃河; (help· info), Pinyin: Huáng Hé; Wade-Giles: Hwang-ho; literally, Yellow River), is 4,700 km long and is the second longest river in China, after the Yangtze. ... The East China Sea is a marginal sea and part of the Pacific Ocean. ... The Hmong, also known as Miao (considered derogatory by some: see below) (Chinese: è‹—; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Vietnamese: Mèo or HMông; Thai: แม้ว (Maew) or ม้ง (Mong); Burmese: mun lu-myo), are an Asian ethnic group speaking the Hmong language, whose homeland is in the mountainous regions of southern China (especially... In Chinese and Korean mythology, Chi You is a war deity. ... Shandong (Simplified Chinese: 山东; Traditional Chinese: 山東; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Shan-tung) is a coastal province of eastern Peoples Republic of China. ... Hebei (Chinese: 河北; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Ho-pei; Postal System Pinyin: Hopeh) is a northern province of the Peoples Republic of China. ... Henan (Chinese: 河南; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Ho-nan), is a province of the Peoples Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. ... Kua Fu (Chinese: 夸父) is a giant in Chinese mythology. ...

The battle

It was said that Chi You led 72 to 81 tribes against the Huaxia tribes in a thick fog. The Huaxia sent tribes under the totems of the Bear, Pi (羆), Wolf, Leopard, and others in retaliation, but due to the fog, they initially suffered several defeats. To counter the fog, the Yellow Emperor brought forth the South Pointing Chariot, a geared mechanism able to point in one constant direction designed by himself and built for him by the craftsman Fang Bo. In addition, the Xuannü (玄女) tribe helped the Huaxia forces by blowing horns and hitting drums, thus scaring the enemy. The Huaxia forces were ultimately victorious, killing Chi You in Hebei. A totem is any natural or supernatural object, being or animal which has personal symbolic meaning to an individual and to whose phenomena and energy one feels closely associated with during ones life. ... Supposedly invented sometime around 2600BC in China by the Yellow Emperor Huang Di, the South Pointing Chariot is widely regarded as the most complex geared mechanism of the ancient world. ...

Mythology

According to Chinese mythological book Shan Hai Jing, Chi You, with the Giants, Guryeos and evil spirits, rebelled against Huang Di at Zhuolu plains. Both sides used magical powers, but Chi You had the advantage of forged swords and halberds. Using his powers, Chi You covered the battle field in thick fog. Only with the help of a magical compass chariot could Huang Di's troops could find their way through the mist. He also used his daughter Nü Ba, the Goddess of Drought, to harm Chi You's troops. Later on, Chi You suffered more defeats and was captured. Only Yinglong, the winged dragon, being a brave servant of Huang Di, dared to slay him. Chi You's chains were transformed into oak trees, while Yinglong was cursed to remain on earth forever. Shan Hai Jing (山海經,山海经) is an ancient Chinese book that contains many geographic and culture descriptions about the ancient world. ... The Hmong, also known as Miao (considered derogatory by some: see below) (Chinese: è‹—; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Vietnamese: Mèo or HMông; Thai: แม้ว (Maew) or ม้ง (Mong); Burmese: mun lu-myo), are an Asian ethnic group speaking the Hmong language, whose homeland is in the mountainous regions of southern China (especially... Sunlight filters through a thin layer of fog on a crisp winter morning in Albuquerque, New Mexico. ... Yinglung was a dragon believed to be a powerful servant of Huang Di, the yellow emperor, who was later immortalized as a dragon. ... Species See List of Quercus species The term oak can be used as part of the common name of any of several hundred species of trees and shrubs in the genus Quercus, and some related genera, notably Cyclobalanopsis and Lithocarpus. ...

Aftermath

After the battle, the Huaxia tribe settled in the Yellow River plains known as Zhongyuan, and the Yellow Emperor established the Huaxia capital in Zhuolu. The Yellow Emperor and the Yan Emperor were often credited for allowing the Han Chinese civilization to thrive due to the battle, and many Chinese people call themselves "descendents of Yan and Huang" (炎黃子孫) to this day. The North China Plain (华北平原 Hua2bei3 Ping2yuan2) also called the Middle Plain (中原 Zhong1yuan2), is made of the deposits of the Huang He (Yellow River) and is the largest alluvial plain of eastern Asia. ...

The Jiuli tribe, however, were chased out of the central region of China, and was split into two smaller splinter tribes, the Miao (苗) and the Li (黎). The Miao moved southwest and the Li moved southeast as the Huaxia race expanded southwards. During the course of Chinese history, the Miao and the Li were regarded as "barbarians" by the increasingly technologically and culturally advanced Han Chinese. Some fragments of the races were assimilated into the Chinese during Zhou Dynasty. Li (黎 pinyin Lí) is a minority Chinese ethnic group. ... Alternative meaning: Zhou Dynasty (690 CE - 705 CE) The Zhou Dynasty (周朝; Wade-Giles: Chou Dynasty) (late 10th century BC to late 9th century BC - 256 BC) followed the Shang (Yin) Dynasty and preceded the Qin Dynasty in China. ...

Yet, in other versions of post-Jiuli, the people of Jiuli fragmented in 3 different directions. It is said Chi You had 3 sons, and after the fall of Jiuli, his oldest son led some people south, his middle son led some people north, and his youngest son remained in Zhuolu and was assimilated into the Huaxia culture. Those who were led to the south established the Sanmiao nation. Perhaps due to this splitting into multiple groups, many Far Eastern people regard Chi You as their ancestor, and by the same token, many question the ethnicity of Chi You as exclusively Hmong or otherwise. In some circles of thought, the Koreans also regard Chi You as an ethnic ancestor. Furthermore, under the present ethnic unification policy of the People's Republic of China, Chi You is now also regarded as one of China's forefathers alongside the ethnic Han ancestors, Huang and Yan.

Reference

• Sima Qian, "Wǔdì Běnjì", Records of the Grand Historian.
• This article uses translated material from the equivalent Chinese-language Wikipedia article (retrieved April 26, 2006). Both articles are licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.