The Dynasties of China: An explanatory reference table

 

Table showing the Dynasties of China with Chronology and brief listings of ‘contemporaries’:

Dynasty/Period	Approximate Dates	Contemporaries
Xia	1900 BCE-1520 BCE	Egypt, Minoan Civilisation on Crete, Hittites, ‘Megalithic’ culture in Europe and Britain
Shang	1520 BCE- 1030 BCE	New Kingdom in Egypt, Babylon, Mycenae
Zhou	1030 BCE- 600 BCE	Assyria, First Emperor in Japan
Warring states period	500 BCE- 221 BCE	City states in Greece, Media and Persia, Hellenic kingdoms in Near East, Mauryan kingdom in India
Qin	221 BCE 202 BCE	Rome, Carthage, Parthia
Early Han	202 BCE- 9 AD	Rome,Parthia
Hsin	9 AD- 23 AD	Roman Empire established
Later Han	25 AD- 220 AD	Roman Empire expansion, Kushana Empire in India
China divided	220 AD- 589 AD	Roman Empire contracts, Huns, Goths, Vandals
Sui	589 AD- 617 AD	Byzantium, Sassanids in Persia
Tang	618 AD- 900 AD	Arab conquests, Charlemagne, Cordoba Caliphate, Korean States
Song	960 AD- 1264 AD	Normans, Rise of the Russian state
Yuan (Mongol Dynasty)	1264 AD-1368 AD	Mongol Khanates, Turks, Italian City States
Ming	1368 AD- 1644	Venetian Republic, Ottoman Empire, Moghul India
Qin	1644 AD- 1910 AD	France, Spain, Britain, Netherlands, Austro-Hungarian Empire, Safavids in Persia
Chinese Republic	1910 AD- 1949 AD	Modernised Japan, Germany, Communist Russia
Peoples Republic of China	1949 AD- present	Global connectedness