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|p=Xià cháo

|p=Xià cháo

|w=Hsia⁴ ch'ao²

|w=Hsia⁴ ch'ao²

}}The '''Xia dynasty''' is an era of Chinese history that began in 2070 BC and continued until 1600 BC. It was followed by the [[Shang dynasty]]. Many of the stories concerning this dynasty are distorted by the agendas of later rulers, and the traditional list of rulers is almost certainly mythical. However, an archeological site in Henan Province is identified with the Xia capital. The Chinese press describes the Xia as historical, although some Western scholars remain skeptical.<ref>Chen Ning, "[http://www.chinahistoryforum.com/topic/31689-the-controversy-of-the-xia-shang-zhou-chronology-p/ The Controversy of the Xia-Shang-Zhou Chronology Project]" (2009).</ref>

}}The '''Xia dynasty''' is an era of Chinese history that began in 2070 BC and continued until 1600 BC. It was followed by the [[Shang dynasty]]. Shun, the last of the mythical Five Emperors, picked Yu the Great as his successor, according to the traditional account. Yu was able to control a worldwide flood by building embankments. Yu's son succeeded him, making Yu the founder of a dynasty. There were seventeen Xia rulers. The last was Jie. Jie fell in love with a woman who was both beautiful and cruel. Outraged rebels led by Zi Lü overthrew the Xia and established the Shang dynasty.<ref>"[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/273749/Xia-dynasty Xia dynasty]," ''Britannica''</ref>

Sites from the Xia period show mixed copper and stone use, a transitional phase between neolithic and Bronze Age culture. China entered the Bronze Age around 1700 BC, toward the end of the dynasty. Erlitou in northern Henan Province, identified with the Xia capital Zhenxun, is a very large site for the period and can be thought of as a major city.<ref>"[http://www.china.org.cn/english/2003/Nov/79635.htm./ Stunning Capital of Xia Dynasty Unearthed]", ''China Daily'', Nov. 11, 2003.</ref>

In the 1920s, scholars of the "Doubting Antiquities School" questioned whether the Xia should be considered historical.<ref name=Lee>Lee, Yun Kuen, "[http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/handle/10125/17161 Building the Chronology of Early Chinese History]", University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu) 2002.</ref> It was once common to dismiss the dynasty altogether as mythical. In the 1980s, radiocarbon dating allowed archaeologists to identify Erlitou in northern Henan Province as the site of Zhenxun, the Xia capital.<ref>"[http://www.china.org.cn/english/2003/Nov/79635.htm./ Stunning Capital of Xia Dynasty Unearthed]", ''China Daily'', Nov. 11, 2003.</ref> In the 1990s, the government funded the Xia-Shang-Zhou Chronology Project to sort out China's ancient history using modern research techniques.<ref>Chen Ning, "[http://www.chinahistoryforum.com/topic/31689-the-controversy-of-the-xia-shang-zhou-chronology-p/ The Controversy of the Xia-Shang-Zhou Chronology Project]" (2009).</ref> Although the project did not establish a chronology for the Xia, it did reaffirm the dynasty's place at the head of the Chinese dynastic table.

Skeptics counter that the Xia was at most only one of dozens of states in China at this time.<ref name="Lee" /> Oral tradition concerning the pre-historic states may have been reworked when their stories were written down in the early [[Zhou dynasty]] (c. 1045–256 BC). Emphasis on the Xia supports a "unilinear" view of history in which each dynasty passes the baton to the next.<ref name="Lee" /> In Zhou political theory, legitimacy is established by the "mandate of heaven." According to this theory, a dynasty rules until it the mandate is forfeit as a result of a ruler's immoral behavior. The Zhou and later dynasties found this theory useful since it delegitimizes movements for regional autonomy. Skeptics note that the story of Jie's downfall is suspiciously similar to that of the final Shang ruler, who is also said to have been an immoral tyrant.<ref name="Lee" />

Shun, the last of the legendary Three Sovereigns, picked Yu the Great (c. 2200 - 2100 BC) as his successor. Yu was able to control a worldwide flood by building embankments. Yu's son succeeded him, making Yu the founder of a dynasty. There were sixteen Xia rulers, according to legend.

Sites from the Xia period show mixed copper and stone use, a transitional phase between neolithic and Bronze Age culture. China entered the Bronze Age around 1700 BC, toward the end of the dynasty.  

Jie was the last Xia ruler. He fell in love with a woman who was both beautiful and cruel. Outraged rebels led by Zi Lü overthrew the Xia and established the Shang dynasty.<ref>"[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/273749/Xia-dynasty Xia dynasty]," ''Britannica''</ref> In 1920s, Gu Jiegang and other scholars of the Doubting Antiquity School pointed out that this story is suspiciously similar to a story concerning the last Shang ruler, who is also said to have been an immoral tyrant.<ref>Lee, Yun Kuen, "[http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/handle/10125/17161 Building the Chronology of Early Chinese History]", University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu) 2002.</ref> The rulers of the [[Zhou dynasty]] (c. 1046–256 BC) used the supposed Shang overthrow of the Xia to justify their own overthrow of the Shang.<ref name=Arthur>The legend of the the Xia can be compared to the legend of the King Arthur, which was created by Norman writers to justify the Norman Conquest.</ref>

Oracle bones found at Anyang allow modern scholars to piece together Shang mythology concerning the Xia. The Shang described the Xia as dark and watery. They associated the Xia with the time of the flood. After the waters receded, the Xia grew weak. They were vanquished by the Shang sun-kings and eventually departed. There is no issue of dynastic handover in this version of the myth. The Shang rulers must have already viewed themselves as sovereign when the two peoples were living side by side. Shang records suggest that the Xia had a complex system of laws, as well as an unusual religion.<ref>Allan, Sarah, "[http://www.jstor.org/pss/25211710 The myth of the Xia dynasty]," ''The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society'', No. 2, 1984.</ref>

Sarah Allan has pieced together Shang mythology concerning the Xia by studying oracle bones found at Anyang. The Shang described the Xia as dark and watery, according to Allan. They associated the Xia with the time of the flood. After the waters receded, the Xia grew weak. They were vanquished by the Shang sun-kings and eventually departed. There is no issue of dynastic handover in this version of the myth. The Shang rulers must have already viewed themselves as sovereign when the two peoples were living side by side. Shang records suggest that the Xia had a complex system of laws, as well as an unusual religion.<ref>Allan, Sarah, "[http://www.jstor.org/pss/25211710 The myth of the Xia dynasty]," ''The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society'', No. 2, 1984.</ref>

The Xia myth was reworked during the Zhou dynasty. The Zhou version of the myth emphasizes the shift of the "mandate of heaven" from the Xia to the Shang. This introduces a doctrine that legitimizes the overthrow of a dynasty. Zhou religion, including this myth, is the basis of Chinese Native Religion.

The Shang version of the myth is thus quite different than the Zhou version, which emphasizes the shift of the "mandate of heaven" from the Xia to the Shang.<ref name=Arthur>The legend of the the Xia can be compared to the legend of the King Arthur, which was created by Norman writers to justify the Norman Conquest.</ref> Zhou religion, including this myth, is the basis of Chinese Native Religion.

The following is the list of rulers of Xia dynasty as given by [[Sima Qian]].

The following is the list of rulers of Xia dynasty as given by [[Sima Qian]].