本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛The inhabitants of China are known to the world as Chinese. They speak of themselves as the "people of Han." As Han is name of a dynasty, it hardly denote the origin of the people. Many theories, based more or less upon religious myths, have been advanced to show whence the first inhabitants of China came; but their correctness must necessarily await further scientific discoveries. All accounts, however, agree that the basin of the Yellow River was the cradle of the Chinese culture, and that their ancestors were a nomadic people who, some five or six thousand years ago, migrated from the north-western part of Asia and finally settled in the northern-central part of what is now China.

They soon learned how to till the ground and produce grain. As time went on, the settlers formed themselves into tribes ruled by chieftains. Wars with the aborigines and among the different tribes were frequent. The result was that the original inhabitants were driven off in all directions, and the most powerful chieftain became the acknowledged head. As to how long this state of affairs had continued to exist, history is silent. What we do know of this period is founded largely upon the law of evolution, which is common to all peoples.更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net