Historical background of the Yellow River

The Yellow River is the second longest river in China. Originated in the Yuegu Zonglie Basin at the northern foot of Bayankala in Qinghai Plateau, it winds eastward, crosses the Loess Plateau and the Huanghuaihai Plain, and flows into the Bohai Sea. The total length of the main stream is 5464 kilometers, and the water level drop is 4480 meters. The total basin area is 795,000 square kilometers (including 42,000 square kilometers of internal flow area).

According to the study of geological evolution history, the Yellow River is a relatively young river. In the late Early Pleistocene, 1 15000 years ago, there were only some unconnected lake basins in the basin, each of which formed an independent internal water system. Since then, with the uplift of the western plateau, rivers have been eroded and eroded. After the Middle Pleistocene of 654.38+0.05 million years, lakes and basins have been gradually connected, forming the embryonic form of the Yellow River system. It was not until the Late Pleistocene (654.38+ 10,000 years ago) that the Yellow River gradually evolved into a big river running up and down from the source to the estuary.

Because the flood of the Yellow River carries a lot of sediment, it quickly silts up after entering the downstream plain, and the mainstream wanders in the overflow area, people begin to build dikes for flood control, and the flood channel keeps silting up and rising, becoming an "overground river" higher than the two banks. Under certain conditions, it will overflow the flood and take a new road. The severity of river migration in the lower Yellow River is unique in the world. According to written records, the Yellow River has been diverted many times. The river changes from Zhengzhou in the west, Tianjin in the north and Jianghuai in the south, covering an area of 250,000 square kilometers. During the period from the 5th year of Zhouding (602 BC) to the 2nd year of Jianyan in the Southern Song Dynasty (1 128) 1700, the migration of the Yellow River was mostly in the area north of the present river, invading the Haihe River system and flowing into the Bohai Sea. During the 700 years from 1 128 to 1855, the Yellow River oscillated in the south of the current channel, invaded the Huaihe River system and flowed into the Yellow Sea. 1855, the Yellow River burst at Dongbatou, Lankao, Henan Province, and later diverted to capture the Daqing River in Shandong Province and enter the Bohai Sea. Due to the constant change and diversion of the lower reaches of the Yellow River, as well as the influence of transgression and regression, the length and basin area of the lower reaches of the Yellow River are also constantly changing, which is one of the outstanding characteristics that distinguish the Yellow River from other rivers. The middle and lower reaches of the ancient Yellow River had a mild climate and abundant rainfall, which was suitable for primitive human survival. The loess plateau and the alluvial plain of the Yellow River have loose soil and are easy to cultivate, which is suitable for developing primitive agriculture and animal husbandry. The characteristics of loess are beneficial for our ancestors to dig holes and live together. The special natural geographical environment provided good conditions for the development of ancient civilization in China. As early as 165438+ million years ago, "Lantian people" lived in the Yellow River basin. There are also "Dali people", "Dingcun people" and "Hetao people" living in the basin. Yangshao culture, Majiayao culture, Dawenkou culture, Longshan culture and many other ancient cultural sites are spread all over the country. These ancient cultural relics are not only numerous and complete in variety, but also developing from far to near, systematically demonstrating the development process of ancient civilization in China.

As early as 6000 years ago, agricultural activities began to appear in the basin. About 4000 years ago, some blood tribes were formed in the basin, among which Yan Di and Huangdi were the most powerful tribes. Later, the Yellow Emperor gained the position of leader and merged with other tribes to form the "Huaxia nationality". Later generations regard the Yellow Emperor as the ancestor of the Chinese nation. There is the Huangdi Palace in xinzheng city, Henan Province, and the Huangdi Mausoleum in huangling county, Shaanxi Province. Chinese people all over the world regard the Yellow River Basin as the cradle of the Chinese nation, calling it "Mother River" and "Four Shames", and regard the yellow land as their "root".

From the Xia Dynasty in the 2nd/kloc-0th century BC, in the historical period of more than 4,000 years, the dynasties established their capital in the Yellow River basin for more than 3,000 years. Among the "seven ancient capitals" in the history of China, Anyang, Xi, Luoyang and Kaifeng are located in the Yellow River Basin and its adjacent areas. A large number of Oracle Bone Inscriptions remains in Yindu (which belonged to the Yellow River valley at that time), creating a precedent for written records in China. Xi 'an (including Xianyang), from the Western Zhou Dynasty, Qin Dynasty and Han Dynasty to Sui Dynasty and Tang Dynasty, has 13 dynasties as its capital, with a history of thousands of years, and is a famous "Eight Rivers Imperial Capital". After the Eastern Zhou Dynasty moved its capital to Luoyang, the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Wei Dynasty, the Sui Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty, Hou Liang and the Hou Zhou all established their capitals in Luoyang, which lasted for more than 900 years and was known as the "ancient capital of nine dynasties". Kaifeng, located on the south bank of the Yellow River, was called Bianliang in ancient times. During the Spring and Autumn Period, Wei Huiwang moved its capital to Daliang, and the capital was established here in the Northern Song Dynasty, which lasted about 200 years. For a long time, the political, economic and cultural center of China has been in the Yellow River Basin. The middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River are the earliest areas for the development of science, technology, literature and art in China. Around 2000 BC, bronzes appeared in the basin, and the bronze smelting technology of Shang Dynasty reached a fairly high level, and iron smelting began to appear at the same time, marking the development of productive forces to a new stage. The shovel and iron axe unearthed in Luoyang after a series of treatments show that China developed the softening technology of cast iron more than 2000 years earlier than European countries. China's ancient "four great inventions"-papermaking, movable type printing, compass and gunpowder-all originated in the Yellow River basin. A large number of literary classics, from the Book of Songs to Tang poetry and Song poetry, and a large number of cultural classics are also produced here. After the Northern Song Dynasty, the national economic center of gravity gradually shifted to the south, but in the process of China's political, economic and cultural development, the Yellow River basin and the plain areas in the lower reaches of the Yellow River are still in an important position. The long history of the Yellow River Basin has left a very precious legacy to the Chinese nation, leaving countless places of interest, which is the pride of our nation.