Ep. 305 | The History of Guangzhou (Part 3)

The history continues of China's great and historic "Window to the World", the city of Guangzhou. This time we pick up in the Yuan dynasty, where everything culturally, politically, and commercially picks up the pace going back to the Tang. Quanzhou in Fujian province outpaces Guangzhou as far as China's most important trade port. But that will change once we get the Ming and Qing dynasties. In this episode, the Europeans will finally, after more than 2,000 years, get their chance to get to know China face to face and up close. Needless to say, it didn't go too well.

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Terms in Episode

Pinyin/Term	Chinese	English/Meaning
Guǎngzhōu	广州	Capital of Guangdong province
Sòng Dynasty	宋朝	Chinese dynasty established by Zhao Kuangyin that ruled China 960-1279
Huīzōng	徽宗	Eighth and 2nd to last emperor of the Northern Song. He reigned 1100-1126
Kāifēng	开封	City in Henan that served as the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty
Kublai Khan (Hūbìliè)	忽必烈	1215-1294, Mongol khan and founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China
Guǎngdōng	广东	Province in southernmost China. Capital is Guangzhou
Jiāngxī Xíngshěng	江西行省	Province edstablished in the Yuan Dyansty that included both Jiangxi and Guangdong
Nánchāng	南昌	Present day capital of Jiangxi province as well as the capital during the Yuan
Yámén	崖门	A town located in the Xinhui District of Guangdong that was the site of a battle between the Southern Song and the Yuan
Yuán Dynasty	元朝	Dynasty established by Kublai Khan that lasted 1271 to 1368
Fújiàn	福建	Coastal province in China, south of Zhejiang. Capital located in Fuzhou
Quánzhōu	泉州	Major port city in southern Fujian。 Also called Zaitan
Táng Dynasty	唐朝	Chinese imperial dynasty that lasted 618-907
Hàn Dynasty	汉朝	Chinese dynasty that ran 202 BC to 220 AD with an interregnum from 9-23 AD
Zhèng Hé	郑和	Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat, admiral and court eunuch, born Ma He in the province of Yunnan. Lived 1371-1434 (or 1435)
Wǔhú	五胡	The Five Barbarians, tribes fron the Eurasian steppe who constantly stressed out the Eastern Han and Jin Dynasties. They were made up of the Xiongnu, Jie, Xianbei, Qiang and Di tribes
Huáishèng Mosque	怀圣寺	Great Mosque of Canton
Míng Hóngwǔ era	洪武	The era name of the founding emperor of the Ming Dyansty, Zhu Yuanzhang. It lasted 1368-1399
Battle of Lake Póyáng	鄱阳湖之战	August 30 to Octiber 4, 1363, major battled that took place between Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youliang during the Red Turban Rebellion
Hé Zhēn	何真	1321-1388, Hé Zhēn Bó 何真伯, the Count of Dongguan. He was the official in charge of the Guangdong area at the end of the Yuan and start of the Ming.
Dōngguǎn	东莞	City to the east of Guangzhou. Today it is one of the largest manufacturing centers in the world
Huìzōng	元惠宗	Final emperor of the Yuan Dynasty
Zhū Yuánzhāng	朱元璋	Founder of the Ming Dynasty who reigned as the Hongwu Emperor
Hǎi Jìn	海禁	A series of isolationalist policies known as "Sea Bans" that were instituted during the Mong and Qing Dyansties
Yǒnglè	永乐	Son of Zhu Yuanzhang who reigned from 1403-1424
Nánhǎi	南海	The South China Sea
Zhūhǎi	珠海	City just to the north of Macau that became a Special Economic Zone during Deng Xiaoping's time
Shēnzhēn	深圳	City just to the north of Hong Kong that became a Special Economic Zone during Deng Xiaoping's time
Tuen Mun	屯门	A district in Hong Kong in the western coast of the New Territories
Zhāng Qiān	张骞	Died 114 BC, a Chinese official and diplomat who served as Han Wudi's envoy to the Western Regions. he brought back useful information from his journey that had major consequences in the establishment of the Silk Road
Hàn Emperor Wǔ	汉武帝	Han Emperor who reigned from 141-87 BC
Xiàmén	厦门	Coastal city in Fujian that was also known as Amoy
Níngbō	宁波	Coastal city in Zhejiang Province just to the south of Shanghai
Fólǎngjī	佛郎机	Term used for foreigners, came from the Persian "farang"
Macao	澳门	Poirtuguese enclave estabished in 1557 that was returned to China in 1999
Táinán	太难	City on the southeast coast of Taiwan
Chóngzhēn	崇祯	Final emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Reigned 1627-1644
Nánjīng	南京	Capital city of Jiangsu province. Served as the capital of several past dynasties
Fúzhōu	福州	Capital of Fujian province
Shàng Kěxǐ	尚可喜	1604-1676, Chinese Ming general who went on to serve the Manchu Qing
Zhèng Chénggōng	郑成功	Also known as Koxinga. He lived 1624-1662. He was known mostly as a Ming loyalist who defied the Qing after the Ming was overthrown
Kāngxī	康熙	Third emperor of the Qing Dynasty who reigned 1661-1722
Lǐngnán	岭南	A geographic area referring to the lands in the south of the Nanling Mountains: Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Hong Kong, Macau, as well as modern northern to central Vietnam
Guǎngxī	广西	Province just to the west of Guangdong.
Hǎinán	海南	Island province off the coast of Guangdong
Nányuè	南越	Kingdom founded after the fall of the Qin by Zhao Tuo and ruled by members iof his Zhao family. It fell to the Han dynasty in 111 BC
Qín	秦朝	First imperial dynasty in China that lasted 221-206 BC
Língqú	灵渠	The Ling Canal, located in Xing'an County near Guilin, Guangxi province
Nánlǐng Mountains	南岭山	A major mountain chain that separates the Pearl River Basin from the Yangzi River Valley and serves as a dividing line between the south and central sub-tropical zones. The main part of the Nanliong mountains stretch from about Eastern Guangxi to Southern Jiangxi.
Sì Dà Míngguǒ	四大名果	The four great fruits of the region: the lychee, banana, papaya and pineapple
Táng Shuǐ	糖水	Literally means "Sugar Water". This term is used to describe any number of Cantonese liquidy desserts that are consumed in a bowl with a spoon.
liángchá	凉茶	Herbal teas that are a specialty of Hong Kong
Guǎngcǎi	广彩	A type of porcelain ware developed in Guangdong, often with lots of painting and gold in the designs. It became popular during the mid-Qing Dynasty after technology and know-how from Jingdezhen was transported to Guangzhou. This was a huge export item. There was also 光彩 Guāngcǎi porcelain that was especially bright and radient and not terribly subtle.
Gǔi Gōng Qiú	鬼工球	These were hand carved balls all nested inside each other…some with as many as twenty to twenty-five layers of concentric hand-carved balls all chiseled from a single piece of ivory or jade
gōngyì	工艺	technology, craft, arts & crafts
Táng Lóu	唐楼	"Tenement Buldings" typically 2-4 stories, with a shop on the ground floor and upper floors used for residential purposes, very commonly seen in southern China
Luòyáng	洛阳	City in Henan that served as the capital of a number of dynasties
Tàiyuán	太原	Capital city of Shanxi Province
Howqwa	伍秉鉴	1769-1843, His Chinese name was Wu Bingjian. The Howqua name came from the Hokkien pronunciation of 浩官. In his day he was the richest man in the world. He made his fortune from Canton trade with the Europeans

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