What was the Fangguo system of the Shang Dynasty?

The Shang Dynasty implemented the internal and external service system. The internal service was the activity area of ??the merchants themselves, and the external service was the vassal state outside the Shang clan. These vassal states are the so-called "Fang states".

Today’s scholars’ understanding of these Fang Kingdoms mainly comes from the oracle bone inscriptions unearthed from the Yinxu site in the late Shang Dynasty. In the oracle bones, these tribal countries are often called “X Fang”, so they are called “Fang Kingdoms”. ".

Most Fang countries are small in scale and are just some primitive clan tribes, but there are a few Fang countries that are large in scale and already have complete national institutions. The small countries surrounding the Xia Dynasty Shangchao and the Xia Dynasty Shangchao itself were in a loose alliance. These small countries were afraid of the Xia Dynasty Shangchao's force and did not have any legal obligations towards the Xia Dynasty Shangchao.

Extended information

The ancient "Huayuan" of the Xia and Shang Dynasties

In the history of Yaozhou, there were seven dynasties in the Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Northern Song, Jin, and Yuan dynasties. Although there have been minor changes in the affiliations and local boundaries established over the past hundred years, the county-level political power is mainly named after "Huayuan". Huayuan is the longest-used county-level place name in the history of Yaozhou. Most of the areas between Qi and Ju today in Yaozhou have always been the central jurisdiction of Huayuan.

"Huayuan" officially became a county-level administrative district in the early Sui Dynasty. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty changed Niyang into Huayuan County in the sixth year of Kaihuang (586), and it has been used in successive dynasties since then. In fact, this naming was not the first in the early Sui Dynasty, but followed an earlier historical name "Huayuan" that was almost forgotten by people. It is the earliest recorded ancient place name native to this land.

"Yu Gong" divides the world into nine states. Among them, Yongzhou roughly includes the Guanzhong area of ????Shaanxi today, and there are many small regional place names in the Yongzhou area. There are thirty-six states and cities under the jurisdiction of Yongzhou, including Hao, Bo, Xi, Qi, Huayuan, Tai, Bin, etc. Most of these states and cities are the names of ancient clans, tribes and ancient Fang states (see "Xia" Shang Guoyi Map").

"Huayuan" is between Qi and Ju, north of Jingshan, west of Pengya, and east of Bin, Huangguo, Ganquan and Yunyang. It should obviously be the main jurisdiction of Yaozhou. It can be seen that The name "Huayuan" has been around for a long time, and the name change in the Sui Dynasty was just to keep the old name.

It is recorded in "History of the Road" that "the Yinkang family governed Huayuan". This "Huayuan" refers to the ancient country Huayuan in Yongzhou during the Three Dynasties. It is not the Sui and Tang counties that governed Huayuan. The area is slightly the same, but The connotations are different.

The Yinkang clan is the name of a clan tribe in ancient legends. It should be a matrilineal clan tribe in the Stone Age culture about after Fuxi and Nuwa and before Shennong and Huangdi. It was active between Qi and Ju and was close to rivers and waterways. On the safe high platform slope, the specific age and activities cannot be tested.

The Tapo site and other similar sites on the Qi and Ju banks that have not yet been discovered should belong to the Yinkang tribe and the ancient Huayuan, and their ancestors should be the earliest ancestors that can be traced back to Yaozhou. According to research, part of the Yin surname is the descendant of the Yin Kang family, which of course does not necessarily refer to the current Yin surname in Yaozhou.

There are three out of eighty Yongzhou cities in the Zhou Dynasty, but there is no Huayuan, and Qijujian does not know where it belongs. It can be seen that the name of Huayuan in the Zhou Dynasty has gradually disappeared. It may be that the territory of the Zhou Dynasty expanded after the rise and growth, and it gradually entered from the northwest. Because of the scope of Bindi.

The theory of Dongbin in "Bingu Kao" written by Wen Xiangfeng of the Ming Dynasty is indeed reasonable, but Dongbin must not be understood as the entire Huayuan. Regardless of the changing boundaries in history, looking at today's Yaozhou area, Dongbin should only refer to the area bordering Zhaojin and Miaowan in the northwest mountainous area and Xunyi and Malan. At best, it is just a line to the north, and it cannot include today's Liulin, Miaowan, and Xunyi. The vast hinterland of Yaozhou south of Shizhu.

It can be seen from the above brief description that the ancestors of Yaozhou lived and multiplied as early as ancient times. The "Yinkang clan" is a clan tribe of this period that is only found in classics. Their hard work created With the ancient civilization of Yaozhou, the ancient country "Huayuan" was formed before the Xia and Shang Dynasties. It declined and disappeared due to the rise and power of the Zhou people at the end of the Shang Dynasty and the beginning of the Zhou Dynasty.

At that time, the eastern territory of "Bin", the birthplace of the Zhou people, only extended to the northwest of ancient Huayuan. The general statement that "it belonged to Bin in the third generation" is not accurate enough.

(Lei Tianqi)

Baidu Encyclopedia-Shang Dynasty

Baidu Encyclopedia-Fang State (ancient federal power)