China people obviously have many ethnic groups. Why are they called China people and Han people?

The Han nationality is an important part of the Chinese nation, but there have always been different opinions about who is the "Han nationality". I have read many stories about it, some say it is of Mongolian descent, and some even say it is of Caucasian descent. Lv Simian said: "The name of the Han nationality began after Liu Bang proclaimed himself emperor." (History of Pre-Qin Dynasty, Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House, 1983), p. 22. Lv Zhenyu said: "China people have been called Han since the former Han emperor Xuan Di." (Notes on China Nationalities, Joint Publishing Company, 1950, p. 19. In short, the name of the Han nationality has been called since the Han Dynasty. }

But I don't think these statements are accurate. When the Han Dynasty began to communicate with foreign countries, it was always called "Han", not "Han".

The formation of the real Han nationality should go through the following stages:

1. Chinese people, mainly Emperor Yanhuang. It is named "Xia nationality" because it lives in Xiashui, and it is named "Hua nationality" with Huashan as the center. Later, the three tribes, Huangdi, Yan Di and Chiyou, had a fierce conflict war and eventually merged into the "Chinese nation".

2. After the wars and migrations in Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties (including the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period), all ethnic groups were integrated on a large scale, and the scope of the Chinese nation was further expanded.

Third, the name "Han Chinese" did not appear until the Han Dynasty. Occasionally, it is also called "Han nationality", but it is by no means "Han nationality" today. The main areas include the Central Plains and the Yangtze River Basin. At this time, the southern Guangdong (Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Hainan) region was only "southern barbarians", not "Han people".

Fourthly, during the Three Kingdoms, the Jin Dynasty and the Southern and Northern Dynasties, China's national integration entered its heyday. The northern Xianbei, Tuoba, Jie, Di and Qiang ethnic groups have been completely integrated with all ethnic groups in the Central Plains. Coupled with the great integration of Song, Xia, Jin and Liao, the embryonic form of the Han nationality was basically established. However, there was no title of "Han nationality" in these periods, and everyone called them "big X subjects" of any dynasty. After the demise of the Han Dynasty, many people often called themselves "Han people" out of nostalgia for the powerful "big man".

Fifth, the real "Han nationality" began in the Yuan Dynasty. In the areas directly under the jurisdiction of the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongolian population was very small. In order to maintain their own rule and weaken the resistance consciousness of Han Chinese and other nationalities, Mongolian nobles divided the people of all ethnic groups into four grades: Mongolia, Semu, Han Chinese and Nanren. -"Mongols" refers to the Mongolian tribes who originally lived in the north and south of the desert, including Lu Wu, Mangwu, Kelie, Zhalaier, Tata and Woyila; "Semu people" mainly refer to Hui, Uighur, Li Kang, Azu, Tubo, Tang Wu, Hacilu, Tubo and other ethnic groups; "Han people" refers to people from Han, Khitan, Jurchen, Bohai, Korea, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces who were conquered earlier under the rule of the Jin Dynasty. "Nanren" refers to the people of all ethnic groups who first lived in the Southern Song Dynasty; "Nanren" is the lowest, because these areas were finally unified. Later, in order to be symmetrical with the Mongols, "Han people" were generally called "Han people", and the Yuan court became accustomed to this title and began to use "Han people" in some official documents. The title of "Han nationality" began to spread widely and was accepted by everyone.

6. In the Ming Dynasty, the rank of "Nanren" and the corresponding appellation were abolished, and they were called "Han" together with "Han", forming the main body of today's "Han". "Southerners" are mostly Han people.