People for the Ends of the Earth

Dong-Yi Ethnic Groups

(People for the Ends of the Earth)

 

http://peacepink.ning.com/profiles/blogs/dongyi-ethnic-groups

Abstract:

Dong-Yi Ethnic Groups lived around Shandong Peninsula in Neolithic China; they built one of the most important Neolithic cultures – Dong-Yi culture which had greatly influenced ancient China. Later China Di-Qiang culture also had elements of Dong-Yi culture.

This article briefly introduced certain historical records of the Dong-Yi ethnic groups; their wheat cultivating history; their Caucasoid race characteristics; their bird worship totems; their relations with other ethnic groups; Dong-Yi culture; and their migrations.

From this article we have a clear view of Dong-Yi ethnic groups. They built one of the most advanced cultures in Neolithic Shandong which greatly influenced China Neolithic cultures. They came from Middle East and had Caucasoid racial characteristics; worshipped bird’s totems and cultivated wheat; they were also ancestors of the American Indians and Polynesian people.

Key words: Dong-Yi; Dong-Yi Culture; Neolithic Shandong Peninsula; Prehistoric American Indians; Polynesian;

1.                  Introduction

Dong-Yi Ethnic Groups lived around Shandong Peninsula in Neolithic China. They came from Middle East with Caucasoid race characteristics and bird worship totems.

They brought wheat to China and widely cultivated wheat in Shandong Peninsula 4500 years ago.

They built one of the most important Neolithic cultures – Dong-Yi culture which had greatly influenced ancient China. Later China Di-Qiang culture also had elements of Dong-Yi culture.

Dong-Yi culture which correlated to five evolutionary phases: Houli culture (6400-5700BCE); Beixin culture (5300-4100BCE); Dawenkou culture (4100-2600BCE); Longshan culture (3200-1900BCE); Yueshi culture (2000-1600BCE), first located in Shandong Peninsula, and later spread out to the lower reaches of the Yellow and Huai Rivers.

This article briefly introduces the historical records of Dong-Yi ethnic groups; their wheat cultivating history; their Caucasoid race characteristics; their Bird worship totems; their relations with other ethnic groups; Dong-Yi culture; and their migrations.

The Bible used the phrase ‘the ends of the Earth’ many times. The ends of the Earth as so described included: The Easternmost Place in Shandong Peninsula of China; The Westernmost Place in West America; The Southernmost Place in Australia and New Zealand; The Northernmost Place near the Arctic Circle.

Dong-Yi ethnic groups moved to lands at the regions we call the ends of the Earth, and built great cultures during the Neolithic Age.

DNA researches have proved that Prehistory American Indians (Amerind) and Polynesian people migrated from East Asia. We assert that the Prehistory Amerind were a hybridization of Dong-Yi ethnic groups and Mongoloid racial stock. Prehistory Polynesian people were hybridization and mixing of Dong-Yi ethnic groups with various other races.

Prehistory Amerind and Polynesian people had bird worship totem cultures, which are the same as with Dong-Yi ethnic group’s religious practices.

From this article, we have a clear view of Dong-Yi ethnic groups. They built one of the most advanced cultures in Neolithic Shandong which greatly influenced China Neolithic cultures. They came from Middle East and had Caucasoid race characteristics; worshipped bird’s totems and cultivated wheat; they were also ancestors of American Indians and Polynesian people.

 

2.                  Historical Records of Dong-Yi Ethnic Groups

2.1   Historical Records of Yi

The Shuowen Jiezi character dictionary (121 BCE) defined the Chinese character Yi (夷) which consisted of ‘big’ (大) and ‘bow’(弓), as ‘level; peaceful (平)’ and ‘people of eastern regions’.

The earliest records of Yi were inscribed on oracle bones dating from the late Shang Dynasty (1600–1046BCE). The Shang Oracle bones recorded a hostile country written as Ren-fang (人方) or Shi-fang (尸方) located east of Shang Dynasty. We assert that the Ren- fang were Dong-Yi.

Dong-Yi officially appeared on the Bronze inscriptions of the West Zhou Dynasty (1046–771BCE). Dong-Yi ethnic groups were main hostiles of the Zhou Dynasty (1046–256BCE).

‘Hou Han Shu: Dong-Yi’ recorded: There were nine ethnic groups of Yi, (Nine meant Many Different Kinds of Yi). They were called: Quan-Yi (畎夷,犬戎); Yu-Yi (于夷, 古越人); Fang-Yi (方夷); Huang-Yi (黄夷); Bai-Yi (白夷); Chi-Yi (赤夷); Xuan-Yi (玄夷); Feng-Yi (凤夷); and Yang-Yi (阳夷). (In Chinese ‘后汉书•东夷传’:夷有九种，曰畎夷、于夷、方夷、黄夷、白夷、赤夷、玄夷、凤夷、阳夷。)

Literature describing a pre-Xia Dynasty period did not use the character Yi. As for the Xia Dynasty, some groups of people were referred to as the Yi. For example, ‘Yu Gong’ of the Classic of History called people in Qingzhou and Xuzhou as LaiYi, YuYi and HuaiYi.

2.2    Lai-Yi

‘The Records of the Grand Historian’ recorded: ‘(at early time of Zhou Dynasty, Emperor Wu made Lu Shang the duke of Qi in Yingqiu’; ‘Lai King fought with Lu Shang for Yingqiu’; ‘Because Zhou was just established, they could not have war in the frontier regions; Lai king fought with Lu Shang(Tai Gong) for territory of Qi’. (In Chinese ‘史记•齐太公世家’:周武王’封师尚父子齐营丘 (今临淄地区）’; ‘莱侯来伐，与之争营丘’; ‘周初定，未能集远方，是以与太公争国’) 。

The last country of the Dong-Yi ethnic groups was ancient Lai in Shandong Peninsula. The Lai country was founded by the Lai-Yi ethnic group and used to be one of the four biggest ancient countries (Qi, 1046-221BCE; Lu, 1042-256BCE; Ju, 1046-431BCE; Lai,-567BCE) located in the Shandong Peninsula.

The ancient pre Qin dynasty nation of Qi eliminated and destroyed the Dong-Yi Lai nation completely in 567BCE. In that ancient war, the Lai king was killed; and the Lai capital was burned. The Lai culture was destroyed and Lai people were moved to Ni County (Teng Zhou of Shandong). (There was a village named Lai village).

2.3                The Name of Ancient Country Lai (莱) came from Wheat

The name of the Country Lai (莱) meant the country of people who planted wheat. In addition the oracle bones character Lai (來) was a Chinese hieroglyph; i.e. a Pictogram which looked like wheat. The original meaning was wheat.

The Chinese characters Lai (萊) and Lai (來) were the same, Lai (萊) meant (young wheat) growing luxuriantly.  The original meaning: Young wheat seedlings looked like young luxuriant grasses.

In Ancient Chinese Phonology system, Lai (萊) came from Lai (來). The vowel rhyme of Lai (萊) and Lai (來) could be transferred; these two Chinese characters were interchangeable. ‘ShiJing: XiaoYa: Nan Shan You Tai’ recorded: ‘South Mountain had platform; North Mountain had wheat’. (In Chinese’诗经.南山有台’:南山有台, 北山有莱)

The Chinese character Mai (麥) consisted of Lai (來) and Sui (夊, meant root or foot), meant (wheat) growing on the ground.

Many places in Shandong Peninsula had names with Chinese character Lai (莱), they were connected with the old country called the Lai. Such as: Lai-Yang, Lai-Xi, Lai-Zhou, Peng-Lai, Lai-Shan, Lai-Wu, Jiao-Lai River, Lai River in Heze, Lai-Yan Qing-Shi Pass of Qi Great Wall.

There was a small village named Lai Mountain village in front of Lai Mountain (current name: Jing Qi Mountain) located in Liaoyang County for many centuries.

Barley was called Mu (麰) (or written as Mu (牟). Furthermore one has that the Shandong Peninsula was the birthplace of surname Mu (牟, meant barley). It, barley cultivation, spread out over China after the Han Dynasty (202BCE-220ACE).

Many places in Shandong Peninsula had names with the Chinese character Mu (牟): Mu-Ping, Xin-Mu, Mu Mountain in Anqiu, Mu-Wen River in Laiwu, Mu family Town in Weifang, Mu-Jia-Shao village in Shouguang, Mu family manor in Qixia.

Dong-Yi ethnic groups were the first groups who brought wheat to China and widely planted wheat in China. They named many places with Lai (莱, meant: wheat) and Mu (牟, meant: barley); they also named their country with Lai (莱, meant: wheat).

 

3    Chinese Wheat and Barley came from Middle East

3.1    Millet and rice cultivating history in Neolithic China was much earlier than wheat history. 

Geographic distribution areas of Wild Millet were worldwide, as an example the wild millet (Echinocloa muricata or Echinochloa crusgalli (L.) Beauv.). This was found to be a native of Neolithic China.

From 20000-10000 years ago, millet was the main staple food in China; as of 14000 years ago, mankind mainly collected and lived off wild food.

Palaeolithic archaeological site of open camp (20000 years ago) in Linfin of Shanxi Province has been discovered with many stone rollers and querns, and also showing prehistoric evidence of Mankind's use of fire in Shanxi.

A Palaeolithic archaeological site (28000 years ago) in Shuo county of Shanxi Province had many stone knives, serrated sickles, rollers and querns.

These two sites are clear evidence that mankind had been familiar with collection and processing of wild food during the Paleolithic Age.

As of about 11000 years ago, mankind in China started cultivating millet. Many China Neolithic archaeological sites have found evidence of  cultivated millet: Ci Shan of Hebei Province (10300-7500 years ago); Da Di Wan culture (8200 years ago); Jian Village in Lin Tong of Shanxi Province (5500～5000 years ago). Main cultivated food of Da Wen Kou culture was also millet.

Rice cultivating history occurred earlier than the millet history in south China. We know that many Chinese Neolithic archaeological sites have recently discovered cultivated rice: among them, Dao county of Hunan Province (14000 years ago); Wan Nian County of Jiangxi Province (12000 years ago); and Ying De of Guangdong Province as of (11000-8000 years ago).

3.2   China Wheat and Barley cultivating history

The first domesticated crop is believed to have been einkorn wheat, a kind of nourishing grass adapted from a wild species of grass native to the Karacadag Mountains near Diyarbakir in southwest Turkey first cultivated around 11,000 years ago. Scientists deduced this fact by examining the DNA of modern strains of einkorn wheat and found that the modern einkorn wheat was more similar to einkorn wheat grown in the Karacadag Mountains than in other places. [1]

The world's first wheat, oats, barley and lentils evolved from wild plants found in Iraq. Seeds of 10,000-year-old cultivated wheat have been discovered at sites in Iraq and northern Syria.

Some scientists thought that definitely Ancient China did not have appropriate conditions for wild species hybridizing naturally and then evolving to Triticum aestivum L (wheat). They believed that wheat and barley came from the Middle East only. This was shown to be in error via the fact that the earliest Chinese cultivated wheat and barley was only found in late Neolithic archaeological sites. The earliest cultivated wheat in Neolithic China was found in the known archaeological site in Guan Miao Di of Shan County in Henan Province (7000 years ago). It means that wheat and barley had come to China at least 7000 years ago; i.e. much earlier than was initially supposed. In addition, also, scientists could not obtain significant evidence of cultivation of wheat and barley before 7000 years ago. That lack of cultivation of wheat and barley evidence was due since at that time, the temperature condition in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River were not suitable for growing wheat and barley.

In addition wheat and barley were not widely cultivated in Shandong Peninsula during 6000-5000 years ago. The reasons were as follows:

Climate warming was expected to result in rising sea level. However, the sea level was 120 m lower as of around 20,000 years ago. Temperature rose quickly as of about 20,000-6000 years ago. After the ice sheets began to melt and retreat, the sea level rose rapidly. By the mid-Holocene period, 6000 years ago, glacial melting had essentially ceased. [3]

As of 6000 years ago, the sea level near Shandong Peninsula was 2-5meters higher than today’s present sea level. A lot of dry lands of the present Shandong Peninsula were under the sea. 5500 years ago, also the sea level was 2-5 meters lower than present sea level [2].

The Dong-Yi ethnic groups moved to west and north areas when the sea level was higher and slowly moved back to prior areas when sea level was lower. But during this period, the unsteady temperature levels created conditions which were not suitable for planting wheat and barley.

As of 5000 years ago, temperatures rose slowly. Sea level rose back up to the present level. The temperature in Shandong Peninsula then at the time became suitable for cultivating wheat and barley. Wheat and barley were widely cultivated in Shandong Peninsula during Long Shan culture (4500-3950 years ago).

With the migrations of the Dong-Yi ethnic groups and exchanging with other ethnic groups, cultivating wheat and barley had spread out to other places of Neolithic China.

Many Chinese archaeological sites have found traces of cultivated wheat: i.e. Shan County of Henan Province (7000 years ago); Jiaozuo County of Henan Province(4000 years ago); Diao Yu Tai in Bo County of Anhui Province (near Henan) (3000 years ago); and Min Le County of Gansu Province (5000 years ago)

It was clear that wheat and barley came from Middle East. Dong-Yi ethnic groups brought wheat and barley to east China and built new wheat and barley farming cultures in Shandong Peninsula. Later they also spread wheat and barley to other places in China.

 

4． The Ancestral worship totems of Dong-Yi people were bird-shaped.

4.1   Many prehistory archaeological remains in Shandong Peninsula discovered bird shaped art craft.

A Neolithic archaeological site in Beizhuang of Changdao in Shandong Peninsula (6500 years ago) discovered grey pottery GUI shaped of bird; prior archaeologists thought it was strong evidence that Dong-Yi ethnic groups worshipped bird totems.

4.2   ‘Shan Hai Jing’ recorded many birds in Shandong Peninsula.      

According to ‘Shan Hai Jing’, the ancient Shandong Peninsula was biologically a ‘bird heaven’. There were so many birds.  Such as the following:

Qi-que, Chou-yu, San qing bird, Jiu-jiu, Luan bird, Huang bird, Qing bird, Lang bird, Xuan-bird, Yellow bird, Li-zhu, and Yi bird ( In Chinese: 鬿雀, 犰狳, 三青鸟, 鸠久, 鸾鸟, 皇鸟, 青鸟, 琅鸟, 玄鸟, 黄鸟, 离朱, 翳鸟)

4.3   The priests of the Di-Jun Ethnic Groups were Dong-Yi people.

Initially Di-Jun ethnic groups built friendly relations with the Dong-Yi ethnic groups. They believed that Dong-Yi ethnic groups could predict the weather or good and bad luck. Di-Jun ethnic groups even regarded Dong-Yi ethnic groups as half human and half spirit. They invited Dong-Yi People to be their priests at their sacrificial altars.

‘Shan Hai Jing: Da Huang Dong Jing’ wrote: ‘There were birds bearing five colors, rotating and dancing, they were friends of Di-Jun. Di-Jun had two sacrificial altars; where colorful bird were its priests.’ (In Chinese‘大荒东经’:有五采之鸟, 相乡弃沙。惟帝俊下友帝下两坛,采鸟是司).  The birds bearing five colors were priests wearing bird feather clothes, looking like two birds.

4.4   ‘Shan Hai Jing’ had many records of bird’s totems

Doing-Yi ethnic groups worshipped bird’s totems, and believed they could predict weather or good and bad luck. ‘Shan Hai Jing: East Mountain’ recorded many birds which could predict weather or good and bad luck, such as the following:

There were birds named Li-Hu in the Lu-Qi Mountain, these birds initially looked like Mandarin ducks with human feet; when they appeared, water and soil loss would occur. There were also birds named Jie-Gou in Yin Mountain, looked like mallards with rat tails; when they appeared, pestilence would happen. There were even birds which looked like chickens with rat hairs; when they appeared, severe drought would occur.

(In Chinese ‘东山经’:卢其之山……多鵹鹕, 其状如鸳鸯而人足……见则其国多土功。垔山……有鸟焉,其状如凫而鼠尾,善登木,其名曰絜钩,见则其国多疫。旬状之山……有鸟焉, 其状如鸡而鼠毛……见则其邑大旱).

 

5 ． Dong-Yi Ethnic Groups were Caucasoid People

Mr. Carleton S. Coon divided humanity into five races: Caucasoid race, Mongoloid race, Negroid race, Capoid race, Australoid race.  [4] 

The Caucasoid race is defined by the Compact Oxford English Dictionary of Current English as ‘relating to a broad division of humankind covering peoples from Europe, west Asia, and parts of India and North Africa’ or ‘white-skinned; of European origin’ or ‘relating to the region of the Caucasus in SE Europe’.

This concept's existence is based upon ‘the now disputed typological method of racial classification origin’ or ‘relating to the region of the Caucasus in SE Europe'.

    In earlier biblical references Noah had three sons: Shem, Japheth, and Ham (The Bible).

The descendants of Japheth were maritime people, they were good at navigation. They spread out all over the continent of Europe to the western lands. They also spread out to North (Slavs in Russia), India and south Asia where were the tents of Shem (Genesis 9-27 .....May Japheth live in the tents of Shem....). They spread out to America (Genesis 9-27 May God extend the territory of Japheth....). The descendants of Japheth were the Caucasoid race.

The descendants of Ham spread out to the south to Africa. They also spread out over south Asia, India, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Through Malay Archipelago (a bridge prepared by God); they arrived in Australia and New Zealand and small islands of The South Pacific Ocean. The descendants of Ham were Negroid race, Capoid race, and Australoid race.

The descendant of Shem spread out over all the Continent of Asia to north and east. They were partial Caucasoid race and partial Mongoloid Race.

Caucasoid people from Shem and Caucasoid people from Japheth looked some what different. The future prehistory Dong-Yi ethnic groups belonged to Caucasoid people from Shem.

Dong-Yi ethnic groups had pronounced Caucasoid racial characteristics: i.e. they were very tall, with a high forehead, aquiline nose, pronounced facial whiskers, a beard, and bushy body hairs.

5.1     Archaeologists discovered Caucasoid race characteristics in Neolithic Shandong Peninsula

Scientists discovered that the Neolithic residents of the Shandong Peninsula and east China regions (including parts of Henan, Hebei or Jiangsu) came from the Middle East. And People had clear Caucasoid race characteristics in Neolithic Shandong Peninsula. [5]

In the archaeological sites of Beizhuang in Changdao of Shandong (about 6500 years ago), archaeologists discovered a pottery mask which had clear Caucasoid race characteristics. [6]

Archaeologists and Scientists of Molecular genetics paleontology had discovered  Caucasoid racial characteristics (HV genes) from DNA which extracted from bones in ancient tombs of Linzi in Shandong; and archaeological sites of Da Wen Kou in Shandong (about 6000 years ago); and archaeological sites of Beizhuang in Changdao, Shandong(about 6500 years ago).

Guo Mo-Rue discovered that Dong-Yi ethnic groups (during the period of Da Wen Kou culture) had luxuriant facial whiskers and beards, bushy body hairs, aquiline nose, thereby bearing some resemblance to the Caucasoid race in appearance.

Many Shandong Neolithic archaeological sites had discovered the bodies of tall Dong-Yi people. Such as: Gu Cheng Ding in Qingdao (3000 years ago), with individuals as about 1.8 and 1.9 meters tall; Liang Wang Cheng of Pi Zhou in Jiangsu Province (5000 years ago), more than 1.8 meters tall; Bei Qian village of Jimo in Shandong Peninsula (6000 years ago), 2 meters.

A co-study made by Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shandong Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology and Laboratory for Molecular Anthropology and Molecular Evolution, Division of Anthropology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Tokyo. Inconsistent with the geographical distribution, the 2,500-year-old Linzi population showed greater genetic similarity to present-day European populations than to present-day East Asian populations. The 2,000-yearold Linzi population had features that were intermediate between the present-day European as compared to the over 2,500-year-old Linzi populations and the present-day East Asian populations. [7]

Scientific research indicated incontestably that local residents in Shandong Peninsula where Confucian originated had Caucasoid race characteristics since the Neolithic Age until late spring and Autumn Period (770-476BCE).

Since Han Dynasty (202BCE-220ACE), the members of the ethnic majority in China, the ‘people of Han (Han Race)’ were named.

In China history, Emperors had encouraged large-scale migration, and as a result, there were more people married to others with different ethnic groups.

After the Sui Dynasty (581-618ACE) and Tang Dynasty (618-907ACE), the Han Race had on average far more Mongolian racial characteristics.

5.2    Many Shandong historical Celebrities had Caucasoid racial characteristics

According to historical records, Confucius (551-479BCE) had clear Caucasoid race characteristics:

(1)   Very tall (over 2.2 meters);  

‘The Records of the Grand Historian’ said: ‘Confucius was nine Chi (尺) and six Cun (寸) (one Chi is about 23.2cm), everyone thought he was different and called him the tall man’. (In Chinese ‘史记.孔子世家’:孔子长九尺六寸, 人皆谓之长人而异之.)

(2)   Enhanced strength;

‘LieZi’ said: ‘Confucius had enhanced physical strength, could lift the sluice of city’. (In Chinese ‘列子.说符’:孔子之劲, 能拓（举起）国门之关.)

(3)   High forehead;