List of Shang dynasty states

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Map of the Shang dynasty with archaeological sites marked in black and red.

This is a list of the various polities that existed during the Shang dynasty in ancient China, attested in oracle bones, bronze inscriptions, and the Chinese classics.

Background

Oracle bone inscription on Ox scapula by Nan about disasters during a war with the Gongfang (𢀛方).

The Shang dynasty was the earliest archaeologically attested dynasty of China, dating back to around 1,600 BCE. During this time, numerous polities coexisted with the Shang people, including Predynastic Zhou, all of which had differing relations with them at different times. The Shang called differing polities fang (方), which in Modern Standard Chinese means "place."[1] The names for these polities comes from the Chinese classics (e.g. Records of the Grand Historian) written after the Shang dynasty was defeated at the Battle of Muye, Shang-Zhou dynasty ritual bronzes, and oracle bones unearthed at Yinxu and other sites. The latter two were written in bronze script and oracle bone script, respectively, which are ancient versions of the modern Han script used to write Chinese. Therefore, some names may not be stable.[1] In oracle bone inscriptions, different polities were often referred to as name + "方", from which contemporary state names are derived.[2] Modern scholarship often refers to these polities as fangguo (方國), translating to “fang polities” or “regional states,” though the precise status of each named group is debated.

Identifying Fang states

While formulaic, the grammar and handwriting seen in bronze and oracle bone inscriptions is not always straightforward, and conflicting interpretations may lead to difficulties in conclusively verifying a Fang polity's existence. Tang Yingjie gives eight criteria that can be used to identify them in different settings:[3]

  1. It is called X方 in oracle bone inscriptions.
  2. It is called 侯 or 伯 in oracle bones or bronze inscriptions.
  3. It appears as X in the phrase X王 in oracle bones.
  4. A small number of cases called 子 may count.
  5. It fought a large-scale war with the Shang royal house (e.g. Verbs for invasion, such as wang 往 or fa 伐, are used.
  6. Archaeological materials prove it was a Fang polity.
  7. Transmitted texts mention it, and that record is corroborated by oracle bones, bronze inscriptions, or archaeology.
  8. The “nine bang” 九邦 in the Shanghai Museum bamboo-slip text 《容成氏》 are included.

List of Fangs

The Latin names of Fangs are pronounced according to the Pinyin system established by the People's Republic of China in 1958, which is different from their ancient pronunciations in Old Chinese given the thousands of years of language change.

Romanized name Chinese name Period of existence Rough geographical location Relationship with the Shang dynasty Attested in
Shang 商方 Xia dynasty,[a] Shang dynasty Yinxu (大邑商 "Da Yi Shang", "Shang, the Great City") (present Anyang)[1] Records of the Grand Historian[4]
Oracle bones
Ritual bronzes[5]
Zifang 子方 Shang dynasty ally?[b] Oracle bones[6]
Tufang 土方 Early to middle Shang dynasty, conquered by Wu Ding Northwest of Yin, east of Hong Fang (present Fen River Basin, Shanxi Province) enemy Book of Poetry (Chang Fa (長發)[7]
Oracle bones[8][9]
Gongfang 𢀛方 Shang dynasty, to period of Zu Geng Northwest of Yin, west of Tu Fang (north of present Shaanxi Province, Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) swing Oracle bones[10][11][12]
Guifang 鬼方 Shang dynasty Northwest of Yin (present central Shanxi Province and northern Shaanxi province, Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) ally Records of the Grand Historian[4]
Bamboo Annals[13]
Qiang 羌方 Shang dynasty Northwest of Yin (present Shaanxi Province, the area around Gansu Province, Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) swing Records of the Grand Historian[4]
Book of Poetry[7]
Oracle bones[14]
Northern Qiang 北羌 Shang dynasty Northwest of Yin, north of Qiangfang swing Oracle bones[15]
Renfang[c] 人方 Shang dynasty Southeast of Yin, coast of the Donghai (present Huai River basin and coast of the Yellow Sea at the Shandong Peninsula, northern Anhui and southern Shandong)) enemy Oracle bones[16]
Zhou[d] 周方 Middle to late Shang dynasty, overthrew Di Xin and established the Zhou dynasty. West of Yin (present Qishan County) swing Records of the Grand Historian[4]
Dapeng 大彭 Shang dynasty East of Yin (present Tongshan) swing Records of the Grand Historian[4]
Bamboo Annals
Oracle bones[18][19]
Tangfang 唐方 Shang dynasty Northwest of Yin
Jingfang 井方 Shang dynasty East of Yin[20] ally Oracle bones[20]
Linfang 林方 Shang dynasty South of Mount Tai and north of Wen River[21] swing Records of the Grand Historian[4]
Xingfang 興方 Shang dynasty Unknown swing Oracle bones[22]
Mafang 馬方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Shilou County) enemy Possibly in bronze inscriptions (e.g. Ma gui (馬簋).[23]
Shifang 豕方 Shang dynasty
Weifang or Xiawei 危方 or 下危 Shang dynasty enemy, later conquered Oracle bones[24]
Yufang 盂方 Shang dynasty East of Yin Oracle bones[21][25][26]
Zhifang 沚方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau); arguments are made for the east. swing Oracle bones[27]
Pangfang 旁方 Shang dynasty swing Oracle bones[28]
Gefang 戈方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present south of Shanxi Province) ally Oracle bones[29]
Mufang 木方 Shang dynasty Bronze inscriptions[30]
Oracle bones[31]
Bafang 巴方 Xia dynasty, Shang dynasty Sichuan Province, also argued to be to be southern Shaanxi or Jianghan enemy Bamboo Annals[13]
Oracle bones[32][33]
Shu 蜀 Shang dynasty Sichuan Province enemy Bamboo Annals[13]
Oracle bones[34]
Genfang 亙方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) enemy, suppressed Oracle bones[35]
Longfang 龍方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau); arguments are made for an eastern location. swing Oracle bones[27]
Jifang 基方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Puxian) enemy Oracle bones[36][37]
Jianfang 湔方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) enemy Oracle bones[36]
Jifang 祭方 Shang dynasty West of Yin, between Shang and Zhou swing Oracle bones[5][35]
Shifang 示方 Shang dynasty
Maofang 髳方 Shang dynasty enemy Bamboo Annals[13][35]
Zhaofang 召方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) enemy Oracle bones[3]
Yinfang 印方 Shang dynasty
Hufang 虎方 Shang dynasty East of Yin swing Records of the Grand Historian[4]
Bronze inscriptions[3]
Weifang 微方 Shang dynasty Bamboo Annals[13]
Oracle bones[38]
Xifang 息方 Shang dynasty South of Yin (Luoshan County) ally Oracle bones[39][40]
Miefang 眣方 Shang dynasty
Zhifang 止方 Shang dynasty
Yinfang 尹方 Shang dynasty
Bufang 步方 Shang dynasty Oracle bones[41]
Guifang 歸方 Shang dynasty South of Yin (present Zigui) enemy Oracle bones?[42]
Zengfang 曾方 Shang dynasty
Zhufang 祝方 Shang dynasty
Nongfang 弄方 Shang dynasty
Chuifang 吹方 Shang dynasty Oracle bones[43]
Chefang 屮方 (艸方?) Shang dynasty
Yuejifang 月丮方 Shang dynasty
Chengefang? 10px方 Shang dynasty West of Yin, Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau enemy
方 Shang dynasty ally
Jifang 㠱方 Shang dynasty North of Yin (present Beijing and northeastern Hebei, to the west of Liaoning) ally Oracle bones?[44]
方 Shang dynasty
方 Shang dynasty
方 Shang dynasty
方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) swing
方 Shang dynasty
Gu 雇 Shang dynasty South of Yin (present southwest of Yuanyang County, northwest of Yuanwu Town, Henan Province) ally Oracle bones[3]
Bao 暴 Shang dynasty South of Yin (present Yuanyang County) ally Oracle bones through a Marquess name[45]
Lu 盧 Shang dynasty South of Yin (present Zhushan County and Ankang City) enemy Oracle bones[3]
[46]
Shi 矢方 Shang dynasty Unknown enemy
You 攸 Shang dynasty East of Yin (present southern part of Yongcheng City and northwestern part of Suzhou City) ally Oracle bones[45]
Yuan 元 Shang dynasty East of Yin (present Yongcheng City) ally
Jifang 及 Shang dynasty East of Yin (present Yongcheng City) ally
Shen 侁 Shang dynasty East of Yin (present Cao County)
Gao 告 Shang dynasty East of Yin (present Chengwu County) ally
Dun 盾 Shang dynasty East of Yin ally
Tui 魋 Shang dynasty East of Yin enemy
Yachou 亞醜 Shang dynasty East of Yin (present Qingzhou, Shandong) ally Bronze inscriptions[47]
Jifang 紀 Shang dynasty East of Yin (present Shouguang)
Xue or Pi 薛 or 邳 Shang dynasty East of Yin (present Tengzhou) ally Records of the Grand Historian[4]
Bronze inscriptions[48][49]
Feng 豐 Shang dynasty East of Yin swing
Pang 逢 Shang dynasty East of Yin ally
Bogu 薄姑 Shang dynasty East of Yin ally Bamboo Annals[13]
Yufang 鬱方 Shang dynasty Unknown ally Oracle bones?[5]
Xuanfang 宣方 Shang dynasty Unknown ally Oracle bones?[5]
Xiufang 羞方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) swing Oracle bones[50]
Songfang 宋方 Shang dynasty North of Yin (present Zhao County) ally Oracle bones as an Earl[51][52]
Beifang 貝方 Shang dynasty South of Yin
Cangfang 倉方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Shangzhou District) ally Oracle bones[53]
Quanfang 犬方[e] Shang dynasty West of Yin swing Oracle bones[54]
Yangfang 昜方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Hongdong)
Foufang 缶方 Shang dynasty West of Yin Oracle bones[55][10]
Danfang 丹方 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Qinyang) ally Oracle bones[56]
Qu 去 Shang dynasty West of Yin ally
Shangsi 上絲 Shang dynasty West of Yin ally
Hefang 禾 Shang dynasty West of Yin
Guang 光 Shang dynasty West of Yin, in modern-day Guang County, Henan ally Oracle bones[57]
Ke 可 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Xiuwu County) ally
Er 耳 Shang dynasty West of Yin (Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) swing
Lü 呂 Shang dynasty West of Yin (Northern Shanxi-Shaanxi Plateau) enemy [58]
Bing 丙 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Lingshi)
Xian 先 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Fushan)
Na 郍 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Xinzheng, Zhengzhou, Henan Province)
Lu 鹿 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Song County) swing Bamboo Annals[13]
Qi 耆 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Licheng) swing
Chong 崇，琮，虫 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Xi'an) swing Records of the Grand Historian[4][59][60][61]
Mixu 密須 Shang dynasty West of Yin (present Lingtai) swing Bamboo Annals[13]
Jian 戔 Shang dynasty Unknown ally
Ban 班 Shang dynasty Unknown ally? Bamboo Annals[13]
Gufang 榖方 Shang dynasty ally Oracle bones[62]

See also

Notes

  1. The existence of the Xia dynasty is disputed due to a lack of testable evidence.
  2. Thought to be related to the Zi surname held by the Shang royal family
  3. Often identified as the Dongyi.
  4. Identification of the Zhoufang as the Predynastic Zhou is disputed.[17]
  5. Often attested as 犬侯 and sometimes argued to be the Rong

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