Editing Barbarian (section)

==== History and terminology ====
Chinese historical records mention what may now perhaps be termed "barbarian" peoples for over four millennia, although this considerably predates the [[Greek language]] origin of the term "barbarian", at least as is known from the thirty-four centuries of written records in the Greek language. The sinologist [[Herrlee Glessner Creel]] said, "Throughout Chinese history "the barbarians" have been a constant motif, sometimes minor, sometimes very major indeed. They figure prominently in the Shang oracle inscriptions, and the dynasty that came to an end only in 1912 was, from the Chinese point of view, barbarian."<ref>Creel, Herrlee G. (1970). ''The Origins of Statecraft in China''. The University of Chicago Press. p. 194. {{ISBN|0-226-12043-0}}. See "The Barbarians" chapter, pp. 194–241. Creel refers to the Shang [[Oracle bone]] inscriptions and the [[Qing dynasty]].</ref>

[[Shang dynasty]] (1600–1046 BC) [[Oracle bone script|oracles]] and [[Chinese bronze inscriptions|bronze inscriptions]] first recorded specific Chinese [[exonyms]] for foreigners, often in contexts of warfare or tribute. King [[Wu Ding]] (r. 1250–1192 BC), for instance, fought with the  [[Guifang]] 鬼方, [[Di (Wu Hu)|Di]] 氐, and [[Qiang (historical people)|Qiang]] 羌 "barbarians."

During the [[Spring and Autumn period]] (771–476 BC), the meanings of four exonyms were expanded. "These included Rong, Yi, Man, and Di—all general designations referring to the barbarian tribes."<ref>Pu Muzhou (2005). ''Enemies of Civilization: Attitudes toward Foreigners in Ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, and China''. SUNY Press. p. 45.</ref> These ''[[Four Barbarians|Siyi]]'' 四夷 "Four Barbarians", most "probably the names of ethnic groups originally,"<ref name="Creel 1970, 197">Creel (1970), 197.</ref> were the Yi or [[Dongyi]] 東夷 "eastern barbarians," Man or [[Nanman]] 南蠻 "southern barbarians," Rong or [[Xirong]] 西戎 "western barbarians," and Di or [[Beidi]] 北狄 "northern barbarians." The Russian anthropologist [[Mikhail Kryukov]] concluded.
<blockquote> Evidently, the barbarian tribes at first had individual names, but during about the middle of the first millennium B.C., they were classified schematically according to the four cardinal points of the compass. This would, in the final analysis, mean that once again territory had become the primary criterion of the we-group, whereas the consciousness of common origin remained secondary. What continued to be important were the factors of language, the acceptance of certain forms of material culture, the adherence to certain rituals, and, above all, the economy and the way of life. Agriculture was the only appropriate way of life for the [[Huaxia|Hua-Hsia]].<ref>Jettmar, Karl (1983). "The Origins of Chinese Civilization: Soviet Views." In Keightley, David N., ed. [https://books.google.com/books?id=4-vdP2aZWhUC The Origins of Chinese civilization]. p. 229. University of California Press.</ref></blockquote>

[[File:Raising an army.jpg|thumb|A scene of the Chinese campaign against the [[Miao people|Miao]] in Hunan, 1795]]
The [[Chinese classics]] use compounds of these four generic names in localized "barbarian tribes" exonyms such as "west and north" ''Rongdi'', "south and east" ''Manyi'', ''Nanyibeidi'' "barbarian tribes in the south and the north," and ''Manyirongdi'' "all kinds of barbarians." Creel says the Chinese evidently came to use ''Rongdi'' and ''Manyi'' "as generalized terms denoting 'non-Chinese,' 'foreigners,' 'barbarians'," and a statement such as "the Rong and Di are wolves" (''Zuozhuan'', Min 1) is "very much like the assertion that many people in many lands will make today, that 'no foreigner can be trusted'."
<blockquote> The Chinese had at least two reasons for vilifying and depreciating the non-Chinese groups. On the one hand, many of them harassed and pillaged the Chinese, which gave them a genuine grievance. On the other, it is quite clear that the Chinese were increasingly encroaching upon the territory of these peoples, getting the better of them by trickery, and putting many of them under subjection. By vilifying them and depicting them as somewhat less than human, the Chinese could justify their conduct and still any qualms of conscience.<ref>Creel (1970), 198.</ref></blockquote>

This word ''Yi'' has both specific references, such as to ''Huaiyi'' 淮夷 peoples in the [[Huai River]] region, and generalized references to "barbarian; foreigner; non-Chinese." ''[[Lin Yutang's Chinese-English Dictionary of Modern Usage]]'' translates ''Yi'' as "Anc[ient] barbarian tribe on east border, any border or foreign tribe."<ref>Lin Yutang (1972), [http://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/Lindict/ Lin Yutang's Chinese-English Dictionary of Modern Usage], Chinese University Press.</ref> The sinologist [[Edwin G. Pulleyblank]] says the name ''Yi'' "furnished the primary Chinese term for 'barbarian',"  but "Paradoxically the Yi were considered the most civilized of the non-Chinese peoples.<ref>Pulleyblank, E. G., (1983). "The Chinese and Their Neighbors in Prehistoric and Early Historic Times." In Keightley, David N., ed. [https://books.google.com/books?id=4-vdP2aZWhUC The Origins of Chinese civilization]. p. 440. University of California Press.</ref>