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新必修一unit5
课文
THE CHINESE WRITING SYSTEM:
CONNECTING THE PAST AND THE PRESENT
China is widely known for its ancient civilisation which has continued all the way through into modern times, despite the many ups and downs in its history. There are many reasons why this has been possible, but one of the main factors has been the Chinese writing system.
At the beginning, written Chinese was a picture-based language. It dates back several thousand years to the use of longgu—animal bones and shells on which symbols were carved by ancient Chinese people. Some of the ancient symbols can still be seen in today's hanzi.
By the Shang Dynasty (around 1600-1046 BCE), these symbols had become a well-developed writing system. Over the years, the system developed into different forms, as it was a time when people were divided geographically, leading to many varieties of dialects and characters. This, however, changed under Emperor Qinshihuang of the Qin Dynasty (221- -207 BCE).
Emperor Qinshihuang unite