Ancient Chinese Villages: An Illusion of Shangrila

There was a lot of imagination in narratives on rural areas in ancient China. For thousands of years, rural villages have existed. Why would they need to be a part of anyone’s imagination? The 2,000-year plus stable centralized imperial system in China underlies the tradition of focusing on imperial rulers and institutions in historical research. The vague picture and difficult academic research set the stage for an idyllic imagining of ancient villages in China. There is a Wester...