China's Geography
The Geography of ancient china was shaped the way the civilization and culture developed. The large land was isolated from much of the rest of the world, by dry deserts to the North and West, the Pacific Ocean to the East, and impenetrable mountains to the south. This enabled the Chinese to develop independently from other world civilizations.
Rivers
Perhaps the two most important geographical features of Ancient China were the two major rivers that flowed through central China. The Yellow River flow to the North and the Yangtze River to the South. These Major rivers were a great source of fresh water, food, fertile soil, and transportation. They also were often the base of Chinese poetry, art, literature, and folklore.
Mountains
To the South and Southeast of China, are the Himalaya Mountains. These are the highest mountains in the world, they provided a nearly impenetrable border for Ancient China, keeping the area isolated from many other civilizations. They were also important to Chinese religion, and were considered sacred.
Deserts
To the North and West of Ancient China, were two of the worlds largest deserts. The Gobi Desert, and the Taklamakan Desert. These Deserts also provided barriers that kept the Chinese isolated from the rest of the world. However, the Mongols lived in the Gobi Desert, and were constantly raiding cities of Northern China. The Great Wall of China was built to protect the Chinese from the Mongolian Raiders.