The Xi’an region is one of the most important in the history of China, both as the capital of several ruling dynasties and as a market and trade centre. Xi’an was the eastern terminus of the Silk Road, the ancient trade route that connected China with the Mediterranean.

Xi’an was the eastern starting point of the ancient Silk Road, which was not just a road, but an international connection bringing products from one side of the world to the other, an important path for cultural, commercial and technological exchange between east and west.

The Silk Road began in north-central China in Xi’an (in modern Shaanxi province). A caravan track stretched west along the Great Wall of China, across the Pamirs, through Afghanistan, and into the Levant and Anatolia.

Xi’an is the oldest of China’s four great ancient capitals and former home to the ruling houses of the Zhou, Qin, Han and Tang dynasties. As the starting point for the Silk Road, Xi’an stands to benefit from the Belt and Road Initiative that will stimulate trade across an expansive route over 60 countries.

Mandarin
Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Guanzhong dialect (Chinese: 关中话/關中話; pinyin: Guānzhōng huà), is a dialect of Central Plains Mandarin spoken in Shaanxi’s Guanzhong region, including the prefecture-level city of Xi’an.

Xi’an is one of China’s most popular tourist destinations. Xi’an is most famous for its Terracotta Warriors, which have become an international symbol of China’s history. Ancient: Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, Ancient City Wall, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Bell Tower.

The Silk Route was a series of ancient trade networks that connected China and the Far East with countries in Europe and the Middle East. The route included a group of trading posts and markets that were used to help in the storage, transport, and exchange of goods. It was also known as the Silk Road.

The Kushanas: The Kushana dynasty ruled over central Asia and north-west India about 2000 years ago. They had the best control over the ancient silk route; compared to any other ruler of that time. Their two major centres of power were; Peshawar and Mathura.

1. Mandarin Chinese. Interestingly, the hardest language to learn is also the most widely spoken native language in the world. Mandarin Chinese is challenging for a number of reasons.

Xi’an, known as Chang’an in ancient times, is an important birthplace of the history and culture of the Chinese nation. It has a history of more than 3,100 years as a city and 1,100 years as a capital. It was the earliest and longest-lasting ancient capital in China, and also spanned the most dynasties.

The Silk Road was established by China’s Han Dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE) through territorial expansion. The Silk Road was a series of trade and cultural transmission routes that were central to cultural interaction between the West and East.

The mosque as we see it today is located in a Muslim quarter of Xi’an, not far from the location of the western market whose merchants played an important role in the continuing trade with the West throughout the Ming and Qing dynasties, along the Silk Roads to Inner Asia.

The Tang Silk Road: Connecting Cultures. Buddhism itself was carried along these roads from India through Central Asia to Tibet, China, and Japan. Islam was carried by Sufi teachers, and by armies, moving across the continent from Western Asia into Iran, Central Asia, and into China and India.

One of the few major Tang-era buildings left in Xi’an today is the Big Wild Goose (Dayan) Pagoda, first built in 652 AD, housing the library that Xuanzang collected.

It was under the Han Emperor Wu Di (141-87 BC) that the first Chinese missions were sent to south-eastern Asia, central Asia and eventually even Rome, marking the beginnings of the Silk Road.