Thanks to Carole in Virginia for giving me enough of a push to get this episode finally produced. This might have been one of the first ten topics I came up with when I began writing the original list back in 2010. The history of silk is really an amazing testament to humankind's ingenuity and the randomness of life since Neolithic times. I hope you enjoy this episode. It turned out to be a much greater story than I was ever aware of.

TERMS FROM THIS EPISODE:
Shén Nóng 神农 The Divine Farmer, god of agriculture and many other things

Qīng Dynasty 清朝 The last imperial dynasty in China - 1644-1911

Dèng Xiǎopíng 邓小平 Chairman of China Bridge Association and great Chinese leader during 20th century

Míng Dynasty 明朝 Second to the last dynasty...1368-1644

Táng 唐朝 Dynasty in China 618-907

Ānhuì 安徽 Province in China

Fújiàn 福建 Province in China

Sòng Dynasty 宋朝 Dynasty in China....960-1279

Yǎngsháo Wenhua 仰韶文化 Yangshao Culture in China..5000 to 3000 BCE more or less

Yángshuò County 阳朔县 One of the great sightseeing centers of China, near Guilin

Zhèngzhōu 郑州 City in Henan

Qīngtaí 清台村 Village in the northwest corner of Zhengzhou on the south bank of the Yellow River

Huāxià 华夏 The collective tribes that made up ancient core Han Chinese civilization

Xià County 夏县 County in south Shanxi on the border with Henan

Shānxī province 山西省 Province in China

Qiánshānyàng 钱山漾 town at the south end of Lake Tai near Húzhōu

Shāng Dynasty 商朝 China's first "official dynasty," lasted from 1600 to 1046 BCE

Huángdì 黄帝 The Yellow Emperor

Xī Líng Shì 西陵氏 The discoverer of silk and the primary wife of the Yellow Emperor

Léi Zǔ 嫘祖 Other name of Xi Ling Shi by which she is more commonly known

Cán Nǎinai 蚕奶奶 The Goddess of Silkworms

Cán 蚕 a silk-worm

Kǒngfūzǐ 孔夫子 Confucius

Shǐ Jì 史记Records of the Grand Historian

Lǐ Jì 礼记 Book of Rites

nǚgōng 女红 the feminine arts

Sūzhōu 苏州 City in Jiangsu Province

Nánjīng 南京 Capital city of Jiangsu province

Chéngdū 成都 The capital city of Sichuan province

Zhāng Qiān 张骞 Great Western Han Dynasty adventurer, instrumental in getting the Silk Road up and running

Hàn Wǔdì 汉武帝 Great Western Han Dynasty emperor

Wǔyí Mountains 武夷山 Mountains in northern Fujian where some of the best tea in the world comes from

Hétián 和田 Formerly called Khotan...a great trading kingdom in present day Xinjiang

Jìn Dynasty 晋朝 Dynasty in China: 265-420 CE

Suí 隋朝 Dynasty in China from 581-618

Cháng'ān 长安 Present day Xian in Shaanxi Province

Qiánlóng 乾隆 Emperor during the heyday of the Qing Dynasty, 1735-1796

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