Kings
Shang kings are conventionally referred to by posthumous names, of which the last character is one of the heavenly stems.
The earliest records are the oracle bones inscribed during the reigns of the Shang kings from Wu Ding. The oracle bones do not contain king lists, but they do record the sacrifices to previous kings and the ancestors of the current king, which follow a standard schedule. From this evidence, scholars have assembled the implied king list and genealogy, finding that it is in substantial agreement with the later accounts, especially for later kings in the dynasty.
The kings, in the order of succession derived from the oracle bones, are here grouped by generation:
| Generation | Older brothers of patriarch | Line of descent | Younger brothers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | 大乙 Dà Yǐ | ||||
| 16 | 大丁 Dà Dīng | ||||
| 15 | 大甲 Dà Jiǎ | 卜丙 Bǔ Bǐng | |||
| 14 | 大庚 Dà Gēng | 小甲 Xiǎo Jiǎ | |||
| 13 | 大戊 Dà Wù | 呂己 Lǚ Jǐ | |||
| 12 | 中丁 Zhōng Dīng | 卜壬 Bǔ Rén | |||
| 11 | 戔甲 Jiān Jiǎ | 祖乙 Zǔ Yǐ | |||
| 10 | 祖辛 Zǔ Xīn | 羌甲 Qiāng Jiǎ | |||
| 9 | 祖丁 Zǔ Dīng | 南庚 Nán Gēng | |||
| 8 | 象甲 Xiàng Jiǎ | 盤庚 Pán Gēng | 小辛 Xiǎo Xīn | 小乙 Xiǎo Yǐ | |
| 7 | 武丁 Wǔ Dīng | ||||
| 6 | 祖庚 Zǔ Gēng | 祖甲 Zǔ Jiǎ | |||
| 5 | 廩辛 Lǐn Xīn | 康丁 Kāng Dīng | |||
| 4 | 武乙 Wǔ Yǐ | ||||
| 3 | 文武丁 Wén Wǔ Dīng | ||||
| 2 | 帝乙 Dì Yǐ | ||||
| 1 | 帝辛 Dì Xīn | ||||
- Notes
Read more about this topic: Shang Dynasty
Famous quotes containing the word kings:
“‘Tis the old secret of the gods that they come in low disguises. ‘Tis the vulgar great who come dizened with gold and jewels. Real kings hide away their crowns in their wardrobes, and affect a plain and poor exterior.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“...some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him, saying, “Go away, baldhead! Go away, baldhead!””
—Bible: Hebrew, 2 Kings 2:23.
Elisha--proving that baldness has been a source of sensitivity for centuries, Elisha cursed them and they died.
“Grammar, which rules even kings ...”
—Molière [Jean Baptiste Poquelin] (1622–1673)