LESSON 19 STUDY GUIDE ANSWERS

What protected Inner China from invasion from the northwest?

The deserts protected Inner China from invasion from the northwest.

In Inner China, which natural events enriched the soil?

The floods bring silt that enriches the soil.

How did the natural vegetation of the Northeastern Plain affect the lives of ancient settlers there?

The natural vegetation is mostly prairie grass, which in ancient times provided food for horses, sheep, and other animals raised by herders.

In ancient times, what limited settlement in the Chang Jiang Basins?

The rain forest vegetation may have limited the space for farming

Why did fewer people settle in Outer China than in Inner China?

Inner China has a land of rolling hills, river valleys, plains, and rivers from the west provide the area with water for irrigation and brings silt that enriches the soil. To early settlers, these physical features made Inner China more attractive than Outer China.

The major rivers of ancient China flowed down from what region?

It flowed down from Tibet-Qinghai Plateau

4. Why is the Tibet-Qinghai Plateau called the "Roof of the World"?

It is called this because its average elevation of 13,500 feet is more than two miles above sea level.

Why is the North China Plain sometimes called the "Land of the Yellow Earth"?

It is called this because the ground is covered in yellow limestone silt, which comes from the Gobi Desert.

What made the Taklimakan Desert one of the most dangerous deserts in the world?

It is considered one of the most dangerous deserts in the worlds because the desert winds can cause huge sand dunes to shift and change, creating sandstorms that move at a stunning speed. It is also too hot to have much vegetation.

Why did ancient people on the Tibet-Qinghai Plateau herd yaks rather than grow crops?

It was too cold and dry to grow crops, but the grasses did provide food for yaks and other livestock.

Because rice requires warm, wet weather, where did the ancient Chinese develop rice fields?

the Chang Jiang Basins

Several groups of invaders from the Northeastern Plain by...

a narrow coastal plain that links this area to the rest of China.

What three natural barriers, shown on the map, helped protect Inner China from invasion?

Mountains, Deserts and Rivers.

Later in Chinese history, which of these geographical features made governing China as a unified state most difficult?

Later in Chinese history, the same geographic features that kept ancient China isolated also made it challenging to govern a developing China as a unified state.

How did the Huang He most influence settlement near its banks?

The Huang He influenced farmers, by carrying silt that helps fertilize the surrounding lands, making the North China Plain a good place in which to settle and grow crops. It also provides farmers loess.

What is one factor that may have made east-west travel easier than north-south travel within Inner China in ancient times?

The Yellow and Yangtze Rivers could have been one factor.

What do the Turfan Depression and the Chang Jiang Basins have in common?

They are both lower than many other parts of China

How is the Gobi Desert different from the Taklimakan Desert?

Unlike the Taklimakan Desert, the Gobi has very few sand dunes. Most of the surface is made of stone consisting small pebbles and tiny bits of sand. The vegetation is sparse.

Of all the countries in the world, China has the

most people