The China History Podcast

Sorry to everyone for making you wait this long. Welcome to the inaugural episode of this series, which will offer you a concise overview of Chinese history from mythical times to the time of the last emperor of the last imperial dynasty.
We’ll start off with the traditional stories surrounding the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors 三皇五帝 and cover the Xia 夏 and Shang 商 dynasties. The amazing story of the Oracle Bones will also be presented, and how this marked the beginning of recorded Chinese history. In this episode, the story of Jiang Ziya 姜子牙 and his role in supporting the Ji Clan 姬家族 in their efforts to establish the Zhou Dynasty. In the following episodes, we’ll wander through all the dynasties and look at all the people, places, incidents, and events that make up the rich tapestry of Chinese history.
Appearing in this episode will be: Pángǔ 盘古, Nǚwā 女娲, Tiān Huáng 天皇, Dì Huáng 地皇, Tài Huáng 太皇, Fúxī 伏羲, Shénnóng 神农, The Yellow Emperor 黃帝, Chīyóu 蚩尤, Shàohào 少昊, Zhuānxū 颛顼, Kù 喾, Yáo 尧, Shùn 舜, Hòuyì 后羿, Dà Yǔ 大禹, King Jié 夏桀王, Mò Xǐ 妺喜, Yī Yǐn 伊尹, Chéng Tāng 成汤, Wáng Yìróng 王懿荣, Wáng Guówéi 王国维, Wǔ Dīng 武丁, Fù Hǎo 妇好 / Mǔ Xīn 母辛, Pán Gēng 盤庚, Jī Chāng 姬昌 / Zhōu Wén Wáng 周文王, King Zhòu 商纣辛 / Zhóu Xīn 商轴心, Dá Jǐ 妲己, Jiāng Zǐyá 姜子牙, Jī Fā 姬发, Jī Dàn 姬旦, Yuánshǐ Tiānzūn 元始天尊.

Hi Everyone, the CHP will be returning next week. Here's a brief announcement concerning what to expect for the next several months.

Nothing to see here. Just a quick announcement on the latest from the CHP. Thanks for your patience. Lots of new stuff coming soon.
The CHP Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheChinaHistoryPodcast
CHP Premium: https://teacupmedia.supercast.com/

I drove downtown not too long ago to meet with Jesse Appell to talk about his first book, "This was funnier in China" https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/This-Was-Funnier-in-China/Jesse-Appell/9781668087565
Jesse's been performing stand-up comedy and Xiangsheng 相声 for years now. When he isn't engaging in this profession, he's managing and promoting his global tea company, Jesse's Teahouse https://jessesteahouse.com/en-us.
This book tells the story of Jesse's experiences engaging with the PRC and building a nice, comfortable, and exciting life for himself. You'll learn about what it was like living there, about his apprenticeship under Xiangsheng Master Ding Guangquan 丁广泉, his performances, the comedy club he created in Beijing, a whole bunch of interesting characters, and a whole lot more. You may want to slow the audio down to half or quarter speed to take in everything Jesse has to say.
This is all raw and unedited from the Livestream he ran on his various platforms. We clipped on a couple of Bluetooth mics and hit Play on my iPhone to record. The video of this recording can be found at Jesse's TikTok, YouTube, and IG. Thanks, everyone!
Video of the interview: https://www.youtube.com/live/QqSNje4fRzg?si=YzMhQx_ohFt6exR4

I had the idea for this episode sometime during mid-summer 2025. Then I became distracted by the big project I'm working on now, then the holidays, sick cats, and the random hassles of life. This one's only 34 minutes long. My deepest apologies for all the mispronunciations of Maori names. This is the story of Choie Sew Hoy 徐肇开 and the times he lived in during the 19th-century Chinese immigrant scene in New Zealand. There was a lot more going on in the history of Chinese New Zealanders. This story is mostly limited to the events surrounding the Otago Gold Rush of the early 1860s.
Here are a few YouTube videos about this topic:
Journey To Lan Yuan Ep 7 Choie Sew Hoy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMYHSRTVo4M
Journey To Lan Yuan Ep 8 The S.S. Ventnor. https://youtu.be/Q2EXkSdIGAM?si=cEN3uft5CpyU9Rzd
The Mystery of the S.S. Ventnor. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hg8DB42BkAk
Choie Sew Hoy's descendants meet in Dunedin. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhDM4pwxHdM
Please consider supporting my efforts:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/TheChinaHistoryPodcast/
CHP Premium: https://teacupmedia.supercast.com/
Other ways to support: https://teacup.media/support