How to Say "Ancient China" in Chinese

中国古代

zhōng guó gǔ dài

The English phrase "ancient china" is translated into Chinese as 中国古代 (zhōng guó gǔ dài).

中国古代 refers to the period of history in China from early times up to the end of the imperial dynasties.

What does it mean word for word?

The phrase is composed of 中国 (zhōng guó), meaning 'China' and 古代 (gǔ dài), meaning 'ancient times'.

The word 古代 alone means 'ancient'. If you want to describe something as 'ancient or old', you can use 古老, whereas the specific word 老 means 'old'.

Cantonese speakers refer to 'Ancient China' as 古代中國.

zhōng guó gǔ dài

The term 中国 (zhōng guó) translates literally to 'Middle Kingdom', a name reflecting the historical belief that China sat at the center of the civilized world.
While 古代 refers to a historical era, Chinese speakers use the word 古风 'ancient style' to describe a modern aesthetic trend that mimics the fashion and music of 中国古代.
In the context of 中国古代, historians often divide history into 上古 'primeval' and 古代 'ancient', with the former referring to a mythologized era of legendary emperors.

子是中国古代对有学问的人的尊称，如孔子，老子，墨子，韩非子。
The title "Zi" was an honorific title for learned scholars in ancient China, such as Confucius, Laozi, Mozi and Han Feizi.
This sentence is useful for discussing the honorific titles for learned scholars in 中国古代.
Tatoeba #13947930 by jan_OkulaJu, translation #13947931 by jan_OkulaJu
过年吃饺子的习俗和中国古代的计时法有关：中国古代把每一天分为十二个时段，每天开始是子时，相当于晚上11点到凌晨1点。
The custom of eating dumplings on New Year's Eve is related to an ancient Chinese method of measuring time, in ancient China, each day was divided into twelve sections: the beginning of each day was called 'first time', which corresponds to the period from 11pm to 1am.
This sentence explains how certain customs and time-keeping methods were related to 中国古代.
Tatoeba #757007 by eastasiastudent, translation #757013 by eastasiastudent
中国古代的建筑非常宏伟。
Zhōngguó gǔdài de jiànzhù fēicháng hóngwěi.
The architecture of ancient China is very magnificent.

Two friends are talking in a museum.

志强 Zhiqiang

这些文物来自中国古代吗？
Zhèxiē wénwù láizì Zhōngguó gǔdài ma?
Do these relics come from ancient China?
雨婷 Yuting

是的，它们很有历史价值。
Shì de, tāmen hěn yǒu lìshǐ jiàzhí.
Yes, they have great historical value.
志强 Zhiqiang

雨婷，你看那个青铜器。
Yǔtíng, nǐ kàn nàge qīngtóngqì.
Yuting, look at that bronze vessel.
雨婷 Yuting

它真的很漂亮。
Tā zhēn de hěn piàoliang.
It is truly beautiful.

Sources

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