# Twelve Provinces

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Twelve Provinces Chinese 十二州 Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Shí Èr Zhōu

The map of 12 Provinces of Yao and Shun era of ancient China, recorded in the "Shiji" (Records of Grand Historian)

The **Twelve Provinces** is a term used in ancient Chinese histories to refer to territorial divisions during the reigns of the mythological emperors [Yao](/source/Emperor_Yao) and [Shun](/source/Shun_(Chinese_leader)) of the [Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors](/source/Three_Sovereigns_and_Five_Emperors).

## Records in histories

The "Annals of the Five Emperors" (五帝本紀) section of *[Records of the Grand Historian](/source/Records_of_the_Grand_Historian)* mentioned:

[Shun](/source/Shun_(Chinese_leader)) felt that the land north of [Ji Province](/source/Jizhou_(ancient_China)) was too wide, so he created [Bing Province](/source/Bingzhou); [Yan](/source/Yan_(state)) and [Qi](/source/Qi_(state)) were too vast and distant, so he formed [You Province](/source/Youzhou) out of Yan, and [Ying Province](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Yingzhou_(ancient_China)&action=edit&redlink=1) out of Qi, hence there were the Twelve Provinces. [1]

Volume 85 of the *[Book of Han](/source/Book_of_Han)* recorded that in 30 BC [Gu Yong](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gu_Yong_(Western_Han)&action=edit&redlink=1) (谷永) mentioned:

There was a great flood in [Yao](/source/Emperor_Yao)'s time, the land was divided into the Twelve Provinces...

[2]

[Yan Shigu](/source/Yan_Shigu) of the [Tang dynasty](/source/Tang_dynasty) wrote this annotation in volume 85 of the *Book of Han*:

The Twelve Provinces were [Ji](/source/Jizhou_(ancient_China)), [Yan](/source/Yanzhou_(ancient_China)), [Yu](/source/Yuzhou_(ancient_China)), [Qing](/source/Qingzhou_(ancient_China)), [Xu](/source/Xuzhou_(ancient_China)), [Jing](/source/Jingzhou_(ancient_China)), [Yang](/source/Yangzhou_(ancient_China)), [Yong](/source/Yongzhou_(ancient_China)), [Liang](/source/Liangzhou_(ancient_China)), [You](/source/Youzhou), [Bing](/source/Bingzhou), and [Ying](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Yingzhou_(ancient_China)&action=edit&redlink=1) (營).

[3]

## See also

- [China portal](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:China)

- [Nine Provinces](/source/Nine_Provinces_(China))

- [Eighteen Provinces](/source/Eighteen_Provinces)

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** (舜以冀州之北廣大，分置并州；燕、齊遼遠，分燕置幽州，分齊為營州，於是為十二州。) Sima Qian. *Records of the Grand Historian*, Volume 1, Annals of the Five Emperors.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** (堯遭洪水之災，天下分絕為十二州……) Ban Gu et al. *Book of Han*, Volume 85, Biographies of Gu Yong and Du Ye.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** (十二州謂兾、兗、豫、青、徐、荊、揚、雍、梁、幽、並、營也。) Ban Gu et al. *Book of Han*, Volume 85, Biographies of Gu Yong and Du Ye (including annotations by Yan Shigu).

## External links

v t e Chinese provinces before the Qin dynasty Nine Provinces mentioned in "Tribute of Yu", Classic of History Ji Yan Qing Xu Yu Yang Jing Liang Yong Nine Provinces mentioned in "Explaining Earth", Erya Ji Yan You Xu Yu Yang Jing Ying Yong Nine Provinces mentioned in "Clan Responsibilities", Rituals of Zhou Ji Yan Qing You Yu Yang Jing Bing Yong Nine Provinces mentioned in "Initial Survey", Lüshi Chunqiu Ji Yan Qing Xu Yu Yang Jing You Yong Twelve Provinces in Yao and Shun's time Ji Yan Qing Xu Yu Yang Jing Liang Yong You Bing Ying

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