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Last Updated November 2007

Notes:
History of Amoy (adapted from "Amoy Magic--Guide to Xiamen)

5,018 Years Our province of Fújiàn hasa history extending back before the dawn of Chinese civilization 5,018 years ago.1 In fact, I was even told that scientific records prove that cave relics in Sānmíng’s Wànshòuyán (三明万寿岩) are 180,000 years old.

Leave it to Chinese to keep scientific records for 180,000 years.

Little is known of ancient Fújiàn inhabitants like the Mín （闽) because they left no written records, other than some Shāng Dynasty (商代16th-11th century B.C.) pictographs carved into a rock in a Huì‘ān (惠安)village.

Eventually, some ancient Chinese wit discovered writing, or at least how to draw better (Chinese characters are pictographs), and began recording Fújiàn’s history back around the Warring States Period (475 – 221 BC). That was when the State of Chu (Húběi and Húnán Provinces) chewed up the Yuè3 (越) in present-day Jiāngsū (江苏) and Zhèjiāng (浙江) Provinces. The Yuè fled to Guǎngdōng (广东), Guǎngxī (广西), Vietnam, and Fújiàn, where they were called the Mǐnyuè (闽越).

Ancient Fujianese left us some pretty strange relics, such as the 4,018 year old boat-shaped tombs hundreds of feet up the vertical cliffs of Wǔyí Mountain (Wǔyíshān, 武夷山). I’ve been dying to know why and how they made such tombs. Had von Danaken, author of “Chariots of the Gods”, seen them, he’d have claimed ancient extraterrestrials made frequent stopovers in Fújiàn, probably for Chinese take-out. NASA may think so too.

Ancient Fújiàn’s Mǐnyuè were joined by such tribes as the Shē clan (Shēzú,畲族) and the Miáo tribe (Miáozú, 苗族). Originally from the Yangtze River Valley, the Shē claim descent from a legendary emperor—hence their unique ‘phoenix clothing’ and ‘phoenix hairstyles’ (Chinese associate phoenix with royalty).

We also have the Dan Tribe (Dànzú但族), whose Mongol ancestors made the long trek to Fújiàn about 700 years ago. They are not related to the Israelite tribe of Dàn, though China does have so many Chinese Jews scattered about that some experts claim they are remnants of Israel’s Lost Tribes. And given the state of some of our maps, I can see how they got lost.
Whether China really had lost Jews or not is debatable, but we did have lots of Lost Arabs, with at least 40,000 in ancient Quánzhōu. Their descendants today include the Dīng (丁) and Guō (郭) clans, some of whom have curly hair and hooked noses, and look more Lǎowài than Lǎonèi.
It appears that some Chinese Arabs are as zealous as their Middle Eastern cousins. Back when Iran was after Salman Rushdie’s hide for writing “Satanic Verses,” N.W. China’s Moslems were after a Chinese writer for heresy.

With so much running after folks, I can understand why back in 1935 they changed Persia’s name to “Iran.”

The Guest People Over 1,000 years ago, entire villages of “Guest People” (Kèjiā 客家) migrated from the Central Plains to remote areas of Fújiàn. They have so faithfully preserved their ancient language and customs that many people mistake them for a minority, but they are Han and proud of it.
But ironically, even after 1,000 years they still call themselves “Guest People”. I have had some guests wear out their welcome in just a weekend. If I had a bunch stick around for 1,000 years ago I’d show them the door.

To avoid being shown the door, these gutsy “guests” built the giant earthen fortresses that have fascinated architects the world over (UNESCO dubbed them “The World’s 8th Wonder”; see p. 148).
These well-rounded dwellings also got the attention of the C.I.A.

Hakka Silos? I told some Hakka friends that their homes were round so their wives couldn’t corner them, and some agreed with me! But back in 1985, President Reagan and the CIA had a different explanation. An intelligence report warned,

"We are not joking here to use 'group'. The group nuclear base is likely to be a fact. According to our report through the KH22 satellite hovering, there are over 1, 500 unidentified huge mushroom-like buildings in Fujian Province of China, which are extremely similar to nuclear equipment. New penetrative satellite can observe through high buildings, but failed in front of the 1, 500 high-rises, in which China's sophistication of nuclear research can be seen. Therefore, it is necessary to grasp the nature of the buildings." People’s Daily, April 7, 2004

In December, 1985, a couple from the New York Institute of Photography visited China to take photos—supposedly of scenery and culture, but their real goal was to photograph the “silos.” Zhāngzhōu’s Federation of Literature and Art warmly received the “photographers” and proudly gave them a tour. The couple reported to the CIA that the “sophisticated” silos were earthen fortresses, some of them centuries old.

NASA, meanwhile, is probably wondering if the saucer-shaped dwellings aren’t proof that the ancient Min really did come from space.

   ....continued in "Amoy Magic-Guide to Xiamen"