Chronology of Chinese dynasties & History

Below is very short but useful post reprinted from Wikipedia time-lining the various Chinese Dynasties (Click on H for the history of the dynasty, and E for a table of its emperors (or other rulers).

 

Dynasty	Chinese	Pinyin	Links	Period	years
Three Sovereign Ones and the Five Emperors	三皇五帝	sān huáng wǔ dì	(H – E)	before 2070 BC	628+
Xià Dynasty	夏	xià	(H – E)	2100 BC — 1600 BC	470
Shang Dynasty	商	shāng	(H – E)	1600 BC — 1046 BC	554
Western Zhou Dynasty	西周	xī zhōu	(H – E)	1046 BC — 771 BC	275
Eastern Zhou Dynasty Traditionally divided into Spring and Autumn Period Warring States Period	東周春秋 戰國	dōng zhōu chūn qiū zhàn guó	(H – E)(H – E) (H – E)	770 BC — 256 BC722 BC — 476 BC 475 BC — 221 BC	514246 254
Qin Dynasty	秦	qín	(H – E)	221 BC — 206 BC	15
Western Han Dynasty	西漢	xī hàn	(H – E)	206 BC — AD 9	215
Xin Dynasty	新	xīn	(H – E)	9 — 23	14
Eastern Han Dynasty	東漢	dōng hàn	(H – E)	25 — 220	195
Three Kingdoms	三國	sān guó	(H – E)	220 — 265	45
Western Jin Dynasty	西晉	xī jìn	(H – E)	265 — 317	52
Eastern Jin Dynasty	東晉	dōng jìn	(H – E)	317 — 420	103
Southern and Northern Dynasties	南北朝	nán běi cháo	(H – E)	420 — 589	169
Sui Dynasty	隋	suí	(H – E)	581 – 618	37
Tang Dynasty	唐	táng	(H – E)	618 — 907	289
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms	五代十國	wǔ dài shí guó	(H – E)	907 — 960	53
Northern Song Dynasty	北宋	běi sòng	(H – E)	960 — 1127	167
Southern Song Dynasty	南宋	nán sòng	(H – E)	1127 — 1279	152
Liao Dynasty	遼	liáo	(H – E)	916 — 1125	209
Jin Dynasty	金	jīn	(H – E)	1115 — 1234	119
Yuan Dynasty	元	yuán	(H – E)	1271 — 1368	97
Ming Dynasty	明	míng	(H – E)	1368 — 1644	276
Shun Dynasty	順	shùn	(H – E)	1644	<1
Qing Dynasty	清	qīng	(H – E)	1644 — 1912	268