华夏之祖

　　中国人常说自己是“炎黄子孙”，这个说法跟传说中的人物黄帝和炎帝有关。 大约4,000多年以前，中国黄河流域一带住许多氏族和部落，其中比较著名的是以黄帝、炎帝为首领的两大部落。 黄帝和炎帝两个部落在黄河流域，势力强大。在东方还生活一个势力也很强大的部落叫九黎部落，九黎部落的首领叫蚩尤。相传，当时的九黎族人已经使用铜造的兵器，打起仗来非常勇猛，常常进攻别的部落。 传说蚩尤部落为了扩大自己的地盘，同炎帝部落发生了战争。炎帝部落战败，向黄帝求援。黄帝与炎帝联合起来大战蚩尤。这次战争发生在涿鹿(zhuolu，今河北省境内)。在战斗中，忽然天昏地暗，大雾弥漫，连对面的人也看不见。黄帝使用指南车，帮助士兵识别方向，追击蚩尤，结果蚩尤被捉住杀死。 涿鹿之战后，黄帝和炎帝两个部落为了争夺对其他各部落的领导地位，又发生了冲突，最后黄帝部落取得了胜利。两个部落进一步结合在一起，其它部落也纷纷加入黄帝部落的联盟，共同开发中原地区。各部落在语言、习惯、生产、生活等各方面的交流逐渐加强，经过长期的融合和发展，形成了华夏族的主体。 华夏族是汉族的前身，是中华民族的主要组成部分。华夏族把黄帝、炎帝看做自己的祖先，称自己为“炎黄子孙”。直到今天，汉族人和许多兄弟民族还习惯这么说。

　　Ancestors of the Chinese Nation

　　Chinese people often refer to themselves as "descendants of Yandi and Huangdi". This refers to the legendary heroes Yandi and Huangdi. Over 4,000 years ago, there lived many clans and tribes in the Yellow River valley, among which the two tribes led by Huangdi and Yandi, respectively, were the most prominent. To the east of the Yellow River valley was the territory of the Jiuli tribe, with Chiyou as its chieftain. It is said that the Jiuli people already had bronze weapons, and were a warlike group. Legend has it that the Jiuli attacked Yandi's tribe. The latter was defeated, and turned to Huangdi for help. Huangdi allied himself with Yandi, and defeated Chiyou at a place called Zhuolu (in today's Hebei Province). During the battle, a dense mist descended, and all was in confusion. However, on his chariot Huangdi had an instrument which constantly pointed south. In this way, he rallied the allied forces. Finally, Chiyou was captured and killed. After the Battle of Zhuolu, conflicts arose between the tribes of Huangdi and Yandi for hegemony of all the tribes. At last, Huangdi prevailed, and ruled over all the tribes of the Central Plains. Eventually, they merged their languages, customs, and production and living habits, to form the Huaxia people. The Huaxia people were the predecessor of the Han people, and the principal part of the Chinese nation. The Huaxia people regarded Huangdi and Yandi as their ancestors, and called themselves "descendants of Yandi and Huangdi".