Primitive age
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Ancient Ancestors of the Nation
According to chinese legends and myths, all people were created by the original ancestor of mankind, the Great Mother, Nv Wa. Pan Gu separated heaven and earth, but he died alone. His body became the new world. Countless years passed, Nu Wa appeared. She created the first human beings after her own image: she took some loess and shaped some "mud dolls" in her form, and set them on the land. The mud instantly turned into humans, who scattered in all directions.
Of course, according to research, the oldest direct ancestor of mankind was Ramapithecus. In 1956 and 1975, the fossils of ancient apes that lived at the same time as did Ramapithecus were found in Kaiyuan City and Lufen County of Yunnan Province. This means this land fostered the earliest ancestors of mankind. About two to three million years ago, a tool-making creature appeared. This ape was widely dispersed across China. From the fossils of these apes, Yuanmou Man, Lantian Man and Peking Man were identified.
China's ancient legends have passed down interesting and cherished accounts of this era. Legend has it that several outstanding figures appeared in China's primitive clans: Youchao Shi, Suiren Shi, Fuxi Shi and Shennong Shi. Fuxi Shi, Shennong Shi and Nu Wa are together called the Three Sage Rulers