Study On The Social Complexity Of Taihu Lake Basin From Middle Songze Period To Early Liangzhu Period

The complexity of Taihu Lake basin society in prehistoric times has been a hot research topic in academic circles for many years.This paper focuses on the relationship between population composition and social organization,combs the space-time characteristics of prehistoric social forms in Taihu Lake basin,compares the population composition in different regions,and analyzes the causes of its formation.The article mainly includes the following parts:Firstly,the paper combs the process of social complexity in each region from the middle Songze period to the early Liangzhu Period.According to geographical location and cultural features,the Taihu Lake basin is divided into five regions,namely the north,east,south,west and Yuhang region,and discusses the burial customs in each region in different periods.Secondly,the temporal and spatial characteristics of social development from the middle Songze period to the early Liangzhu period in Taihu Basin are discussed,and the composition and social structure of people around Taihu Region are analyzed through burial customs.In the middle of Songze Period,different areas of Taihu Lake showed different cultural features.Some areas had the phenomenon of migration,and the social relations within the settlements were relatively close,but there was no complicated society.From the late Songze Period,the mutual communication and influence of various regional cultures began to strengthen,and the phenomenon of mass migration appeared in the south of Taihu Lake,which began to show the trend of social complexity.In the early Liangzhu period,the cultural features of various regions tended to be unified,and a large number of people moved into Yuhang area,which complicated the initial formation of the society.Thirdly,combined with environmental and biological factors,this paper summarizes the causes of social complexity from the middle Songze period to the early Liangzhu period in Taihu Basin.The eastern and western parts of Taihu Lake were formed about 5500 years ago due to the effect of the “Gangshen Coastline”,while the southern mouth of Taihu Lake via Hangzhou Bay was closed about 7500 years ago and was no longer affected by the sea.Therefore,the eastern,northern and western parts of Taihu Lake basin were more affected by the sea.In addition,environmental archaeological evidence shows that the Taihu Lake basin experienced a dramatic climate change around 5700-5300 years ago,which led to the migration and settlement of a large number of people to the south of Taihu Lake.Under the action of population pressure,rice cultivation tended to become specialized,which to some extent promoted the process of social complexity.In short,the evolution of culture from Songze period to Liangzhu period showed obvious mutation,and the emergence of Liangzhu culture marked the formation of complex social structure in Taihu Basin.The factors behind this process,such as climate change,human migration and livelihood pattern,are of great significance for us to understand the social development in the Taihu Basin in prehistoric times.