# Question about China

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-china/42879>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [November 27, 2000, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-china/42879 "2000-11-27T17:31:50Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![WashU77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/258eb7/32.png) [@WashU77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WashU77)\
**Post date:** [November 27, 2000, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-china/42879/1 "2000-11-27T17:31:50Z")

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A Cecil classic [http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a970620.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a970620.html)  
discussed the dominance of Europe. That article reminded me a question I’ve long held, but been to busy/lazy (pick one) to research myself.

How is it that China came to embrace a form of goverment invented a scant 150 years ago by a couple of German guys. China has been around for what? 4,000 years or so? (Xia dynasty - “from about the twenty-first to the sixteenth century B.C.”. My impression is that the Chinese have historically been pretty xenophobic. Am I wrong about that?

Is there a short answer to this question?

TIA for any insights or URLs with further information.

-bs-

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**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\
**Post date:** [November 27, 2000, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-china/42879/2 "2000-11-27T18:39:08Z")

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The – ahem! – Marxist “form of government” in question is a heck of a lot older than Marxism.

“Meet the new boss – same as the old boss…”