The Non-government Trade Between the Western Han Dynasty and the Xiongnu in the 2nd Century BCE
Abstract
The paper pays close attention to the non-government trade between the Western Han Dynasty and the Xiongnu and its unintended political consequences in the 2nd century BCE. Through the investigation of the Central Plains and the north nomadic patriarch period of communication history based on traditional literature and archaeological sources, the work holds that the domestic trade network since the 5th century BCE extended beyond the Central Plains during the Warring States period. It became a tool for the game between the two regimes in the early Western Han Dynasty. Then, when the Han regime gained the upper hand in the game, its economic and political influence extended to the northern and Western regions with the extension of the trade network, which made the foreign trade of the Han Dynasty become “domestic trade” to some extent. At the same time, the foreign policy of the Han Dynasty became hardline, leading to territorial expansion, which became a liability to the empire, especially when it was in decline.
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