Why Xi’an Kept Becoming China’s Capital｜Origins to Tang

Why did history keep returning to the same spot for 1,000 years? Discover the urban history and spatial logic of Xi’an, from its origins to the Han Dynasty. Xi’an is one of the few cities in the world that served as a capital again and again across centuries. Long before the famous Tang Dynasty, the foundations of Chinese imperial power were laid here—from the Western Zhou’s Fenghao to the Qin’s Xianyang and the Han’s Chang’an. This is 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐝𝐞 in a three-part series on the urban history of Xi’an.