which lay two further barbarian zones—an inner one or controlled
zone for those barbarian tribes who accepted Chinese suzerainty, and
an outer or wild zone for those who did not. The five zones combined
thus constituted ‘all under Heaven’.^8
The hierarchical relationship between these zones was defined
by the frequency with which tribute was presented to the emperor. In
the central zone, this was on a daily basis in the form of produce and
services rendered to the court. The lords were required to present their
tribute once a month, while tribute from the pacified zone was
expected every three months. Controlled barbarians presented tribute
annually, while those beyond, in the wild zone, were expected to
appear only once at court, a symbolic appearance that signalled their
inclusion within the Chinese world order.
While this was clearly an idealised schema, during the Han
dynasty it did roughly reflect the division, within the Chinese cultural
area, into a well-guarded capital territory, commanderies under central
administration, and feudal kingdoms that had declared allegiance to
the Han emperor. Over time, most of these kingdoms reverted to the
direct control of the central administration, particularly after the con-
quests of Han Wudi, who finally brought the Yue coastal region into
the empire. Even after these conquests, the Yue counted as inner or
controlled barbarians, or ‘dependent countries’, from whom annual
tribute was expected. The Xiongnu, by contrast, were classified as
outer or wild barbarians beyond Chinese control, and so not expected
to pay regular tribute.
The tributary system was not fully institutionalised under the
Han, but it did evolve in response to particular circumstances. Because
it applied, as noted above, to Chinese as well as barbarians, the system
was in a sense inclusive rather than divisive. It included barbarians
within the Chinese world order, but created a clear distinction
between inner and outer barbarians, between those effectively
colonised through imperial expansion, and those allowed independent
status. Non-Chinese peoples within the empire were placed under
A Short History of China and Southeast Asia