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The Han dynasty lasted for about 400 years. Over 90% of the current Chinese population claim to be descendants of the “Han People” originating from this era. China was a name adopted from the previous dynasty, the Ch’in. In regards to historical time periods, the Han dynasty was the East Asian counterpart of the Roman Empire in its Golden Age. The Han Dynasty is dived into two parts; The Former Han, or Western Han with the capital city of Ch’ang-an and the Later Han or Eastern Han with its’ capital at Loyang. The Former Han lasted from 202 B.C. - 9 A.D., while the Later Han lasted from 23 - 220 A.D. Their was a brief interlude between 9 and 23 A.D. when the reformer, Wang Mang, succeeded in capturing the throne in what is known as the Hsin Dynasty. The Han Dynasty formerly began with the ascension of a commoner to the throne, Liu Pang. Liu Pang was an able ruler wha spent most of his time battling the incursions of Barbarian marauders from the north known as the H