Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors

The Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors ( Pinyin: Sānhuáng wǔdì; Wade-Giles: San-huang wu-ti) were mythological rulers of China during the period from c. 2852 BCE to 2205 BCE, which is the time preceding the Xia Dynasty.

(Actually, the translation ofdì/dei⁵ is a problematic one in that it is most often translated using its modern sense, which did not arise until after the advent of an imperial state under Qínshĭhuáng/Cen⁴héi²wong⁴. Its original meaning, and the most likely translation thereof, is that of supreme being, a kind of Übermann, rather than 'emperor'. The characteroriginally represented a shaman wearing a liturgical mantel.)