A Doubt of DU Yu’s View for Rong as Shanyi (Uncivilized People):Interpretation of Shanyi

According to Spring and Autumn Annals by ZUO Qiuming, when Chu Kingdom met its serious famine, Rong attacked its Southwest, and then to Fushan and Dalin. And later, it attacked Chu’s southeast till to Yangqiu, and then invaded Zizhi. DU Yu made note “Rongs are shanyi (uncivilized people)”. This is not convincing. Here, Rong is Luhun Rong instead of Shanyi. Moreover, the word “shanyi” appeared much later. In pre-Qin time, there was not such word. Obviously, DU Yu interpreted annals of Spring and Autumn period with the names of his period. The word “shanyi” originally referred to aborigines in Taiwan. Later, its meaning expanded. It can referred to aborigines of Jingzhou, tribes in the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River, thieves, and people in mountainous areas in central Yizhou. In late Warring States period, Rongs were fused into Huaxia, so “shanyi” was not the same as Rong of pre-Qin times. As for the causes for such mistake, the author thinks that DU Yu had experience of defeating so-called “shanyi”