T'ANG DYNASTY: One of CHINA's greatest 
dynasties. Under the T'ang dynasty (618-907), 
CHINA's authority extended even further 
than it did under the HAN DYNASTY (202 
B.C.-220 A.D.). The T'ang dynasty period is 
often considered to have been a time of 
cultural renaissance in CHINA. In the early 
T'ang period BODHIDHARMA arrived from 
INDIA and introduced Ch'an (Zen) 
BUDDHISM and the physical exercises that 
developed into the martial arts. In literature, 
CHINA's greatest poets, including LI PO and 
TU FU, were active. T'ang ceramics were 
greatly valued in the West, where they came 
to be known as china. (See also China article).