Emperor Gaozu of Han
Emperor Gaozu of Han (; 256 BCE – 1 June 195 BCE), born Liu Bang (劉邦), was the founder and first emperor of the Han dynasty, reigning from 202 – 195 BCE. He was one of the few dynasty founders in Chinese history who was born in a peasant family.
Han Chinese
The Han dynasty's founding emperor, Liu Bang, was made king of the Hanzhong region after the fall of the Qin dynasty, a title that was later shortened to "the King of Han" () during the Chu-Han contention. The name "Hanzhong", in turn, was derived from the Han River, which flows through the region's plains. The river, in turn, derives its name from expressions such as "Tianhan" (, "the heavenly river"), "Yinhan" (, "the silver river"), "Xinghan" (, "the star river") or "Yunhan" (, "the cloud river"), all ancient Chinese poetic nicknames for the Milky Way and first mentioned in the "Classic of Poetry".