Oracle Bone Inscriptions of Shang Dynasty failed to see Xia Dynasty, but why did Zhou Dynasty record Xia Dynasty?

The Zhou Dynasty itself was relatively prosperous and recorded by special historians, so it also recorded the Xia Dynasty.

Because the Shang Dynasty itself was a turbulent era, and Oracle Bone Inscriptions's main purpose was divination, not a history book to record history, it was normal not to mention the Xia Dynasty. The Shang Dynasty was in various wars for the first 300 years, and it was not until Pan Geng moved to Yin that he officially stabilized. Therefore, in this process, the capital is constantly moved, and even if there is information about the Xia Dynasty, it may be lost.

In addition, we all know that the main usage of Oracle Bone Inscriptions is actually used for divination. In Shang Dynasty, when they recorded things, they didn't carve them on bamboo or other things with a knife. In many cases, they use a tool similar to the brush we use today to write, so it is very easy to disappear because of sandstorm, so it is actually logically meaningful.

In addition, in fact, a large part of Oracle Bone Inscriptions is eaten directly as a kind of food after use. It is possible that even though there are records about the Xia Dynasty, that piece of Oracle Bone Inscriptions was eaten by human beings. In addition, the rule of the Zhou Dynasty was very stable until the Zhou Youwang period. At that time, the prestige of the Zhou Emperor was very high, and it was reasonable for the Zhou Dynasty to record some things about the Xia Dynasty.

There was a book called Shangshu in the Zhou Dynasty, and we still have some contents in this book. This book records historical documents and some ancient deeds. Some people say that this book was written by Confucius, and it mentions the Xia Dynasty. It may be precisely because people in the Zhou Dynasty had better living conditions and there were special historians to record their lives, so it is not impossible for them to record the Xia Dynasty of the previous generation.