The Song dynasty (Chinese: 宋朝; pinyin: Sòng cháo, [suŋ˥˧ tʂʰau˧˥]) was an era of Chinese history that began in 960 and continued until 1279. It succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, and was followed by the Yuan dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or true paper money nationally, and the first Chinese government to establish a permanent standing navy. This dynasty also saw the first known use of gunpowder, as well as the first discernment of true north using a compass.

The Song dynasty is divided into two distinct periods, Northern and Southern. During the Northern Song (Chinese: 北宋, 960–1127), the Song capital was in the northern city of Bianjing (now Kaifeng) and the dynasty controlled most of China proper. The Southern Song (Chinese: 南宋, 1127–1279) refers to the period after the Song lost control of northern China to the Jurchen Jin dynasty in the Jin–Song Wars. During this time, the Song court retreated south of the Yangtze and established their capital at Lin'an (now Hangzhou). Although the Song dynasty had lost control of the traditional birthplace of Chinese civilization along the Yellow River, the Song economy was still strong, as the Southern Song Empire contained 60 percent of China's population and a majority of the most productive agricultural land. The Southern Song dynasty considerably bolstered its naval strength to defend its waters and land borders and to conduct maritime missions abroad.

The Liu Song dynasty (simplified Chinese: 刘宋朝; traditional Chinese: 劉宋朝; pinyin: Liú Sòng Cháo; Wade-Giles: Liu Sung Ch'ao), also known as Former Song (前宋) (420-479 CE), was first of the four Southern Dynasties in China, succeeding the Eastern Jin and followed by the Southern Qi.

The dynasty was founded by Liu Yu 劉裕 (363–422), whose surname together with "Song" forms the most commonly used name for the dynasty, the Liu Song . This appellation is used to distinguish it from a later dynasty of the same name, the Song dynasty (960–1279, whose ruling family was Zhao), which is better known and more significant. The Liu Song is also at times referred to as the "Southern Song" (南宋), as it is one of the Southern Dynasties period, i.e., one of those with its capital at Jiankang (modern Nanjing). However, the later Song dynasty, after 1127, when it moved its capital south to Lin'an (modern Hangzhou, Zhejiang), is most commonly referred to as "Southern Song" (南宋). Thus, for the shorter dynasty which is the subject of this article, "Liu Song" has become the term preferred in most contexts.

A song is a musical composition for voice or voices.

Song or songs or The Song may also refer to:

Music

Albums

Songs