ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the historical development of the Nien for the purpose of clarifying different names during different developmental stages. It presents the history of the Nien into roughly six phases. The first phase was the birth of the Nien, marked by disorganization. At that time the Nien were simply separate groups of three or five persons, "scattered, with no communication among them." During the second stage, the Nien developed an organization and were able to establish a name among the populace. The third stage began when the Nien, responding to the Taiping Rebellion, started their own uprising north of the Yangtze River. The fourth phase was the unification of the Nien Society under a single leader and the establishment of the "Great Han" reign. The fifth stage was the merging of the Great Han Army into the Taiping Rebellion. The sixth phase saw the movement lose the quality of a local uprising.
