Northern and Southern dynasties

The Northern and Southern dynasties (Chinese: 南北朝; pinyin: Nán běi cháo) was a period of political division in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589 AD, following the tumultuous era of the Sixteen Kingdoms and the Eastern Jin dynasty. It is sometimes considered to be the latter part of a longer period known as the Six Dynasties (220–589 AD).