Sichuan or Szechwan as it is known under the Wades – Giles system means ” four streams” This term for the province was not used till the Song and Yuan dynasties. Ancient Chinese called the area Ba-Shu after the 2 regions within the basin i.e. Ba and Shu.
This book is dated having been published in 1992. But until there is another book on this topic, it is a useful book to readers interested in pre- Qin Sichuan, Ba and Shu cultures and the history of Sichuan under the Qin and Han dynasties. The sources are impressive. The maps useful.
Sichuan is surrounded by mountains. As a result, it had served as a refuge for Liu Bei during the Three Kingdoms era, the Tang Emperor Xuanzong during the An Lushan rebellion in 756 AD and Chiang Kai Shek during the Japanese invasion.