Yu Gong
Literature describing a pre-Xia Dynasty period does not use the character "Yi". As for the Xià Dynasty, some groups of people are referred to as the Yi. For example, the "Yu Gong" chapter of the "Shu Ji" or "Book of Documents" terms people in Qingzhou and Xuzhou Laiyi (), Yuyi () and Huaiyi (). Another Yi-related term is Jiu-Yi (), literally "Nine Yi", which could have also had the connotation "The Numerous Yi" or "The Many Different Kinds of Yi", and which appears in a passage in The Analects that reads, "The Master (i.e., Confucius) desired to live among the Nine Yi." The term "Dongyi" is not used for this period.