China is one of the countries suffering from the severestsoil erosion in the world. Evolution of soil erosion in China has been related to the accelerated erosion resulting from human activities for its long term agricultural history and large population. In view of the spatial and temporal variations of soil erosion and ac cording to the three periods of Chinese agricultural development(primitive

traditional

and modern agricul ture periods)

this paper divides the history of soil erosion in China into five stages. The firststage was in the primitive agriculture period and characterized mainly by natural erosion. The second to fourth stages in which the man-made accelerated erosion occurred and expanded were in the traditional agriculture period. The fifth stage occurs in the modern agriculture period

in which the soil erosion is even serious

butthe effectof soil erosion control has emerged recently. However

some new problems of soil erosion are appea ring because of the rapid developmentof economy

accelerating urbanization

tremendous constructions

and the enlarging exploitation of mineral resources. How to balance economical developmentand environmental protection will still be the key issue in the future.