Overview
The earliest written records date back to the Shang dynasty (16th-11th century BC) when Guizhou was referred to as Guifan. However, its original area and borders are uncertain. 

By the time of the Western Zhou dynasty (11th century-771 BC), Guizlhou was known as Zangke and was inhabited by various ethnic peoples living in isolated tribal groupings. It was not part of the Chinese Empire at that time. This period is sometimes called the Bai yue (Hundred Minorities) period. The inhabitants belonged to the Dai linguistic group that includes the Shui, Dong, Bouyei and Zhuang. Later, people belonging to the Tibeto-Burman group arrived from the west. These included the Yi, Naxi, and Tujia. The Miao came from the north and east.

Guizhou was under Chinese control during the Han dynasty (206 BC–220 AD), but it was not until the Ming dynasty (1368–1644) that it was settled heavily and turned into a Chinese province. In 1413 during the reign of Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Guizhou was officially established as a province and got its name as "Guizhou Province". This prompted mass migration from Sichuan, Hunan and the other surrounding provinces into Guizhou.

Guizhou is a revolutionary place for the Chinese Communist Party. In 1935 when the Chinese Red Army was fighting on the Guizhou Plateau, the Communist Party held a critical conference in Zunyi City (historically known as "Zunyi Conference"), which established Maozedong's leading position in the army and the party and laid a foundation for the victory of Chinese Revolution.