Shaoxing
| |
| Administration Type | Prefecture-level city |
| Area (Land) | 8,256 km² |
| Population | 4,347,200 (2004) |
| GDP | ¥35,753 per capita (2004) |
| Major Nationalities | Han |
| County-level divisions | 6 |
| Township-level divisions | |
| Mayor | Zhang Jinru (张金如) |
| Area code | 575 |
| License Plate Prefix | 浙D |
| City flower | Orchid |
Shaoxing (simplified Chinese: 绍兴; traditional Chinese: 紹興; pinyin: Shàoxīng; Wade–Giles: Shao-hsing) is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. Lying on the south bank of the Yangtze River mouth, it borders Ningbo to the east, Taizhou to the southeast, Jinhua to the southwest, and Hangzhou to the west.
Administration
The prefecture-level city of Shaoxing administers 1 districts, 3 county-level cities and 2 counties.
- Yuecheng District (越城区)
- Shangyu City (上虞市)
- Shengzhou City (嵊州市)
- Zhuji City (诸暨市)
- Shaoxing County (绍兴县)
- Xinchang County (新昌县)
History
Modern day Shaoxing sits on the site of the capital of the Spring and Autumn Kingdom of Yue. Around the sixth century BC, Yue had a sinicised ruling elite which fought a number of wars against its northern archrival Kingdom of Wu.
Shaoxing became a subprefecture during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Under the Republic of China, it became a county. And under the People's Republic of China, it became a city.
Geography and climate
- Average Temperature: 16 °C
Notable people
- Cai Yuanpei, educator
- Chen Yi, politician of Dongpu Town (東浦鎮), Shaoxing County
- Lu Xun, writer
- Qiu Jin, female revolutionary
- Xishi, beauty (Zhuji City)
- Xu Wei, painter
Tourism
- Lu Xun's residence is preserved near the middle of the city, and has become a tourist destination.
- East Lake (东湖) is a traditional scenic area just out of town.
- Shaoxing has the Tomb of Yu the Great (大禹陵).
Miscellaneous
- The Chinese rice wine (黃酒) is also known as Shaoxing Wine (紹興酒) or simply Shao Wine (紹酒). The brewery takes the natural process with the pure water of Jianhu-Mirror Lake. It has a unique flavour and a reputation throughout the nation and internationally. It is used both as a liquor and in cooking, and as a solvent for Chinese herbal medicated ointment.
See also
External links
- Government website of Shaoxing (in Simplified Chinese)