From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Coordinates
:
33°0′N
120°0′E
? / ?
33°N 120°E
? /
33; 120
Jiangsu
(
help
·
info
)
(
simplified Chinese
:
江?
;
traditional Chinese
:
江蘇
;
pinyin
:
Ji?ngs?
;
Wade?Giles
: Chiang-su;
Postal map spelling
:
Kiangsu
) is a
province
of the
People's Republic of China
, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from
jiang
, short for the city of Jiangning (now
Nanjing
), and
su
, for the city of
Suzhou
. The abbreviation for this province is "
?
" (s?), the second character of its name.
[
2
]
It is the province with the highest population density in China, though provincial level municipalities like Shanghai, Beijing, and Tianjin have a higher density.
Jiangsu borders
Shandong
in the north,
Anhui
to the west, and
Zhejiang
and
Shanghai
to the south. Jiangsu has a coastline of over one thousand kilometers along the
Yellow Sea
, and the
Yangtze River
passes through its southern parts. Since the inception of economic reforms in 1978, Jiangsu has been a hot spot for economic development, and is now one of China's most prosperous provinces. The wealth divide between the rich southern regions and the north, however, remains a prominent issue in the province.
Jiangsu is home to many of the world’s leading exporters of electronic equipment, chemicals and textiles.
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]
It has also been China’s largest recipient of foreign direct investment since 2006.
History
During the earliest Chinese dynasties, the area in what is now Jiangsu was far removed from the center of Chinese civilization, which was in the northwest
Henan
; it was home of the Huai Yi (淮夷), an ancient ethnic group. During the
Zhou Dynasty
more contact was made, and eventually the
state of Wu
(centered at Gusu, now
Suzhou
) appeared as a vassal to the
Zhou Dynasty
in south Jiangsu, one of the many hundreds of states that existed across northern and central China at that time. Near the end of the
Spring and Autumn Period
, Wu became a great power under
King Helu of Wu
, and was able to defeat in 484 BC the
state of Qi
, a major power in the north in modern-day
Shandong
province, and contest for the position of overlord over all states of China. The state of Wu was subjugated in 473 BC by the
state of Yue
, another state that had emerged to the south in modern-day
Zhejiang
province. Yue was in turn subjugated by the powerful
state of Chu
from the west in 333 BC. Eventually the
state of Qin
swept away all the other states, and established China as a unified nation in 221 BC.
Under the reign of the
Han Dynasty
(206 BC to 220 AD), which brought China to its first golden age, Jiangsu was a relative backwater, far removed from the centers of civilization in the
North China Plain
. Jiangsu was at that time administered under two
zhou
(provinces): Xuzhou Province in the north, and Yangzhou Province in the south. Although south Jiangsu was eventually the base for the
kingdom of Wu
(one of the
Three Kingdoms
from 222 to 280), it did not become significant role until the invasion of northern nomads during the
Western Jin Dynasty
, starting from the fourth century. As northern nomadic groups established kingdoms across the north, ethnic
Han Chinese
aristocracy fled southwards and set up a refugee
Eastern Jin Dynasty
in 317, in Jiankang (modern day
Nanjing
). From then until 581 (a period known as the
Southern and Northern Dynasties
), Nanjing in south Jiangsu was the base of four more ethnic
Han Chinese
dynasties facing off with northern barbarian (but increasingly
sinicized
) dynasties. In the meantime, north Jiangsu was a buffer of sorts between north and south; it initially started as a part of southern dynasties, but as northern dynasties gained more ground, it became part of northern dynasties.
In 581 unity was reestablished again, and under the
Tang Dynasty
(618 to 907) China once more went through a golden age, though Jiangsu at this point was still rather unremarkable among the different parts of China. It was during the
Song Dynasty (960-1279)
, which saw the development of a wealthy mercantile class and emergent
market economy
in China, that south Jiangsu emerged as a center of
trade
. From then onwards, south Jiangsu, especially major cities like
Suzhou
or
Yangzhou
, would be synonymous with opulence and luxury in China. Today south Jiangsu remains one of the richest parts of China, and
Shanghai
, arguably the wealthiest and most cosmopolitan of
mainland China
cities, is a direct extension of south Jiangsu culture.
The Jurchen
Jin Dynasty
gained control of
North China
in 1127, and
Huai River
, which used to cut through north Jiangsu to reach the
Yellow Sea
, was the border between the north, under the Jin, and the south, under the
Southern Song Dynasty
. The Mongols took control of China in the thirteenth century. The
Ming Dynasty
, which was established in 1368 after driving out the
Mongols
who had occupied China, initially put its capital in
Nanjing
. Following a coup by Zhu Di (later, the
Yongle Emperor
), however, the capital was moved to
Beijing
, far to the north. (The naming of the two cities continue to reflect this: "Nanjing" literally means "southern capital", "Beijing" literally means "northern capital.) The entirety of modern day Jiangsu as well as neighbouring
Anhui
province kept their special status, however, as territory-governed directly by the central government, and were called Nanzhili (南直? "Southern directly-governed"). Meanwhile, South Jiangsu continued to be an important center of trade in China; some historians see in the flourishing
textiles
industry at the time incipient
industrialization
and
capitalism
, a trend that was however aborted, several centuries before similar trends took hold in the West.
The
Qing Dynasty
changed this situation by establishing Nanzhili as
Jiangnan
province; in 1666 Jiangsu and Anhui were split apart as separate provinces, and Jiangsu was given borders approximately the same as today. With the start of the Western incursion into China in the 1840s, the rich and mercantile south Jiangsu was increasingly exposed to Western influence;
Shanghai
, originally an unremarkable little town of Jiangsu, quickly developed into a metropolis of trade, banking, and cosmopolitanism, and was split out later as an independent municipality. South Jiangsu also figures strongly in the
Taiping Rebellion
(1851 ? 1864), a massive and deadly rebellion that attempted to set up a
Christian
theocracy
in China; it started far to the south in
Guangdong
province, swept through much of South China, and by 1853 had established Nanjing as its capital, renamed as Tianjing (天京 "Heavenly Capital").
The
Republic of China
was established in 1912, and China was soon torn apart by warlords. Jiangsu changed hands several times, but in April 1927
Chiang Kai-Shek
established a government at
Nanjing
; he was soon able to bring most of China under his control. This was however interrupted by the
second Sino-Japanese War
, which began full-scale in 1937; on December 13, 1937,
Nanjing
fell, and the combined
atrocities
of the occupying Japanese for the next 3 months would come to be known as the
Nanjing Massacre
. Nanjing was the seat of the
collaborationist government of East China
under
Wang Jingwei
, and Jiangsu remained under occupation until the end of the war in 1945.
After the war,
Nanjing
was once again the capital of the
Republic of China
, though now the
Chinese Civil War
had broken out between the
Kuomintang
government and
Communist forces
, based further north, mostly in
Manchuria
. The decisive
Huaihai Campaign
was fought in northern Jiangsu; it resulted in Kuomintang defeat, and the communists were soon able to cross the
Yangtze River
and take
Nanjing
. The Kuomintang fled southwards, and eventually ended up in
Taipei
, from which the
Republic of China
government continues to administer
Taiwan
and its neighboring islands, though it also continues to claim (technically, at least)
Nanjing
as its rightful capital.
After communist takeover,
Beijing
was made capital of China and Nanjing was demoted to be the provincial capital of Jiangsu. The
economic reforms
of
Deng Xiaoping
initially focused on the south coast of China, in
Guangdong
province, which soon left Jiangsu behind; starting from the 1990s they were applied more evenly to the rest of China.
Suzhou
and
Wuxi
, two southern cities of Jiangsu in close proximity to neighboring
Shanghai
Municipality, have since become particularly prosperous, being among the top 10 cities in China in
gross domestic product
and outstripping the provincial capital of
Nanjing
. The income disparity between north Jiangsu and south Jiangsu however remains large.
Geography
Town of
Zhouzhuang
, Jiangsu. South Jiangsu is famed for its towns crisscrossed by canals.
Jiangsu is very flat and low-lying, with plains covering 68 percent of its total area (water covers another 18 percent), and most of the province stands not more than fifty meters above sea level. Jiangsu is also laced with a well-developed irrigation system, which earned it (especially the southern half) the moniker of 水? (shu?xi?ng "land of water"); the southern city of
Suzhou
is so crisscrossed with canals that it has been dubbed "
Venice of the East
" or the "Venice of the Orient".
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]
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The
Grand Canal of China
cuts through Jiangsu from north to south, traversing all the east-west river systems. Jiangsu also borders the
Yellow Sea
. The
Yangtze River
, the longest river of China, cuts through the province in the south and reaches the
East China Sea
.
Mount Yuntai
near the city of
Lianyungang
is the highest point in this province, with an altitude of 625 meters. Large lakes in Jiangsu include
Lake Taihu
(the largest),
Lake Hongze
,
Lake Gaoyou
,
Lake Luoma
, and
Lake Yangcheng
.
Historically, the river
Huai He
, a major river in central China and the traditional border between
North China and South China
, cut through north Jiangsu to reach the
Yellow Sea
. However, from 1194 AD the
Yellow River
further to the north changed its course several times, running into the
Huai He
in north Jiangsu each time instead of its other usual path northwards into
Bohai Bay
. The silting caused by the
Yellow River
was so heavy that after its last episode of "hijacking" the Huai He ended in 1855: the Huai He was no longer able to go through its usual path into the sea. Instead it flooded, pooled up (thereby forming and enlarging
Lake Hongze
and
Lake Gaoyou
), and flowed southwards through the
Grand Canal
into the
Yangtze
. The old path of the
Huai He
is now marked by a series of
irrigation
channels, the most significant of which is the
North Jiangsu Irrigation Main Channel
(?北灌??渠), which channels a small amount of the water of the
Huai He
alongside south of its old path into the sea.
On the Grand Canal near Yangzhou
Jiangsu Province spans the warm-temperate/humid and subtropical/humid
climate
zones, and has clear-cut seasonal changes, with temperatures at an average of -2 to 4
°C
in January and 26 to 30°C in July. Rain falls frequently between spring and summer (
meiyu
),
typhoons
with
rainstorms
occur in late summer and early autumn. The annual average rainfall is 800 to 1200 mm, concentrated mostly in summer when the southeast
monsoon
carries rainwater into the province.
Major cities:
Administrative divisions
Jiangsu is divided into thirteen
prefecture-level divisions
, all
prefecture-level cities
:
The thirteen
prefecture-level divisions
of Jiangsu are subdivided into 106
county-level divisions
(54
districts
, 27
county-level cities
, and 25
counties
). Those are in turn divided into 1488
township-level divisions
(1078
towns
, 122
townships
, one
ethnic township
, and 287
subdistricts
).
See
List of administrative divisions of Jiangsu
for a complete list of
county-level divisions
.
Politics
The politics of Jiangsu is structured in a one party (Communist) government system like all other governing institutions in mainland China.
The
Governor of Jiangsu
is the highest ranking official in the People's Government of Jiangsu. However, in the province's dual party-government governing system, the Governor has less power than the Jiangsu
Communist Party of China
Provincial Committee Secretary, colloquially termed the "Jiangsu
CPC Party Chief
".
Economy
Jiangsu has an extensive irrigation system supporting its agriculture, which is based primarily on
rice
and
wheat
, followed by
maize
and
sorghum
. Main
cash crops
include
cotton
,
soybeans
,
peanuts
,
rape
,
sesame
,
ambary hemp
, and
tea
. Other products include
peppermint
,
spearmint
,
bamboo
,
medicinal herbs
,
apples
,
pears
,
peaches
,
loquats
,
ginkgo
.
Silkworms
also form an important part of Jiangsu's agriculture, with the
Lake Taihu
region to the south a major base of
silk
production in China. Jiangsu is also an important producer of freshwater fish and other aquatic products.
Jiangsu has
coal
,
petroleum
, and
natural gas
deposits, but its most significant mineral products are non-metal minerals such as
halite
(rock salt),
sulfur
,
phosphorus
, and
marble
. The salt mines of
Huaiyin
have more than 0.4 trillion
tonnes
of deposits, one of the greatest collections of deposits in China.
Jiangsu is historically oriented towards light industries such as
textiles
and
food industry
. Since 1949, Jiangsu has also developed heavy industries such as
chemical industry
and
construction materials
. Jiangsu's important industries include machinery, electronic, chemicals, and automobile
[1]
. Recently the government has worked hard to promote the solar industry and hopes by 2012 the solar industry will be worth 100 Billion RMB.
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]
The
economic reforms
of
Deng Xiaoping
have greatly benefited southern cities, especially
Suzhou
and
Wuxi
, which outstrip the provincial capital
Nanjing
in total output. In the eastern outskirts of Suzhou,
Singapore
has built the
Suzhou Industrial Park
, a flagship of
PRC
-
Singapore
cooperation and the only industrial park in China that is in its entirety the investment of one single foreign country.
Jiangsu is very wealthy among the provinces of China, with the second highest total GDP, after Guangdong Province. Its GDP per capita was 44,232 yuan in 2009, but geographical disparity is great, and southern cities like
Suzhou
and
Wuxi
have GDP per capita around twice the provincial average, making south Jiangsu one of the most prosperous regions in China.
In 2010, Jiangsu's nominal GDP was 4.05 trillion yuan (US$612 billion), making it the second largest GDP of all the provinces and an annual growth rate of 12.4%. Its per capita GDP was 52,448 yuan (US$7,945). In 2009, the share of GDP of Jiangsu's primary, secondary, and tertiary industries were 6.4%, 54.1%, and 39.5% respectively.
Economic and Technological Development Zones
Changzhou Export Processing Zone was approved to be established in June 2005, with a planning area of 1.66 km
2
. In October 2006, it started operation. It is near Shanghai and Nanjing, where it enjoys convenient transportation. Investors can enjoy a series of preferential policies, and handle all the export procedures inside the export processing zone. It focuses on electronic information, electromechanical integration and new materials.
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Changzhou National Hi-Tech District (CND) is a state level high-tech industrial development zone. It is located in the northern part of Changzhou city. With a population of 500,000 and an area of 439 square km, CND is 160 km away from Shanghai to the east and 110 km away from Nanjing to the west. CND represents the highest-level and most sophisticated industrial park in Changzhou, and more than 1,300 foreign companies and over 5,000 local industrial enterprises have been registered within CND. Among these investments, around 40% are from European and American countries. Industries encouraged include Engineering Machinery, Transformer & Transmission Equipment, Automotive, Locomotive & its components, Parts, Precision Machinery, Biotechnology/Pharmaceuticals, PV and New Materials, Chemistry, Garment and Textiles Production, Computer Software, Research and Development. Some major investors include Terex, Komatsu, Ashland Chemical, Johnson, Caltex Oil Corp., Disa, +GF+, Rieter and General Electronics.
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- Kunshan
Economic and Technological Development Zone
Kunshan Economic & Technical Development Zone (KETD) was founded in 1985, and was upgraded by the State Council to a State-level development zone in 1992. Kunshan locates in the south of Yangtze River Delta, with Shanghai to its east and Suzhou to its west. KETD has spent over RMB13 billion on the public infrastructure in terms of roads, telecommunication, water supply, energy and environmental protection.
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Kunshan Export Processing Zone was established on April 2000 upon approval from the state government. It is located in Kunshan Economic and Technological Development Zone and it has a planned area of 2.86 square km. In the zone, there are electronic information, optical, precision machinery industry and bonded logistics industry clusters. It enjoys convenient transportation: it is located 45 km from Shanghai Pudong Airport and 60 km from Shanghai Port.
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]
- Nanjing
Baixia Hi-Tech Industrial Zone
Nanjing Baixia Hi-Tech Industrial Zone is a national hi-tech industrial zone with 16.5 square kilometers planned area. The zone is only 13.5 km away from Nanjing downtown and 50 km away from Nanjing Lukou Airport. Several expressways pass through here. It is well equipped with comprehensive facilities, and it provides a good investment environment for high-tech industries. Electronic industry, automobile, chemical, machinery, instruments and building materials are the encouraged industries in the zone.
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- Nanjing
Economic and Technological Development Zone
Established in 1992, Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone is a national level zone surrounded by convenient transportation network. Nanjing is the capital of Jiangsu Province. Situated in the downstream of Yangtze River Drainage Basin and Yangtze River Delta economic zone, Nanjing has always been a national center of commerce, education, research, transportation and tourism in the East China region, preceded only by Shanghai. It is only 20 km away from Nanjing Port and 40 km away from Nanjing Lukou Airport. It is well equipped with basic facilities like electricity, water, communication, gas, steam and so on. It has formed four specialized industries, which are electronic information, bio-pharmaceutical, machinery and new materials industry.
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On March 10, 2003 the State Council approved the establishment of this Export Processing Zone (EPZ) in Nanjing's Southern District. This EPZ is free from import/export duty area and provides 24-hour customs-bonded conditions. It has a planned area of 3 square km. The Central Government has given the special economic region preferential policies to attract more enterprises engaged in processing trade investment in the region. It is only 20 km from Nanjing Port and several expressways pass through here.
[
13
]
- Nanjing
New & High-Tech Industry Development Zone
Nanjing New & High-Tech Industry Development Zone was jointly founded by Jiangsu Provincial People's Government and Nanjing Municipal People's Government, and started to break ground of construction on September 1, 1988. It was established as a national new and high-tech industry development zone by the State Council on March 6, 1991. The zone is next to National Highway 104 and 312. Its pillar industries include electronic information, bio-engineering and pharmaceutical industry.
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- Nantong
Economic & Technological Development Area
Established in 1984, Nantong Economic & Technological Development Area (NETDA) was one of the first state-level development zones approved by the Central Government and has been certified as an ISO 14000 National Demonstration Zone. The zone benefits from superior transportation facilities by both rail and road. NETDA has direct links to two railways - the Xinyi-Changxing Railway and the Nanjing-Qidong Railway. Su-Tong Yangtze River Bridge feeds into the center of NETDA and connects the Nanjing-Nantong and Yancheng-Nantong Expressways to the north, and Shanghai-Nanjiang and Suzhou-Jiaxing-Hangzhou Expressways and Riverside Expressways to the south.
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Nantong Export Processing Zone (NTEPZ) is situated in Nantong Economic and Technological Development Area with a planned area 2.98 square kilometers. The Tong-Qi canal marks its western and northern boundaries, the Dongfang Avenue and Fuxin Road marking its eastern and southern boundary respectively, the NTPEZ is located at a hub of communications, adjoining the main coastal artery of communications between north and south, close to the estuary of Yangze River, and only 8 kilometers to the Su(Suzhou)-Tong(Nangtong)Changjiang Bridge.
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Lianyungang Economic & Technological Development Zone (LETDZ) was approved by the State Council as one of the first batch of state-level development zones in December 1984,it is located in the eastern new seashore urban area of Liangyungang City. Distance to nearest airport, Liangyungang Airport is 10?20 km and distance to nearest highway G310 is 10?20 km. Distance to nearest port, Lianyungang port is 20?50 km.
[
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Lianyungang Export Processing Zone is located in Lianyungang Economic & Technological Development Zone (LETDZ).
[
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Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP) is the largest cooperation project between the Chinese and Singaporean governments. It is located around Jinji Lake, which lies to the east of Suzhou Old city. On 26 February 1994, Vice Premier Li Lanqing and Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew represented China and Singapore respectively in signing the Agreement to jointly develop Suzhou Industrial Park. The project officially commenced on 12 May in the same year. SIP has a total jurisdiction area of 288 km
2
, of which, the China-Singapore cooperation area covers 80 km
2
with a planned residential population of 1.2 million.
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- Suzhou
Industrial Park Export Processing Zone
The Suzhou Industrial Park Export Processing Zone was approved to be established by the government in April 2000, with a planning area of 2.9 km
2
. It is located in Suzhou Industrial Park set up by China and Singapore. Inside the Export Processing Zone, all the infrastructures are of high-standard. With the information platform and electronic methods, all the customs declaration and other procedures can be handled on line. Investors can enjoys many preferential policies.
[
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- Suzhou
Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone
The Suzhou Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone was established in 1990. In Nov. 1992, the zone was approved to be the national-level hi-tech industrial zone. By the end of 2007, foreign-invested companies had a total registered capital worth of USD 13 billion, of which USD 6.8 billion was paid in. SND hosts now more than 1,500 foreign companies. Some 40 Fortune 500 companies set up 67 projects in the district.
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Since it was established in 1992,
Wuxi New District
(WND) has evolved to be one of the major industrial parks in China. A wide variety of components, sub-systems and original equipments are made in WND. Approximately 1200 enterprises have been registered in WND by the end of 2008. Wuxi New District provides strong support for international manufacturing operations. The Zone focuses on formation of the five pillar industries of electronic information, precision machinery and mechanical and electrical integration, bio-pharmaceuticals, fine chemicals and new materials.
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- Wuxi
Export Processing Zone
Established in 1992, Wuxi Export Processing Zone is located in Wuxi New District with a planned area of 2.98 sqkm. The encouraged industries include electronic information, optical-mechanical-electronic-integration, precision machinery, and new materials. It is situated near to Wuxi Airport and Changzhou Port.
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- Yixing
Economic Development Zone
As a provincial-level industrial zone approved by Jiangsu Government, the zone is composed of Industrial Zone, Logistic Zone, and Executive Business Zone. The general planning area is 56.7 square kilometers. The developed coverage has reached up to 18.7 square kilometers and the five main industries of electric circuit, textile and clothes, fine chemical, electro-mechanization and auto parts have been formed in the zone. So far, you can find 719 different enterprises in the zone.
[
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Zhenjiang Export Processing Zone was approved by the State Council on March 10, 2003 with a total planned area of 2.53 square kilometers. The first-phrase project completed in December 2003 covers 0.91 square kilometers and was certified by the Customs General Administration and other seven ministries for operation on Dec.24, 2003. Zhenjiang Export Processing Zone is located close to Changzhou Airport and Zhenjiang Port.
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]
Zhangjiagang Free Trade Zone, approved by the State Council in 1992, is the only inland river free trade zone in China. It is established to develop export-oriented economy in Zhangjiagang and fasten the links between the Chinese market and the international market. The zone possesses unique locational advantages of being connected with the Yangtze River and comprehensive infrastructure.
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]
Zhangjiagang Bonded Logistic Park was established by the government in August 2004, with a total area of 1.53 km
2
. In 2005, it became the third National Free Trade Logistic Zone. It has four functions: international transfer, distribution, purchase and trade. It is located in Zhangjiagang Free Trade Zone, and it enjoys complete infrastructure and convenient traffic.
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Demographics
The majority of Jiangsu residents are ethnic
Han Chinese
. Other minorities include the
Hui
and the
Manchus
.
- Demographic indicators in 2000
Population: 74.058 million (urban: 34.637 million; rural: 39.421 million) (2003)
Birth rate
: 9.04 per 1000 (2003)
Death rate
: 7.03 per 1000 (2003)
Sex ratio
: 102.55 males per 100 females
Average family size: 3.25
Han Chinese
proportion: 99.64%
Literacy rate
: 97.88%
Transportation
Jiangsu is home to one of the most extensive transportation networks in China.
Air
Xuzhou Airport
,
Yancheng Airport
, and
Lianyungang Airport
serve as hubs in northern Jiangsu.
In the south,
Nanjing Lukou International Airport
(
IATA
:
NKG
,
ICAO
:
ZSNJ
) serves as the major airport in the province, with flights to Tokyo, Osaka, Hong Kong, Seoul-Incheon, Frankfurt and
Bangkok
. Other passenger airports include
Changzhou Benniu Airport
,
Wuxi Shuofang Airport
, and
Nantong Airport
. Air traffic in the populated
Suzhou
area is often diverted to
Shanghai Hongqiao Airport
, to which Suzhou is conveniently connected to via bus services and by expressway.
Rail
The southern part of the province, namely the Shanghai-Nanjing corridor, has regular railway service by every 10 minutes. Jiangsu is in route of the
Jinghu Railway
from
Beijing
to
Shanghai
. The newly opened
CRH2
EMU
high-speed train services makes travelling along the corridor extremely convenient. The trains pass through
Kunshan
,
Suzhou
,
Wuxi
,
Changzhou
,
Danyang
,
Zhenjiang
, and
Nanjing
.
Yangzhou
has been connected by railway since 2004. Till 2007 all major cities in Jiangsu except
Suqian
have been connected. The
Xinchang Railway
originates in
Xinyi
and heads south, passing through
Huai'an
,
Yancheng
,
Taizhou
,
Hai'an
,
Jiangyin
and
Yixin
.
Lianyungang
is the terminus of the
Longhai Railway
.
Road
Jiangsu's road network is one of the most developed in the country. The
Jinghu Expressway
crosses the province. The
Huning Expressway
links
Shanghai
with
Nanjing
. The
Ningchang Expressway
links Nanjing with
Changzhou
. The
Suzhou
area is extensively networked with expressways, going in all directions. The
Yanhai Expressway
links the coastal regions of the province, passing through
Nantong
,
Yancheng
, and
Lianyungang
. Presently, with the development of the
Sutong Bridge
and
Jiangyin Bridge
, the northern part of the province is effectively linked by road to the southern part, historically having been divided by the
Yangtze River
.
Culture
The province of Jiangsu was formed in the seventeenth century from the splitting of the defunct and erroneously named Jiangnan Province ("south of the river") into Jiangsu and Anhui. Before then, the northern and southern parts of Jiangsu had less connection than that later. Traditionally, South Jiangsu is referred to as the three more prosperous southern cities including Suzhou, Wuxi and Changzhou. Their culture (the "Jiangnan" culture shared with Shanghai and Zhejiang) is more southern than the rest and is oftened referred to as the Wu. All the other parts of the province is dominated by the so-called "Jianghuai Culture", which means the culture in the area between the Yangtse River (Jiang) and Huaihe River (Huai), though not all of them lie within the district defined by the term. In history, the term North Jiangsu refers to the cities to the north of the Yangtze River. For cities of Nanjing and Zhenjiang, neither the two terms (North Jiangsu and South Jiangsu) refers to them, because though they are to the south of the River, culturally they are still of the Jianghuai Region. Since about 1998, there is a new classification used frequently by the government and defined by economic means. It groups all the cities to the south of the Yangtse River as South Jiangsu, the cities of Yangzhou, Nantong and Taizhou as Middle Jiangsu, and all the rest as North Jiangsu.
Though the terms of classification are very complex, by cultural means only the very north cities of Xuzhou and Huaian are culturally north Chinese. All the rest areas of the province are culturally south, though the three South Jiangsu cities are more purely southern while the culture in other cities is more a transitional mixture dominated by the southern.
The Humble Administrator's Garden, one of the classical gardens of
Suzhou
.
Two main subdivisions of the
Chinese language
,
Mandarin
(not
Putonghua
, the national standard speech based on the Beijing dialect, also commonly called
Mandarin
) and
Wu
, are spoken in different parts of Jiangsu.
Mandarin dialects
are spoken over the traditional North Jiangsu,
Nanjing
and
Zhenjiang
, while
Dialect of Wu
is used in South Jiangsu. Mandarin and Wu are not mutually intelligible and the dividing line is sharp and well-defined. (
See also
Nanjing dialect
,
Xuzhou dialect
,
Yangzhou dialect
,
Suzhou dialect
,
Wuxi dialect
,
Changzhou dialect
). In addition,
Standard Chinese
(Putonghua/Mandarin) is also spoken by most people.
Jiangsu is rich in cultural traditions.
Kunqu
, originating in
Kunshan
, is one of the most renowned and prestigious forms of
Chinese opera
.
Pingtan
, a form of storytelling accompanied by music, is also popular: it can be subdivided into types by origin:
Suzhou Pingtan
(of
Suzhou
),
Yangzhou Pingtan
(of
Yangzhou
), and
Nanjing Pingtan
(of
Nanjing
).
Xiju
, a form of traditional
Chinese opera
, is popular in
Wuxi
, while
Huaiju
is popular further north, around
Yancheng
.
Jiangsu cuisine
is one of the eight great traditions of the
cuisine of China
.
Suzhou
is also famous for its
silk
,
embroidery
art,
jasmine tea
, stone
bridges
,
pagodas
, and its classical
gardens
. Nearby
Yixing
is famous for its
teaware
, and
Yangzhou
is famous for its
lacquerware
and
jadeware
.
Nanjing
's
yunjin
is a famous form of
woven
silk
, while
Wuxi
is famous for its
peaches
.
Since ancient times, south Jiangsu has been famed for its prosperity and opulence, and simply inserting south Jiangsu place names (
Suzhou
,
Yangzhou
, etc.) into poetry gave an effect of dreaminess, as was indeed done by many famous poets. In particular, the fame of
Suzhou
(as well as
Hangzhou
in neighbouring
Zhejiang
province) has led to the popular saying: 上有天堂,下有蘇杭 (above there is heaven; below there is
Suzhou
and
Hangzhou
), a saying that continues to be a source of pride for the people of these two still prosperous cities. Similarly, the prosperity of
Yangzhou
has led poets to dream of: 腰纏十萬貫,騎鶴下揚州 (with a hundred thousand
strings of coins
wrapped around the waist, riding a
crane
down to Yangzhou).
Notables
This is a list of famous people from Jiangsu in chronological order. Note that modern-day Jiangsu Province dates from the seventeenth century, so most of the people in this list would not recognise it.
- King Helu of Wu
(??) (died 496 BC), king of the
state of Wu
.
- Gan Jiang
(干?)
- Mo Ye
(莫邪)
- Xiang Yu
(?羽) (232 ? 202 BC), warlord at the end of
Qin Dynasty
.
- Emperor Gaozu of Han
(256 ? 195 BC), first emperor of
Han Dynasty
.
- The
Han Dynasty
generals
Han Xin
(?信),
Xiao He
(?何) and
Cao Shen
(曹?).
- Zhang Zhao
(?昭),
Three Kingdoms
era strategist.
- Lu Xun
(??),
Three Kingdoms
era strategist and general.
- Ge Hong
- Tao Hongjing
- Gu Kaizhi
(??之) (348 ? 409), painter.
- Lu Ji
- Lu Yun
- Emperor Wu of Song
(363 ? 422), first emperor of the
Song Dynasty (420-479)
.
- Zhang Xu
,
Tang Dynasty
calligrapher.
- Li Houzhu
(937 ? 978), last emperor of
Later Tang Dynasty
, poet.
- Fan Zhongyan
(范仲淹) (989 ? 1052),
Song Dynasty
politician, poet.
- Shen Kuo
(沈括) (1031 ? 1095),
Song Dynasty
scientist, general, and statesman
- Fan Chengda
(范成大)
- Gu Xiancheng
(??成)
- Xu Xiake
(徐霞客) (1586 ? 1641), travel writer.
- Shen Zhou
(沈周)
- Wen Zhengming
(文征明)
- Tang Bohu
(唐伯虎) (1470 ? 1524), artist.
- Dong Qichang
- Zhu Yunming
(祝允明)
- Wu Cheng'en
(?承恩) (died 1582), author of
Journey to the West
.
- Gui Youguang
(?有光) (1506 ? 1571), writer.
- Feng Menglong
(???) writer.
- Zheng Banqiao
(?板?) (1693 ? 1765), poet, painter, scholar.
- Jin Shengtan
(1608 ? 1661), writer, critic.
- Gu Yanwu
(?炎武)
- Zhao Yi
- Liu E
- Hsing Yun
(born 1927),
Buddhist
monk.
- Xu Beihong
(徐悲?) (1895 ? 1953), painter.
- Mei Lanfang
(梅?芳) (1894 ? 1961),
Beijing opera
actor.
- Liu Tianhua
(?天?) (1895 ? 1932), musician and composer.
- Zhou Enlai
(周恩?) (1898 ? 1976), former Premier of the People's Republic of China.
- Zhou Xuan
(周璇) (1920 ? 1957), Chinese singer and actress
- Jiang Zemin
(江?民) (born 1926), former
President of the People's Republic of China
- Hu Jintao
(胡??) (born 1942), current
President of the People's Republic of China
- Hau Pei-tsun
(?伯村), Retired general of the ROC Army, former
Premier of the Republic of China
Tourism
Nanjing
was the capital of several Chinese dynasties and contains a variety of historic sites, such as the
Purple Mountain
,
Purple Mountain Observatory
, the
Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum
,
Ming Dynasty
city wall and gates,
Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum
(The mausoleum of the first Ming Emperor
Zhu Yuanzhang
),
Lake Xuanwu
,
Jiming Temple
, the
Nanjing Massacre
Memorial, Nanjing
Confucius
Temple
,
Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge
, and the
Nanjing Zoo
, with circus.
Suzhou
is renowned for its classical gardens (designated as a
UNESCO
World Heritage Site
), as well as
Hanshan Temple
, and
Huqiu Tower
. Nearby is the water-town of
Zhouzhuang
, an international tourist destination where Venice alike waterways, bridges and dwellings have been preserved over centuries.
Yangzhou
is known for
Thin West Lake
.
Wuxi
is known for being the home of the world's tallest buddha statue. In the north,
Xuzhou
is designated as one of China's "eminent historical cities". The official travel and tourism website for Jiangsu
[2]
was set up in 2008.
Sports
Professional sports teams in Jiangsu include:
Colleges and universities
Nanjing
Suzhou
Xuzhou
Yangzhou
Zhenjiang
Wuxi
Schools in Jiangsu
Nature
Prisons
See also
References
External links