Jinan
Jinan is one of the top 40 cities in the world for scientific research as tracked by the Nature Index according to the Nature Index 2022 Science Cities. The city is home to several major universities, including Shangdong, Shandong Normal, Shandong Jianzhu, University of Jinan, Qilu University of Technology, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Shandong University of Finance and Economics. Notably, Shandong University is one of China's most prestigious universities as a member of the Double First Class University Plan. The city is rated Beta- (Global second-tier city) by the biannual GAWC ratings in 2020.
The modern-day name Jinan literally means "south of the Ji" and refers to the old Ji River that had flowed to the north of the city until the middle of the 19th century. The Ji River disappeared in 1852 when the Yellow River changed its course northwards and took over its bed. The current pronunciation of the character "Ji" with the third tone ("jǐ") was established in the late 1970s. Prior to this, it was pronounced with the fourth tone (""). Older texts spell the name as "Tsinan" (Wade-Giles romanization) or "Chi-nan".
During the times of the Zhou dynasty (1045 BC to 256 BC), the city of Lixia was the major settlement in the area. The name "Lixia" refers to the location of Jinan at the foot of Mount Li, which lies to the south of the city. Today, Lixia is the name of one of the city's districts.
The Battle of An, which was fought in the area during the Spring and Autumn period (in 589 BCE) between the states of Qi and Jin, is named for the ancient city of which stood within the city limits of present-day Jinan. Marco Polo gives a brief description of Jinan under the name "Chingli" or "Chinangli". 19th and early 20th century texts frequently give the name of the city as "Tsinan Fu" where the additional "Fu" comes from the dated Chinese term for a provincial capital.
Jinan is also referred to by the nickname "City of Springs", because of the many artesian springs in the urban city centre and its surroundings.
Map - Jinan
Map
Country - China
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Modern Chinese trace their origins to a cradle of civilization in the fertile basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. The semi-legendary Xia dynasty in the 21st century BCE and the well-attested Shang and Zhou dynasties developed a bureaucratic political system to serve hereditary monarchies, or dynasties. Chinese writing, Chinese classic literature, and the Hundred Schools of Thought emerged during this period and influenced China and its neighbors for centuries to come. In the third century BCE, Qin's wars of unification created the first Chinese empire, the short-lived Qin dynasty. The Qin was followed by the more stable Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE), which established a model for nearly two millennia in which the Chinese empire was one of the world's foremost economic powers. The empire expanded, fractured, and reunified; was conquered and reestablished; absorbed foreign religions and ideas; and made world-leading scientific advances, such as the Four Great Inventions: gunpowder, paper, the compass, and printing. After centuries of disunity following the fall of the Han, the Sui (581–618) and Tang (618–907) dynasties reunified the empire. The multi-ethnic Tang welcomed foreign trade and culture that came over the Silk Road and adapted Buddhism to Chinese needs. The early modern Song dynasty (960–1279) became increasingly urban and commercial. The civilian scholar-officials or literati used the examination system and the doctrines of Neo-Confucianism to replace the military aristocrats of earlier dynasties. The Mongol invasion established the Yuan dynasty in 1279, but the Ming dynasty (1368–1644) re-established Han Chinese control. The Manchu-led Qing dynasty nearly doubled the empire's territory and established a multi-ethnic state that was the basis of the modern Chinese nation, but suffered heavy losses to foreign imperialism in the 19th century.
Currency / Language
ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
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CNY | Renminbi | ¥ or 元 | 2 |
ISO | Language |
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ZH | Chinese language |
UG | Uighur language |
ZA | Zhuang language |