Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...

is one of the four

direct-controlled municipalities A direct-controlled municipality is the highest level classification for cities used by unitary states, with status equal to that of the provinces in the respective countries. A direct-controlled municipality is similar to, but not the same as, a ...

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

, and is further divided into 16

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

. There is no single downtown district in Shanghai as the urban core is scattered across several districts, although Huangpu is generally considered the center of Shanghai. Today's Huangpu is the result of the mergers of three old districts: the original Huangpu District merged with Nanshi District in 2000, and in 2011 Luwan District also merged into Huangpu. Huangpu is now the location of the city hall,

The Bund The Bund or Waitan (, Shanghainese romanization: ''Nga3thae1'', , ) is a waterfront area and a protected historical district in central Shanghai. The area centers on a section of Zhongshan Road (East Zhongshan Road No.1) within the former S ...

, and shopping areas including the famous Nanjing Road, Huaihai Road, and Xintiandi. Across the

Huangpu River The Huangpu (), formerly romanized as Whangpoo, is a river flowing north through Shanghai. The Bund and Lujiazui are located along the Huangpu River. The Huangpu is the biggest river in central Shanghai, with the Suzhou Creek being its maj ...

Pudong Pudong is a district of Shanghai located east of the Huangpu, the river which flows through central Shanghai. The name ''Pudong'' was originally applied to the Huangpu's east bank, directly across from the west bank or Puxi, the historic city ...

includes

Lujiazui Lujiazui, also known under its Shanghainese name Lohkatse (, , lit. meaning " he Lu family's mouth"), is a locality in Shanghai, a peninsula formed by a bend in the Huangpu River. Since the early 1990s, Lujiazui has been developed specifically ...

, the financial center of Shanghai as well as China, and has been undergoing rapid development since its formation in 1992. In April 2009 Nanhui District was merged into Pudong. Other prominent business and shopping areas include Xujiahui in

Xuhui District Xuhui District is a core urban district of Shanghai. It has a land area of and a population of 982,200 as of 2008. The Xuhui District is named after its namesake, the historic area of Xujiahui. Xujiahui was historically land owned by Ming dyna ...

, Jing'an Temple in Jing'an District, Hongqiao in

Changning District () is a district of Shanghai. It has a land area of and had a population of 620,000 . The district government is located at 1320 Yuyuan Rd. Zhongshan Park is located in the district. Economy Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport is located ...

, Wujiaochang in

Yangpu District Yangpu District is one of the 16 districts of Shanghai. It is located in northeastern part of downtown Shanghai, bordering the Huangpu River on the east and south, Hongkou District on the west, and Baoshan District on the north. The southern pa ...

, and North Sichuan Road in

Hongkou District , formerly spelled Hongkew, is a district of Shanghai, forming part of the northern urban core. It has a land area of and a population of 852,476 as of 2010. It is the location of the Astor House Hotel, Broadway Mansions, Lu Xun Park, and H ...

. Many universities in Shanghai are located in Yangpu,

Minhang Minhang District is a suburban district of Shanghai with a land area of and population of 2,429,000 residents as of 2010. The original Minhang consist of present-day Jiangchuan Road Subdistrict (Former Minhang Town) and the eastern strip of Wu ...

, and Songjiang Districts. Seven of the districts are situated in Puxi (literally Huangpu West), or the older part of urban Shanghai on the west bank of the

. These seven districts are collectively referred to as downtown Shanghai () or the city centre ().The downtown district also includes Pudong New Area. (Within the outer ring line) Chongming, Changxing, Hengsha, and Yuansha Islands at the mouth of the

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...

are governed by Chongming District.

Administrative divisions

All of these administrative divisions are explained in greater detail at

Administrative divisions of the People's Republic of China The administrative divisions of China have consisted of several levels since ancient times, due to China's large population and geographical area. The constitution of China provides for three levels of government. However in practice, there ...

. This chart lists only county-level divisions of Shanghai.

Further divisions

As of 2009, these administrative divisions are further divided into the following 210 township-level divisions: 109

towns A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an or ...

, 2 townships, 99 subdistricts. Those are in turn divided into the following village-level divisions: 3,640 neighborhood committees and 1,722 village committees.Shanghai Statistical Yearbook 2010 - Administrative Division
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Recent changes in administrative divisions

Historical divisions

Republic of China era (1911–1949)

References

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Administrative divisions Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

*Districts