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Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked
province of China The provincial level administrative divisions () are the highest-level administrative divisions of China. There are 34 such divisions claimed by the People's Republic of China, classified as 23 provinces (), five autonomous regions of China, au ...
, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is also applied to the entirety of China proper. Henan is a birthplace of Han Chinese civilization, with over 3,200 years of recorded history and remained
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
's cultural, economic and political center until approximately 1,000 years ago. Henan Province is home to many heritage sites, including the ruins of Shang dynasty capital city
Yin Yin may refer to: *the dark force in the yin and yang from traditional Chinese philosophy and medicine *Yīn (surname) (), a Chinese surname *Yǐn (surname) (), a Chinese surname *Shang dynasty, also known as the Yin dynasty **Yinxu or Yin, the S ...
and the
Shaolin Temple Shaolin Monastery (少林寺 ''Shàolínsì''), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a renowned monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin Kung Fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak of the So ...
. Four of the Eight Great Ancient Capitals of China, Luoyang,
Anyang Anyang (; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan province, China. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the east, Hebi and Xinxiang to the south, and the provinces of Shanxi and Hebei to its west and north respectively. It had a ...
, Kaifeng and
Zhengzhou Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the National ...
, are in Henan. The practice of tai chi also began here in Chen Jia Gou Village (Chen style), as did the later Yang and Wu styles. Although the name of the province () means "south of the ellowriver.", approximately a quarter of the province lies north of the Yellow River, also known as the Huang He. With an area of , Henan covers a large part of the fertile and densely populated
North China Plain The North China Plain or Huang-Huai-Hai Plain () is a large-scale downfaulted rift basin formed in the late Paleogene and Neogene and then modified by the deposits of the Yellow River. It is the largest alluvial plain of China. The plain is bord ...
. Its neighboring provinces are Shaanxi,
Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
, Hebei,
Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
, Anhui, and Hubei. Henan is China's third-most populous province with a population of over 99 million as of 2020. Henan is also the world's seventh-most populous
subnational entity 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 ...
, and, if it were a country by itself, Henan would be the 14th-most populous country in the world, ahead of Egypt and Vietnam. Henan is the 5th-largest provincial economy of China, the second largest in South Central China after Guangdong, and the largest among inland provinces, with a nominal GDP of 5.88 trillion RMB (US$926 billion) as of 2021, ahead of the GDP of Turkey of 815 billion. If it were a country, it would be the 18th-largest economy as well as the 14th most populous as of 2021. However, per capita GDP is low compared to other eastern and central provinces. The economy continues to grow based on aluminum and coal prices, as well as agriculture, heavy industry, tourism and retail.
High-tech High technology (high tech), also known as advanced technology (advanced tech) or exotechnology, is technology that is at the cutting edge: the highest form of technology available. It can be defined as either the most complex or the newest te ...
industries and the service sector are concentrated around
Zhengzhou Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the National ...
and Luoyang.


History

Widely regarded as one of the cradles of Chinese civilization along with the Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces, Henan is known for its historical prosperity and periodic downturns. The economic prosperity resulted from its extensive fertile plains and its location at the heart of the country. However, its strategic location also means that it has suffered from nearly all of the major wars in China. In addition, the numerous floods of the Yellow River have caused significant damage from time to time. Kaifeng, in particular, has been buried by the Yellow River's silt seven times due to flooding.


Ancient Era

Archaeological sites reveal that prehistoric cultures such as the
Yangshao Culture The Yangshao culture (仰韶文化, pinyin: Yǎngsháo wénhuà) was a Neolithic culture that existed extensively along the middle reaches of the Yellow River in China from around 5000 BC to 3000 BC. The culture is named after the Yangsh ...
and Longshan Culture were active in what is now northern Henan since the Neolithic Era. The more recent Erlitou culture has been controversially identified with the Xia dynasty, the first and largely legendary Chinese dynasty that was established, roughly, in the 21st century BC. Virtually the entire kingdom existed within what is now north and central Henan. The Xia dynasty collapsed around the 16th century BC following the invasion of
Shang The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and f ...
, a neighboring
vassal state A vassal state is any state that has a mutual obligation to a superior state or empire, in a status similar to that of a vassal in the feudal system in medieval Europe. Vassal states were common among the empires of the Near East, dating back to ...
centered around today's Shangqiu in eastern Henan. The Shang dynasty (16th–11th centuries BC) was the first literate dynasty of China. Its many capitals are located at the modern cities of Shangqiu, Yanshi, and
Zhengzhou Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the National ...
. Their last and most important capital,
Yin Yin may refer to: *the dark force in the yin and yang from traditional Chinese philosophy and medicine *Yīn (surname) (), a Chinese surname *Yǐn (surname) (), a Chinese surname *Shang dynasty, also known as the Yin dynasty **Yinxu or Yin, the S ...
, located in modern
Anyang Anyang (; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan province, China. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the east, Hebi and Xinxiang to the south, and the provinces of Shanxi and Hebei to its west and north respectively. It had a ...
, is where the first Chinese writing was created. In the 11th century BC, the Zhou dynasty of Shaanxi arrived from the west and overthrew the Shang dynasty. The capital was moved to Chang'an, and the political and economical center was moved away from Henan for the first time. In 722 BC, when Chang'an was devastated by Xionites invasions, the capital was moved back east to Luoyang. This began the
Spring and Autumn period The Spring and Autumn period was a period in Chinese history from approximately 770 to 476 BC (or according to some authorities until 403 BC) which corresponds roughly to the first half of the Eastern Zhou period. The period's name derives fr ...
, a period of warfare and rivalry. What is now Henan and all of China was divided into a variety of small, independent states, constantly at war for control of the central plain. Although regarded formally as the ruler of China, the control that Zhou king in Luoyang exerted over the feudal kingdoms had virtually disappeared. Despite the prolonged period of instability, prominent philosophers such as Confucius emerged in this era and offered their ideas on how a state should be run.
Laozi Laozi (), also known by numerous other names, was a semilegendary ancient Chinese Taoist philosopher. Laozi ( zh, ) is a Chinese honorific, generally translated as "the Old Master". Traditional accounts say he was born as in the state ...
, the founder of Taoism, was born in northern
Chu Chu or CHU may refer to: Chinese history * Chu (state) (c. 1030 BC–223 BC), a state during the Zhou dynasty * Western Chu (206 BC–202 BC), a state founded and ruled by Xiang Yu * Chu Kingdom (Han dynasty) (201 BC–70 AD), a kingdom of the Ha ...
, part of modern-day Henan. Later on, these states were replaced by seven large and powerful states during the Warring States period, and Henan was divided into three states, the
Wei Wei or WEI may refer to: States * Wey (state) (衛, 1040–209 BC), Wei in pinyin, but spelled Wey to distinguish from the bigger Wei of the Warring States * Wei (state) (魏, 403–225 BC), one of the seven major states of the Warring States per ...
to the north, the
Chu Chu or CHU may refer to: Chinese history * Chu (state) (c. 1030 BC–223 BC), a state during the Zhou dynasty * Western Chu (206 BC–202 BC), a state founded and ruled by Xiang Yu * Chu Kingdom (Han dynasty) (201 BC–70 AD), a kingdom of the Ha ...
to the south, and the
Han Han may refer to: Ethnic groups * Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group. ** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...
in the middle. In 221 BC,
state of Qin Qin () was an ancient Chinese state during the Zhou dynasty. Traditionally dated to 897 BC, it took its origin in a reconquest of western lands previously lost to the Rong; its position at the western edge of Chinese civilization permitted ex ...
forces from Shaanxi conquered all of the other six states, ending 800 years of warfare.


Imperial Era

Ying Zheng, the leader of Qin, crowned himself (220 BCE) as the
First Emperor Qin Shi Huang (, ; 259–210 BC) was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China. Rather than maintain the title of "king" ( ''wáng'') borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he ruled as the First Emperor ( ...
. He abolished the feudal system and centralized all powers, establishing the Qin dynasty and unifying the core of the Han Chinese homeland for the first time. The empire quickly collapsed after the death (210 BCE) of Ying Zheng and was replaced by the Han dynasty in 206 BC, with its capital at Chang'an. Thus, a golden age of Chinese culture, economy, and military power began. The capital moved east to Luoyang in 25 AD, in response to a coup in Chang'an that created the short-lived Xin dynasty. Luoyang quickly regained control of China, and the
Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
(25–220) began, extending the golden age for another two centuries. The late
Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
saw war and rivalry between regional warlords. Xuchang in central Henan was the power base of
Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate Grand chancellor (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...
, who eventually succeeded in unifying all of northern China under the Kingdom of Wei. Wei then moved its capital to Luoyang, which remained the capital after the unification of China by the Western Jin dynasty. During this period Luoyang became one of the largest and most prosperous cities in the world, despite being repeatedly damaged by warfare. With the fall of the Western Jin dynasty in the 4th and 5th centuries, nomadic peoples from the north invaded northern China and established many successive regimes in northern China, including Henan. These people were gradually assimilated into the Chinese culture in a process known as sinification. The short-lived
Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty (, ) was a short-lived imperial dynasty of China that lasted from 581 to 618. The Sui unified the Northern and Southern dynasties, thus ending the long period of division following the fall of the Western Jin dynasty, and layi ...
reunified China again in 589 with its capital back in Chang'an. It collapsed due to Sui Emperor Yang's costly attempt to relocate the capital from Chang'an to Luoyang and the construction of many extravagant palaces there. The succeeding Tang dynasty (618–907) kept its capital in Chang'an, marking the beginning of China's second golden age, with Henan being one of the wealthiest places in the empire. The Tang dynasty lasted for three centuries before it eventually succumbed to internal strife. In the Period of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (907–960) that followed, Kaifeng in eastern Henan became the capital of four dynasties. The Song dynasty that reunified China in 982 also had its capital at Kaifeng. Under Song rule, China entered another era of culture and prosperity, and Kaifeng overtook Luoyang and Chang'an as the largest city in China and in the world. In 1127, however, the Song dynasty succumbed to Jurchen ( Jin dynasty) invaders from the north in the Jin–Song war, and in 1142
ceded The act of cession is the assignment of property to another entity. In international law it commonly refers to land transferred by treaty. Ballentine's Law Dictionary defines cession as "a surrender; a giving up; a relinquishment of jurisdictio ...
all of northern China, including Henan. The Song government moved its capital to Hangzhou in Southern China, which, under the
Southern Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
(1127–1279) continued to enjoy relative economic and culture prosperity. A prolonged period of peace and cultural and economic prosperity in the Yangtze River delta '' Jiangnan'' region (modern southern Jiangsu, northern Zhejiang, and Shanghai) made this the new center of Chinese culture and economy. Kaifeng served as the Jurchen's "southern capital" from 1157 (other sources say 1161) and was reconstructed during this time. But the Jurchen kept their main capital further north, until 1214, when they were forced to move the imperial court southwards to Kaifeng in order to flee the Mongol onslaught. In 1234 they succumbed to combined Mongol and Song dynasty forces. Mongols took control, and in 1279 they conquered all of China, establishing the Yuan dynasty and set up the equivalent of modern Henan province, with borders very similar to the modern ones. Neither its territories nor its role in the economy changed under later dynasties. Henan remained important in the Ming dynasty (1368–1644) and Qing dynasty (1644–1911) that followed, though its economy slowly deteriorated due to frequent natural disasters.


Modern Era

The Qing dynasty was overthrown by the 1911 Revolution and then the Republic of China was established in 1912, during which a man from Henan, Yuan Shikai, played an important role and thus he became the first president of Republic of China. The construction and extension of the Pinghan Railway and Longhai Railway had turned
Zhengzhou Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the National ...
, a minor county town at the time, into a major transportation hub. Despite the rise of Zhengzhou, Henan's overall economy repeatedly stumbled as it was the hardest hit by the many disasters that struck China in its modern era. Henan suffered greatly during the Second Sino-Japanese War. In 1938, when the Imperial Japanese Army captured Kaifeng, the government led by
Chiang Kai-shek Chiang Kai-shek (31 October 1887 – 5 April 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng and Jiang Jieshi, was a Chinese Nationalist politician, revolutionary, and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 ...
bombed the Huayuankou dam in Zhengzhou in order to prevent Japanese forces from advancing further. However, this caused massive flooding in Henan, Anhui, and Jiangsu resulting in hundreds of thousands of deaths. In 1942 Henan was hit by a great famine resulting from a mix of drought, locusts and destruction caused by the war. Grain requisition policies were continued by Chinese and Japanese authorities despite the shortage of food, making the death toll far greater than it might have been otherwise. In 1954, the new government of the People's Republic of China moved the capital of Henan from Kaifeng to
Zhengzhou Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the National ...
, as a result of its economic importance. The PRC had earlier established a short-lived
Pingyuan Province Pingyuan () was a former province of the People's Republic of China that existed between 1949 and 1952. Its capital was Xinxiang, now in Henan province. History Pingyuan Province was established on August 20, 1949, comprising adjoining prefectur ...
consisting of what is now northern Henan and western
Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
with Xinxiang as its capital. This province was abolished in 1952. In 1958, Yashan in Suiping County, Henan, became the first
people's commune The people's commune () was the highest of three administrative levels in rural areas of the People's Republic of China during the period from 1958 to 1983, until they were replaced by townships. Communes, the largest collective units, were div ...
of China, heralding the beginning of the "
Great Leap Forward The Great Leap Forward (Second Five Year Plan) of the People's Republic of China (PRC) was an economic and social campaign led by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1958 to 1962. CCP Chairman Mao Zedong launched the campaign to reconstruc ...
". In the subsequent famines of the early 1960s popularly attributed to the Great Leap Forward, Henan was one of the hardest hit and millions of people died. Suffering under famine and economic chaos caused by the Great Leap, locals in Henan offered low-level resistance mostly through banditry. In 1959, however, a full peasant uprising erupted and was only defeated after twenty days of fighting. A destructive flooding of the Huai River in the summer of 1950 prompted large-scale construction of dams on its tributaries in central and southern Henan. Unfortunately, many of the dams were not able to withstand the extraordinarily high levels of rainfall caused by Typhoon Nina in August 1975. Sixty-two dams, the largest of which was the Banqiao Dam in Biyang County collapsed; catastrophic flooding, spread over several counties throughout Zhumadian Prefecture and further downstream, killed at least 26,000 people.Yi Si, "The World's Most Catastrophic Dam Failures: The August 1975 Collapse of the Banqiao and Shimantan Dams", in: Dai Qing ''et al''
The River Dragon Has Come!: The Three Gorges Dam and the Fate of China’s Yangtze River and Its People
, pp. 25–38.
Unofficial human life loss estimates, including deaths from the ensuing epidemics and famine, range as high as 85,600, 171,000
Evan Osnos Evan Lionel Richard Osnos (born December 24, 1976) is an American journalist and author. He has been a staff writer at ''The New Yorker'' since 2008, best known for his coverage of politics and foreign affairs, in the United States and China. His ...
,
Faust, China, and Nuclear Power
". ''New Yorker'', 2011-10-12
or even 230 000. This is considered the most deadly dam-related disaster in human history. By the early 1970s, China was one of the poorest countries in the world, and Henan was one of the poorest provinces in China. In 1978, however, when the communist leader Deng Xiaoping initiated the open door policy and embraced capitalism, China entered an economic boom that continues today. The boom did not reach inland provinces such as Henan initially, but by the 1990s Henan's economy was expanding at an even faster rate than that of China overall. In November 2004, martial law was declared in
Zhongmou County Zhongmu County (; postal: Chungmow) is a county of Henan Province, South Central China, it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan. It has an area of and a population of 680,000. Located in the ...
, Henan, to quell deadly ethnic clashes between Han Chinese and the Muslim
Hui Chinese The Hui people ( zh, c=, p=Huízú, w=Hui2-tsu2, Xiao'erjing: , dng, Хуэйзў, ) are an East Asian ethnoreligious group predominantly composed of Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. They are distributed throughout China, mainly in the n ...
. The reported number of deaths ranged between 7 and 148. In July 2021, high amounts of rainfall caused flooding, killing 302 and damaging amounting to 82 billion yuan.


Geography

Henan has a diverse landscape with floodplains in the east and mountains in the west. Much of the province forms part the densely populated
North China Plain The North China Plain or Huang-Huai-Hai Plain () is a large-scale downfaulted rift basin formed in the late Paleogene and Neogene and then modified by the deposits of the Yellow River. It is the largest alluvial plain of China. The plain is bord ...
, an area known as the "breadbasket of China". The Taihang Mountains intrude partially into Henan's northwestern borders from
Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
, forming the eastern edge of Loess Plateau. To the west the Xionger and Funiu Mountains form an extensive network of mountain ranges and plateaus, supporting one of the few remaining temperate deciduous forests which once covered all of Henan. The renowned Mount Song and its
Shaolin Temple Shaolin Monastery (少林寺 ''Shàolínsì''), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a renowned monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin Kung Fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak of the So ...
is located in the far east of the region, near the capital city
Zhengzhou Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the National ...
. To the far south, the
Dabie Mountains The Dabie Mountains () are a major mountain range located in central China. Running northwest-to-southeast, they form the main watershed between the Huai and Yangtze rivers. The range also marks the boundary between Hubei Province and its neighbo ...
divides Hubei from Henan. The
Nanyang Basin Nanyang Basin is located in Henan, Henan Province of the People's Republic of China, a small part of the Drainage basin, basin is in Hubei, Hubei Province, the southern neighbor of Henan. Its total area is 46291 square kilometers. Drainage basi ...
, separated from North China Plain by these mountains, is another important agricultural and population center, with culture and history distinct from the rest of Henan and closer to that of Hubei's. Unlike the rest of northern China,
desertification Desertification is a type of land degradation in drylands in which biological productivity is lost due to natural processes or induced by human activities whereby fertile areas become increasingly arid. It is the spread of arid areas caused by ...
is not a problem in Henan, though sandstorms are common in cities near the Yellow River due to the large amount of sand present in the river. At 2413.8 meters above sea level, the highest point in Henan province is Laoyachanao (). The Yellow River passes through central Henan. It enters from the northwest, via the
Sanmenxia Reservoir The Sanmenxia Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the middle-reaches of the Yellow River near Sanmenxia Gorge on the border between Shanxi province and Henan Province, China. The dam is multi-purpose and was constructed for flood and ice control al ...
. After it passes Luoyang, the mountains gave way to plains. Excessive amount of sediments are formed due to the silt it picks up from the Loess Plateau, raising the riverbed and causing frequent floods which shaped the habitat of the region. More recently however, construction of dams and
levee A levee (), dike (American English), dyke (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is a structure that is usually soil, earthen and that often runs parallel (geometry), parallel to ...
s, as well as the depletion of water resources have ended the floods. The Huai River in southern Henan is another important river, and has been recognized as part of the boundary dividing northern and southern Chinese climate and culture. Henan shares borders with six other provinces. It is bordered to the west by Shaanxi, to the south by Hubei, and to the north by
Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
(northwest) and Hebei (northeast). To the east lie
Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
(northeast) and Anhui (southeast), whose borders meet at a narrow strip of land which separates Henan from Jiangsu to the east.


Climate

Henan has a temperate climate that is humid subtropical ( Köppen ''Cwa'' or ''Cfa'') to the south of the Yellow River and bordering on humid continental (Köppen ''Dwa'') to the north. It has a distinct seasonal climate characterised by hot, humid summers due to the East Asian monsoon, and generally cool to cold, windy, dry winters that reflect the influence of the vast
Siberian Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...
anticyclone. Temperatures average around the freezing mark in January and 27 to 28 °C in July. A great majority of the annual rainfall occurs during the summer.


Administrative divisions

Henan is divided into seventeen prefecture-level divisions: all prefecture-level cities; along with one directly administered county-level city (a
sub-prefecture-level city A sub-prefectural municipality (), sub-prefectural city, or vice-prefectural municipality, is an unofficial designation for a type of administrative division of China. A sub-prefectural city is officially considered to be a county-level city, b ...
): These 17 prefecture-level cities and one directly administered county-level city of Henan are in turn subdivided into 157 county-level divisions (54 districts, 21 county-level cities, and 82 counties; the
sub-prefecture-level city A sub-prefectural municipality (), sub-prefectural city, or vice-prefectural municipality, is an unofficial designation for a type of administrative division of China. A sub-prefectural city is officially considered to be a county-level city, b ...
of Jiyuan is counted as a county-level city here). Those are in turn divided into 2454 township-level divisions (1181 towns, 598 townships, twelve ethnic townships, and 663
subdistrict A subdistrict or sub-district is an administrative division that is generally smaller than a district. Equivalents * Administrative posts of East Timor, formerly Portuguese-language * Kelurahan, in Indonesia * Mukim, a township in Brunei, In ...
s).


Urban areas


Demographics

With a population of approximately 93.6 million, Henan is the third most populous Chinese province after Guangdong and Shandong. It is also the fifth most populous sub-national division in the world. If it were a country by itself, it would be the twelfth most populous in the world, just behind Mexico and ahead of the Philippines. However, the hukou system shows Henan as the most populous province in China with over 103 million people, as it counts the migrant Henanese laborers as residents of Henan, instead of the province they currently reside in. On the other hand, Guangdong is shown as having only 81 million people, though the actual population is 95 million due to the influx of migrants from other provinces. The population is highly homogeneous with 98.8% of the population being
Han Han may refer to: Ethnic groups * Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group. ** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...
. Small populations of Mongols and Manchus exists in scattered rural communities as well as major urban centers. Along with Jiangxi, Henan has one of the most unbalanced gender ratios in China. As a result of the Chinese government's one-child policy (many parents do not want the only child to be female and abort the fetus), the gender ratio was 118.46 males for 100 females in 2000. Subsequently, aborting fetuses due to their female sex was banned in Henan and heavy fines are issued for those who violate the law. In addition, daughter-only families receive an annual allowance from the government. Despite these efforts the problem seems to have become far worse. Based on a 2009 British Medical Journal study, the ratio is over 140 boys for every 100 girls in the 1–4 age group; this might be a strong exaggeration, as many families with more than one child do not register their daughters to the hukou in order to escape fines.


Religion

According to a 2012 survey only around 13% of the population of Henan belongs to organised religions, the largest groups being
Buddhists Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
with 6.4%, followed by
Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
with 5.6%, Muslims with 1.3% and
Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
with 0.5%. Henan has some important centres of Chinese Buddhism, the White Horse Temple and the famous
Shaolin Monastery Shaolin Monastery (少林寺 ''Shàolínsì''), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a renowned monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin Kung Fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak of the So ...
. Henan has also the largest
Christian population Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρισ ...
by numbers and percentage of any province of China, 6.1% of the province's population , corresponding to approximately 7 million Christians. A 2009 survey reported the share of Christians to be 9.33%.China General Social Survey 2009, Chinese Spiritual Life Survey (CSLS) 2007. Report by
Xiuhua Wang (2015, p. 15)
In 2019, Communist officials demolished the True Jesus Church near Zhumadian city in Henan province. In 2020, Communist officials demolished the
Sunzhuang Church Sunzhuang Church was a church which was located in the Henan province in the People's Republic of China. The Sunzhuang Church was a church which was destroyed on June 12, 2020, when more than 200 Chinese Communist Party officials from different de ...
. The reports didn't give figures for other types of religion; 86% of the population may be either irreligious or involved in worship of nature deities, Confucianism, Taoism and folk religious sects (for example, a sect that is endogenous to Henan is the Tianxian miaodao). According to a 2007 survey, approximately 8% of the Henanese believe in and are involved in
ancestor veneration The veneration of the dead, including one's ancestors, is based on love and respect for the deceased. In some cultures, it is related to beliefs that the dead have a continued existence, and may possess the ability to influence the fortune of t ...
, the traditional Chinese religion of the lineages organised into
lineage church A Chinese kin, lineage or sometimes rendered as clan, is a patrilineal and patrilocal group of related Chinese people with a common surname sharing a common ancestor and, in many cases, an ancestral home. Description Chinese kinship tend to b ...
es and ancestral shrines.


Politics

The Government of Henan is structured in a dual party-government system like all other governing institutions in mainland China. The
Governor of Henan The Politics of Henan Province in the People's Republic of China is structured in a dual party-government system like all other governing institutions in mainland China. The Governor of Henan is the highest-ranking official in the People's Governme ...
is the highest-ranking official in the People's Government of Henan. However, in the province's dual party-government governing system, the Governor has less power than the Henan Chinese Communist Party Provincial Committee Secretary, colloquially termed the "Henan CCP Party Chief".


Economy

Henan has seen rapid development in its economy over the past two decades, and its economy has expanded at an even faster rate than the national average of 10%. This rapid growth has transformed Henan from one of the poorest provinces to one that matches other central provinces. Henan is the 5th-largest provincial economy of China, the second largest in South Central China after Guangdong, the largest in Central China and the largest among inland provinces, with a nominal GDP of 5.88 trillion RMB (US$926 billion) as of 2021, ahead of the GDP of Turkey of 815 billion. If it were a country, it would be the 18th-largest economy as well as the 14th most populous as of 2021. However, per capita GDP is low compared to other eastern and central provinces. Henan is a semi-industrialized economy with an underdeveloped
service sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...
. Agriculture has traditionally been a pillar of its economy, with the nation's highest wheat and
sesame Sesame ( or ; ''Sesamum indicum'') is a flowering plant in the genus ''Sesamum'', also called benne. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cu ...
output and second highest rice output, earning its reputation as the breadbasket of China. Henan is also an important producer of beef, cotton, maize, pork,
animal oil Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and go through an ontogenetic stage in w ...
, and corn. Although Henan's industry has traditionally been based on light textiles and
food processing Food processing is the transformation of agricultural products into food, or of one form of food into other forms. Food processing includes many forms of processing foods, from grinding grain to make raw flour to home cooking to complex industr ...
, recent developments have diversified the industry sector to
metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...
, petrol, cement,
chemical industry The chemical industry comprises the companies that produce industrial chemicals. Central to the modern world economy, it converts raw materials (oil, natural gas, air, water, metals, and minerals) into more than 70,000 different products. The ...
,
machinery A machine is a physical system using power to apply forces and control movement to perform an action. The term is commonly applied to artificial devices, such as those employing engines or motors, but also to natural biological macromolecule ...
and electronics. Henan has the second largest
molybdenum Molybdenum is a chemical element with the symbol Mo and atomic number 42 which is located in period 5 and group 6. The name is from Neo-Latin ''molybdaenum'', which is based on Ancient Greek ', meaning lead, since its ores were confused with lea ...
reserves in the world. Coal, aluminum,
alkaline metals In chemistry, an alkali (; from ar, القلوي, al-qaly, lit=ashes of the saltwort) is a basic, ionic salt of an alkali metal or an alkaline earth metal. An alkali can also be defined as a base that dissolves in water. A solution of a ...
and tungsten are also present in large amounts in western Henan. Henan houses some of the biggest limestone reserves in China estimated over 24 billion tons. Export and processing of these materials is one of the main sources of revenues. Henan is actively trying to build its economy around the provincial capital of Zhengzhou, and it is hoped that the province may become an important transportation and manufacturing hub in the years to come. In July 2021, extreme flooding inflicted an estimated US$12.7 billion of economic damage in Henan.


Transportation

Henan has some of the most advanced transportation system in China due to its flat terrain and its location at the heart of central China's construction boom. The Jingguang and Longhai Railway, the nation's two most important railways, run through much of the province and intersect at
Zhengzhou Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the National ...
. Other railway hubs such as Shangqiu, Xinxiang, and Luohe have also become important centers of trade and manufacturing as a result. A
high-speed rail High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail system that runs significantly faster than traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated tracks. While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines ...
way links Zhengzhou with Xi'an. Henan's expressway system is highly developed and the total length is approximately , the highest total for any Chinese province. The state of air transport is less stellar, the only 3 public airports are located in
Xinzheng Xinzheng () is a county-level city of Henan Province, China. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Zhengzhou, the provincial capital. The city has a population of 600,000 people and covers an area of , of which is urban. ...
(near Zhengzhou), Luoyang, and
Nanyang Nanyang is the romanization of two common Chinese place names. It may refer to: Written as 南洋 (Southern Ocean) * Nanyang (region), a Chinese term denoting the Southeast Asian lands surrounding the South China Sea ;China * Nanyang Fleet, Qing ...
.


Culture

* Most of Henan speaks dialects of the
Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
group of dialects spoken in northern and southwestern China. Linguists put these dialects into the category of " Zhongyuan Mandarin". The northwestern corner of Henan is an exception, where people speak Jin dialects instead. The dialects of Henan are collectively called "the
Henan dialect Central Plains Mandarin, or ''Zhongyuan'' Mandarin (), is a variety of Mandarin Chinese spoken in the central and southern parts of Shaanxi, Henan, southwestern part of Shanxi, southern part of Gansu, far southern part of Hebei, northern Anhui, n ...
" in popular usage, with easily identifiable stereotypical features. * Yu opera (''Yuju'') is the local form of
Chinese opera Traditional Chinese opera (), or ''Xiqu'', is a form of musical theatre in China with roots going back to the early periods in China. It is an amalgamation of various art forms that existed in ancient China, and evolved gradually over more tha ...
; it is also well-known and popular across the rest of China.
Henan Quju Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is als ...
and
Henan Yuediao Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is als ...
are also important local opera forms. *
Henan cuisine Henan or Yu cuisine is an umbrella term used to define the native cooking styles of the Henan province in China. Henan (河南, or Honan) is a province located in Central China and is often also referred to by the names Zhongzhou or Zhongyuan, w ...
is the local cuisine, with traditions such as the Luoyang Shuixi ( Luoyang "Water Table", consisting entirely of various soups, etc.);
Xinyang Duncai Xinyang (; postal: Sinyang) is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Henan province, People's Republic of China, the southernmost administrative division in the province. Its total population was 6,234,401 according to the 2020 census. As of t ...
( Xinyang brewed vegetables), and the traditional cuisine of Kaifeng. *Important traditional art and craft products include: Junci, a type of porcelain originating in Yuzhou noted for its unpredictable colour patterns; the jade carvings of Zhenping; and Luoyang's
Tangsancai ''Sancai'' ()Vainker, 75 is a versatile type of decoration on Chinese pottery using glazes or slip, predominantly in the three colours of brown (or amber), green, and a creamy off-white. It is particularly associated with the Tang Dynasty (618 ...
("Tang Three Colours"), which are earthenware figurines made in the traditional style of the Tang dynasty.


Tourism

Henan is located in the Yellow River valley where ancient people lived. Intricate pottery, writing and musical instruments of the Peiligang Culture and
Yangshao Culture The Yangshao culture (仰韶文化, pinyin: Yǎngsháo wénhuà) was a Neolithic culture that existed extensively along the middle reaches of the Yellow River in China from around 5000 BC to 3000 BC. The culture is named after the Yangsh ...
arose during neolithic times. Three of the
Seven Ancient Capitals of China This is a list of historical capitals of China. Four Great Ancient Capitals There are traditionally four major historical capitals of China referred to as the "Four Great Ancient Capitals of China" (). The four are Beijing, Nanjing, Luoyang and X ...
are in Henan: Luoyang, Kaifeng and
Anyang Anyang (; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan province, China. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the east, Hebi and Xinxiang to the south, and the provinces of Shanxi and Hebei to its west and north respectively. It had a ...
. 16 historical sites in Henan are protected at the national level and 267 more at the provincial level. *
Baligou ''Baligou Valley'' (), also known as North Water World, is located in Xinxiang City in the Taihang Mountain scenic area in Henan Province, People's Republic of China. In 2006 Baligou Valley was named a National AAAA- class tourist attraction. The ...
in Xinxiang *
Gaocheng Astronomical Observatory Gaocheng Astronomical Observatory, also known as the Dengfeng Observatory, is an observatory in Duke of Zhou's shrine, Gaocheng Town, near Dengfeng in Henan province, China. This site has a long tradition of astronomical observations, from the ...
in Dengfeng, the oldest astronomical observatory in China. * Longmen Grottoes, near Luoyang, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000. *
Mount Jigong Mount Jigong () is a mountain in Shihe District, Xinyang, Henan Province, China, located near the border with Hubei Province to the south. The name, which means Rooster Mountain or Cockerel Mountain, is derived from its shape. It used to be a su ...
, on the southern border. * Mount Mangdang in Shangqiu * Mount Song, near Dengfeng, one of the Five Sacred Mountains of China. *
Shaolin Temple Shaolin Monastery (少林寺 ''Shàolínsì''), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a renowned monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin Kung Fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak of the So ...
, on Mount Song. *
Songyue Pagoda The Songyue Pagoda (), constructed in AD 523, is located at the Songyue Monastery on Mount Song, in Henan province, China.Yetts, 124. Built during the Northern Wei Dynasty, this pagoda is one of the few intact sixth-century pagodas in China and is ...
* White Horse Temple in Luoyang * Yinxu in
Anyang Anyang (; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan province, China. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the east, Hebi and Xinxiang to the south, and the provinces of Shanxi and Hebei to its west and north respectively. It had a ...
, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. *
Youguo Temple Youguo Temple () is a Buddhist monastery complex located northeast of Kaifeng, in Henan province, China. It was built during the Song dynasty (960–1279 CE). The design features the Iron Pagoda towering in the center of the complex, in a style tha ...
with the Iron Pagoda * Yuntai Mountain in Jiaozuo


Colleges and universities

* Anyang Institute of Technology *
Henan Agricultural University Henan Agricultural University () is a public university in Zhengzhou, China. It was established in 1912 as Henan Public Agricultural Major School. The school area occupies approximately 144000 square meters. The university established inter ...
*
Henan College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Henan University of Chinese Medicine Chinese: 河南中医药大学 Hénán Zhōngyīyào dàxué) is a public university in Zhengzhou, Henan, China. History One of the earliest of its kind in China, Henan University of Chinese Medicine wa ...
*
Henan Medical University Zhengzhou University (), colloquially known in Chinese as Zhèngdà () and abbreviated as ZZU is a public university located in Zhengzhou, Henan, China. Zhengzhou University is the largest university in China in terms of number of students (aroun ...
*
Henan Normal University Henan Normal University (), colloquially known as 河师大 (), is a public normal university located in the northern part of Xinxiang, Henan, China. In 2022, Henan Normal University ranked the 3rd in Henan province and top 150 in China. Henan ...
*
Henan Polytechnic University Henan Polytechnic University ( zh, s=河南理工大学), formerly Jiaozuo Coal Mining School, is a mining university in Jiaozuo City of the Henan province, China. It was established in 1909 by the British Syndicate Co. Ltd. and is the oldest mi ...
*
Henan University of Economics and Law Henan University of Economics and Law (河南财经政法大学), is a university located in Zhengzhou. Henan Province, China. It consists of the Henan University of Finance and Economics and the Henan Institute of Political Science and Law. I ...
*
Henan University of Science and Technology Henan University of Science and Technology (HAUST, ) is a comprehensive teaching and research university which ranks top three in Henan Province. The university has 31 schools, 77 undergraduate programs, 156 Master's degree programs and 25 Doctor ...
*
Henan University of Technology Henan University of Technology (HUT) is a public university in Zhengzhou, Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhong ...
* Henan University *
Huanghe Science and Technology University Huanghe Science and Technology College ( Chinese: 黄河科技学院; Pinyin: Huánghé Kējì Xuéyuàn) is a private four-year university located in Zhengzhou, Henan, People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic o ...
*
Luoyang Institute of Technology Henan University of Science and Technology (HAUST, ) is a comprehensive teaching and research university which ranks top three in Henan Province. The university has 31 schools, 77 undergraduate programs, 156 Master's degree programs and 25 Doctor ...
*
Nanyang Institute of Technology The Nanyang Institute of Technology is a full-time public undergraduate college. It is located in Nanyang, Henan, a famous historical and cultural city. It is the hometown of Shang Sheng Fan Yi, Ke Sheng Zhang Heng, and Zhi Sheng Zhang Zhongj ...
*
Nanyang Teachers College Nanyang is the romanization of two common Chinese place names. It may refer to: Written as 南洋 (Southern Ocean) * Nanyang (region), a Chinese term denoting the Southeast Asian lands surrounding the South China Sea ;China * Nanyang Fleet, Qing ...
*
North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power The North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power (NCWU; ) is a public university in Zhengzhou, Henan, China. The university is founded in 1951 and now co-funded by the Ministry of Water Resources and the Henan Provincial Peop ...
*
Pingdingshan Normal College Pingdingshan (), also known as Eagle City ( zh, s=鹰城, p=Yīngchéng, t=鷹城), is a prefecture-level city in central Henan province, China. It had 4,904,701 inhabitants at the 2010 census whom 1,756,333 lived in the built-up (or metro) are ...
*
Shangqiu College Shangqiu (), alternately romanized as Shangkiu, is a city in eastern Henan province, Central China. It borders Kaifeng to the northwest, Zhoukou to the southwest, and the provinces of Shandong and Anhui to the northeast and southeast respectively ...
*
Shangqiu Normal College Shangqiu Normal University (SQNU) (), formerly known as Shangqiu Teachers' College, is a public university in the city of Shangqiu, in Henan Province, China. As a key university in Henan Province, it is a comprehensive local university with salie ...
*
Sias University Sias University (Sias, ), transliterated Zhengzhou Sias College, and formerly known as Sias International University (), is a privately owned, for-profit post-secondary school in Central China. Formerly affiliated with Zhengzhou University, it is ...
*
Xinxiang College Xinxiang ( ; postal: Sinsiang) is a prefecture-level city in northern Henan province, China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to its southwest, Kaifeng to its southeast, Hebi and Anyang to its north, Jiaozuo to its west, and the ...
*
Xinxiang Medical University Xinxiang Medical University () is located at Xinxiang city in the northern part of Henan province of China. The origin of the school can be traced back to the western medicine clinic opened by Dr. Luo Weiling in 1896 in the ancient city of Weihui, ...
*
Zhengzhou Grain College Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the Nationa ...
* Zhengzhou Institute of Aeronautical Industry Management *
Zhengzhou Textile Institute Zhongyuan University of Technology (Simplified Chinese: 中原工学院 Zhōngyuán gōng xuéyuàn), formerly Zhengzhou Textile Institute (郑州纺织学院 Zhèngzhōu fǎngzhī xuéyuàn), is a public university in Zhengzhou, Henan Hena ...
*
Zhengzhou University of Light Industry Zhengzhou University of Light Industry () is a public university located in Zhengzhou, Henan, 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 most populous ...
*
Zhengzhou University of Technology Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the Nationa ...
* Zhengzhou University *
Zhongyuan Institute of Technology Zhongyuan University of Technology (Simplified Chinese: 中原工学院 Zhōngyuán gōng xuéyuàn), formerly Zhengzhou Textile Institute (郑州纺织学院 Zhèngzhōu fǎngzhī xuéyuàn), is a public university in Zhengzhou, Henan province, ...


Notable individuals

*
Chen Sheng Chen Sheng (died January 208 BC), also known as Chen She ("She" being his courtesy name), posthumously known as Prince Yin, was the leader of the Dazexiang Uprising, the first rebellion against the Qin Dynasty. It occurred during the reign of ...
, (known in some sources as Chen She) and
Wu Guang Wu Guang (, died December 209 BC or January 208 BC) was a leader of the first rebellion against the Qin Dynasty during the reign of the Second Qin Emperor. Life Wu Guang was born in Yangxia (陽夏; present-day Taikang County, Zhoukou, Henan) ...
(both died 209 BC or 208 BC), leaders of the first rebellion against Qin dynasty * Chen Zhong, Olympic gold medalist in Taekwondo * Cheng Hao (1032–1085) and brother Cheng Yi (1033–1107), Neo-Confucian philosophers * Deng Ai (?−264), an officer of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period * Deng Yaping (born 5 February 1973), four-time Olympic gold medalist. *
Du Fu Du Fu (; 712–770) was a Tang dynasty poet and politician. Along with his elder contemporary and friend Li Bai (Li Po), he is frequently called the greatest of the Chinese poets.Ebrey, 103. His greatest ambition was to serve his country as ...
(712–770), considered one of the greatest of Chinese poets * Du Wei (born 9 February 1982), professional football player *
Fan Zhen Fàn Zhěn (范縝, hanyupinyin Fàn Zhěn) (c. 450 - 515) was a Chinese philosopher, politician, and writer. He was an atheist of the Southern Qi Dynasty, remembered today for his treatise ''Shén Miè Lùn'' (simplified Chinese 神灭论, t ...
(c. 450–515), a Chinese philosopher of the
Southern Qi dynasty Qi, known in historiography as the Southern Qi ( or ) or Xiao Qi (), was a Chinese imperial dynasty and the second of the four Southern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties era. It followed the Liu Song dynasty and was succeede ...
, remembered today for the treatise ''Shen Mie Lun'' (''On the Annihilation of the Soul'') *
Feng Yi Feng Yi (?- A.D. 34) was a Chinese general of the Eastern Han Dynasty, who helped Emperor Guangwu of Han establish the Eastern Han dynasty. One of his greatest contributions was the final defeat of the Red Eyebrows rebels. He was famous for hi ...
, a general of the Eastern Han dynasty *
Feng Youlan Feng Youlan (; 4 December 1895 – 26 November 1990) was a Chinese philosopher, historian, and writer who was instrumental for reintroducing the study of Chinese philosophy in the modern era. The name he published under in English was 'Fung ...
(1895–1990), philosopher *
Gao Yaojie Gao Yaojie (; born 1927) is a People's Republic of China, Chinese gynecologist, academic, and HIV/AIDS in China#Blood transfusion controversy, AIDS activist in Zhengzhou, Henan province, China. Gao has been honored for her work by the United Nati ...
, medical doctor *
Ge Xin'ai Ge Xin'ai (; born 1953) is a former female international table tennis player from China. Table tennis career From 1975 to 1979 she won several medals in singles, doubles, and team events in the Asian Table Tennis Championships, and in the World ...
(born 30 June 1953) Table Tennis World Champion (1975, 1977, 1979) * Han Fei (c. 280–233 BC),
Legalist Legalist, Inc. is an investment firm that specializes in alternative assets in the private credit industry. Today the firm manages approximately $750 million across three separate strategies: litigation finance, bankruptcy (debtor-in-possession or ...
philosopher * Han Yu (768–824), one of China's best known prose writers and poets *
Hui Shi Hui Shi (; 370–310 BCE), or Huizi (; "Master Hui"), was a Chinese philosopher during the Warring States period. He was a representative of the School of Names (Logicians), and is famous for ten paradoxes about the relativity of time and space, ...
(380 BC−?), philosopher *
Jia Aoqi Jia Aoqi (, born March 26, 1992) is a Chinese Sanda kickboxer, currently competing in the featherweight division of Wu Lin Feng. A professional competitor since 2015, he was the 2019 WLF 67 kg World Cup winner. As of September 2022, he is t ...
, sanshou fighter and professional kickboxer * Jia Yi, a Chinese poet and statesman of the Han dynasty *
Kong Hongxing Kong Hongxing (, born February 12, 1992) is a Chinese Sanda kickboxer training out of the Shaolin Tagou Martial Arts School. Aside from being one of China's most decorated Sanda athletes, he is also notable for having an upset vict ...
, sanshou fighter * Lao Zi (Lao Tzu: dates uncertain), founder of Daoism *
Li Shangyin Li Shangyin (, 813858), courtesy name Yishan (), was a Chinese poet and politician of the late Tang dynasty, born in the Henei Commandery (now Qinyang, Henan). He is noted for the imagist quality of his poems and his "no title" () style of poet ...
(813–858), poet * Li Tang (c. 1080−c. 1130), painter * Liang Jun (born 1945), teacher and women's rights activist *
Lie Yukou Lie Yukou (; ) is considered the author of the Daoist book ''Liezi'', which uses his honorific name Liezi (). Name The second Chinese character in Yukou is written ''kou'' "bandit; enemy"; the first is written ''yu'' "imprison", ''yu'' "r ...
(c. 4th century BC), Daoist philosopher *
Liu Guoliang Liu Guoliang (; born January 10, 1976) is a retired Chinese table tennis player who has won all titles at major world tournaments including World Championships, World Cup and Olympic Games. He is the second man to achieve a career grand slam of ...
, member of the Chinese table tennis team *
Mo Zi Mozi (; ; Latinized as Micius ; – ), original name Mo Di (), was a Chinese philosopher who founded the school of Mohism during the Hundred Schools of Thought period (the early portion of the Warring States period, –221 BCE). The ancie ...
, founder of
Mohism Mohism or Moism (, ) was an ancient Chinese philosophy of ethics and logic, rational thought, and science developed by the academic scholars who studied under the ancient Chinese philosopher Mozi (c. 470 BC – c. 391 BC), embodied in an epony ...
*
Ruan Ji Ruan Ji (; 210–263), courtesy name Sizong (), was a Chinese musician and poet who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was one of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove. The guqin melody ''Jiukuang ...
(210–263), poet *
Sima Yi Sima Yi ( ; 179 CE – 7 September 251 CE), courtesy name Zhongda, was a Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He formally began his political career in 208 un ...
(179–251), a general, military strategist, and politician of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period * Su Qin * Shang Tang, the first ruling king of the Shang dynasty *
Wei Rui Wei Rui () is a Chinese Sanda kickboxer who currently fights out of Da Dong Xiang fight club. On February 25, 2017, he won the K-1 World GP Lightweight Champions belt making him China's first K-1 World Champion. As of September 2022, he is ra ...
, sanshou fighter and professional kickboxer * Xu Shen (c.58−c. 147), editor of the Shuowen Jiezi * Xu Shu one of Liu Bei's advisors during the Three Kingdoms period of China. * Xun You an advisor to Cao Cao during the Three Kingdoms period * Xun Yu (styled-named Wenruo), an advisor to
Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate Grand chancellor (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...
during the Three Kingdoms period * Yuan Shikai (1859–1916), second
President of the Republic of China The president of the Republic of China, now often referred to as the president of Taiwan, is the head of state of the Republic of China (ROC), as well as the commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces. The position once had aut ...
* Yuan Shizhong, (died 1643), rebel leader *
Yue Fei Yue Fei ( zh, t=岳飛; March 24, 1103 – January 28, 1142), courtesy name Pengju (), was a Chinese military general who lived during the Song dynasty, Southern Song dynasty and a national hero of China, known for leading Southern Song force ...
(1103–1142), a noted Chinese patriot and general who fought for the Southern Song dynasty against the Jurchen *
Zhang Heng Zhang Heng (; AD 78–139), formerly romanized as Chang Heng, was a Chinese polymathic scientist and statesman who lived during the Han dynasty. Educated in the capital cities of Luoyang and Chang'an, he achieved success as an astronomer, ma ...
, an astronomer, mathematician, inventor, geographer, artist, poet,
statesman A statesman or stateswoman typically is a politician who has had a long and respected political career at the national or international level. Statesman or Statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States * ''The Statesman'' (Oregon), a n ...
, and
literary Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to ...
scholar of the Eastern Han dynasty *
Zhang Jian Zhang Jian may refer to: Name * Zhang Jian (fencer) (born 1962), Chinese fencer * Zhang Jian (football) (born 1965/66), Chinese football administrator * Zhang Jian (businessman) (1853–1926), courtesy name Jizhi, Chinese entrepreneur, politician ...
(born September 1955), judge *
Zhang Zhilei Zhilei Zhang (; born May 2, 1983) is a Chinese professional boxer who has held the WBO interim heavyweight title since April 2023. As an amateur, he won bronze medals at the 2007 and 2009 World Championships, and a silver medal at the 2008 ...
, professional heavyweight boxer *
Zhang Ji Zhang Ji may refer to: * Zhang Ji (Han dynasty) (張濟) (died 196), official under the warlord Dong Zhuo * Zhang Zhongjing (150–219), formal name Zhang Ji (張機), Han dynasty physician * Zhang Ji (Derong) (張既) (died 223), general of Cao Wei ...
(style-named Zhang Zhongjing) (150–219), an Eastern Han physician, the author of the Shanghan Zabing Lun * Zhao Ziyang (17 October 1919 − 17 January 2005), former
Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...
and CCP Secretary * Zhong You (151–230), a politician and calligrapher in Wei dynasty of San guo * Zhu Ting, sixteenth captain of China National Women's Volleyball Team * Chuang Tzu (born 369 BC), Daoist philosopher


Sports teams

Professional sports teams in Henan include; * Chinese Basketball Association **
Henan Dragons The Shanxi Loongs, also known as Shanxi SDIC Raptors Club or Shanxi Fenjiu Shares are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Taiyuan, Shanxi, which plays in the Northern Division of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). The Shanxi F ...
* Chinese Football Association Jia League **
Henan Jianye F.C. Henan Songshan Longmen Football Club (), previously known as Henan Jianye Football Club (), is a professional football club that currently participates in the Chinese Super League under licence from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The tea ...


See also

*
List of Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Henan This list is of Major Site Protected for Its Historical and Cultural Value at the National Level, Major Sites Protected for their Historical and Cultural Value at the National Level in the Provinces of the People's Republic of China, Province of H ...
*
Zhengzhou Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the National ...


References


Citations


Works cited

* *
Economic profile for Henan
at
HKTDC The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body established in 1966 as the international marketing dedicated to creating opportunities for Hong Kong's businesses. The organisation has 50 offices around the world, includin ...


External links


Henan Government website
{{Authority control Central China Provinces of the People's Republic of China