Jiangxi (; ;
formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...
in
the east of the
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 ...
. Its major cities include
Nanchang and
Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
. Spanning from the banks of the
Yangtze
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 ...
river in the north into hillier areas in the south and east, it shares a border with
Anhui
Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze Riv ...
to the north,
Zhejiang
Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Ji ...
to the northeast,
Fujian
Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...
to the east,
Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...
to the south,
Hunan
Hunan (, ; ) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the South Central China region. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangx ...
to the west, and
Hubei
Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The p ...
to the northwest.
The name "Jiangxi" is derived from the
circuit administrated under the
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
in 733,
Jiangnanxidao (; Gan: Kongnomsitau). The abbreviation for Jiangxi is "" (;
Gan: Gōm), for the
Gan River which runs across from the south to the north and flows into the Yangtze River. Jiangxi is also alternately called ''Ganpo Dadi'' () which literally means the "Great Land of Gan and
Po".
After the fall of the Qing dynasty, Jiangxi became one of the earliest bases for the
Communists and many peasants were recruited to join the growing people's revolution. The
Nanchang Uprising
The Nanchang Uprising () was the first major Nationalist Party of China–Chinese Communist Party engagement of the Chinese Civil War, begun by the Chinese Communists to counter the Shanghai massacre of 1927 by the Kuomintang.
The Kuomi ...
took place in Jiangxi on August 1, 1927, during the
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on main ...
. Later the Communist leadership hid in the mountains of southern and western Jiangxi, hiding from the Kuomintang's attempts to eradicate them. In 1931, the
Chinese Soviet Republic
The Chinese Soviet Republic (CSR) was an East Asian proto-state in China, proclaimed on 7 November 1931 by Chinese communist leaders Mao Zedong and Zhu De in the early stages of the Chinese Civil War. The discontiguous territories of t ...
's government was established in
Ruijin
Ruijin () is a county-level city of Ganzhou in the mountains bordering Fujian Province in the south-eastern part of Jiangxi Province. Formerly a county, Ruijin became a county-level city on May 18, 1994.
It was an early center of Chinese commu ...
, which is sometimes called the "Former Red Capital" (, Gan: Fūng-set Kū-tu), or just the "Red Capital". In 1935, after complete encirclement by the Nationalist forces, the Communists broke through and began the
Long March
The Long March (, lit. ''Long Expedition'') was a military retreat undertaken by the Red Army of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the forerunner of the People's Liberation Army, to evade the pursuit of the National Army of the Chinese ...
to
Yan'an
Yan'an (; ), alternatively spelled as Yenan is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi province, China, bordering Shanxi to the east and Gansu to the west. It administers several counties, including Zhidan (formerly Bao'an) ...
.
The southern half of Jiangxi is hilly and mountainous, with ranges and valleys interspersed; notable mountains and mountain ranges include
Mount Lu, the
Jinggang Mountains and
Mount Sanqing. The northern half is comparatively lower in altitude. The
Gan River flows through the province.
Although the majority of Jiangxi's population is
Han Chinese
The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive v ...
, Jiangxi is linguistically diverse. It is considered the center of
Gan Chinese
Gan, Gann or Kan is a group of Sinitic languages spoken natively by many people in the Jiangxi province of China, as well as significant populations in surrounding regions such as Hunan, Hubei, Anhui, and Fujian. Gan is a member of the Sini ...
;
Hakka Chinese
Hakka (, , ) forms a language group of varieties of Chinese, spoken natively by the Hakka people throughout Southern China and Taiwan and throughout the diaspora areas of East Asia, Southeast Asia and in overseas Chinese communities aroun ...
, is also spoken to some degree. Jiangxi is rich in mineral resources, leading the provinces of China in deposits of
copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pink ...
,
tungsten
Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isol ...
,
gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...
,
silver
Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...
,
uranium
Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...
,
thorium
Thorium is a weakly radioactive metallic chemical element with the symbol Th and atomic number 90. Thorium is silvery and tarnishes black when it is exposed to air, forming thorium dioxide; it is moderately soft and malleable and has a high ...
,
tantalum
Tantalum is a chemical element with the symbol Ta and atomic number 73. Previously known as ''tantalium'', it is named after Tantalus, a villain in Greek mythology. Tantalum is a very hard, ductile, lustrous, blue-gray transition metal that ...
, and
niobium
Niobium is a chemical element with chemical symbol Nb (formerly columbium, Cb) and atomic number 41. It is a light grey, crystalline, and ductile transition metal. Pure niobium has a Mohs hardness rating similar to pure titanium, and it has s ...
.
History
Jiangxi is centered on the
Gan River valley, which historically provided the main north–south transport route of south China. The corridor along the Gan River is one of the few easily traveled routes through the otherwise mountainous and rugged terrain of the south-eastern mountains. This open corridor was the primary route for trade and communication between the
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 border ...
and 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 ...
valley in the north and the territory of modern
Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...
province in the south. As a result, Jiangxi has been strategically important throughout much of China's history.
Jiangxi was outside the sphere of influence of early Chinese civilization during the
Shang dynasty
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 a ...
(16th to 11th centuries BC). It is likely that peoples collectively known as the
Baiyue inhabited the region. During 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 ...
, the northern part of modern Jiangxi formed the western frontier of the state of
Wu. After Wu was conquered by the
state of Yue (a power based in modern northern
Zhejiang
Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Ji ...
) in 473 BC, the state of
Chu (based in modern
Hubei
Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The p ...
) took over northern Jiangxi and there may have been some Yue influence in the south. Chu subjugated Yue in 333 BC. In 223 BC, when
Qin conquered Chu, a majority of the Jiangxi area was recorded to be put under Jiujiang Commandary situated in
Shouchun
Shou County or Shouxian () is a county in the north-central part of Anhui Province, China, and is located on the southern (right) bank of the Huai River. It is the southernmost county-level division of the prefecture-level city of Huainan. Its ...
(). However the commandary was ineffective and ended shortly when Qin falls.
Yuzhang Commandery (, Gan: Ì-zong) was established in Jiangxi at the beginning of the
Han dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...
, possibly before the death of
Xiang Yu
Xiang Yu (, –202 BC), born Xiang Ji (), was the Hegemon-King (Chinese: 霸王, ''Bà Wáng'') of Western Chu during the Chu–Han Contention period (206–202 BC) of China. A noble of the Chu state, Xiang Yu rebelled against the Qin dyna ...
in 202 BC, and it's also the very first commandery set up by Chinese dynasty in Jiangxi. It was named after the Yuzhang River (, Gan: Ì-zong Kong), the original name of Gan River. "Gan" has become the abbreviation of the province. In 201, eight counties were added to the original seven of Qin, and three more were established in later years. Throughout most of the Han dynasty the commandery's eighteen counties covered most of the modern province of Jiangxi. The county seats of Nanchang, Gan, Yudu, Luling among others were located at the sites of modern major cities. Other counties, however, have been moved or abolished in later centuries.
Under the reign of
Emperor Wu of the
Han dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...
, Yuzhang Commandery was assigned to
Yangzhou Province, as part of a trend to establish provinces (''
zhou'') all across China. In 291 AD, during the
Western Jin dynasty, Jiangxi became its own ''Zhou'' called Jiangzhou (, Gan: Kong-chiu). During the
Southern and Northern Dynasties, Jiangxi was under the control of the southern dynasties, and the number of ''zhou'' slowly grew.
During the
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 la ...
, there were seven
commanderies and twenty-four counties in Jiangxi. During the
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
, another commandery and fourteen counties were added. Commanderies were then abolished, becoming ''zhou'' (henceforth translated as "prefectures" rather than "provinces").
Circuits were established during the
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
as a new top-level administrative division. At first Jiangxi was part of the
Jiangnan Circuit (lit. "Circuit south of the Yangtze"). In 733, this circuit was divided into western and eastern halves. Jiangxi was found in the western half, which was called
Jiangnanxi Circuit (lit. "Western circuits south of the Yangtze"). This is the source of the modern name "Jiangxi".
The
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
collapsed in 907, heralding the division of the
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms
The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen concu ...
period. Jiangxi first belonged to
Wu (, Gan: Ng), then to
Southern Tang (, Gan: Nām-thóng). Both states were based in modern-day
Nanjing
Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu Provinces of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and t ...
, further down 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 ...
.
During the
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 res ...
, Jiangnanxi Circuit was reestablished with nine prefectures and four army districts (with sixty-eight districts).
During the
Yuan dynasty
The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fif ...
, the circuit was divided into thirteen different circuits, and Jiangxi Province was established for the first time. This province also included the majority of modern
Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...
. Jiangxi acquired (more or less) its modern borders during the
Ming dynasty
The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...
after
Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...
was separated out. There has been little change to the borders of Jiangxi since.
After the fall of the Qing dynasty, Jiangxi became one of the earliest bases for the
Communists and many peasants were recruited to join the growing people's revolution. The
Nanchang Uprising
The Nanchang Uprising () was the first major Nationalist Party of China–Chinese Communist Party engagement of the Chinese Civil War, begun by the Chinese Communists to counter the Shanghai massacre of 1927 by the Kuomintang.
The Kuomi ...
took place in Jiangxi on August 1, 1927, during the
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on main ...
. Later the Communist leadership hid in the mountains of southern and western Jiangxi, hiding from the Kuomintang's attempts to eradicate them. In 1931, the
Chinese Soviet Republic
The Chinese Soviet Republic (CSR) was an East Asian proto-state in China, proclaimed on 7 November 1931 by Chinese communist leaders Mao Zedong and Zhu De in the early stages of the Chinese Civil War. The discontiguous territories of t ...
's government was established in
Ruijin
Ruijin () is a county-level city of Ganzhou in the mountains bordering Fujian Province in the south-eastern part of Jiangxi Province. Formerly a county, Ruijin became a county-level city on May 18, 1994.
It was an early center of Chinese commu ...
, which is sometimes called the "Former Red Capital" (, Gan: Fūng-set Kū-tu), or just the "Red Capital". In 1935, after complete encirclement by the Nationalist forces, the Communists broke through and began the
Long March
The Long March (, lit. ''Long Expedition'') was a military retreat undertaken by the Red Army of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the forerunner of the People's Liberation Army, to evade the pursuit of the National Army of the Chinese ...
to
Yan'an
Yan'an (; ), alternatively spelled as Yenan is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi province, China, bordering Shanxi to the east and Gansu to the west. It administers several counties, including Zhidan (formerly Bao'an) ...
.
From 1930 to 1934, the National Government carried out five military campaigns against the Jiangxi Soviet area. Its brutal two-party battles and cleansing (including the internal cleansing of the Red Army and the cleaning of the post-war government) caused a large number of deaths or escapes, causing the population of Jiangxi to drop by 40%, until only 13.8 million people were left in 1936.
In 1936, after the opening of the
Yuehan Railway in Hunan, Jiangxi lost its important position regarding north–south traffic. In 1937, the east-west Zhegan Railway was opened to traffic, which changed the original traffic patterns in Jiangxi to a large extent. The Jiujiang Port () began to decline in importance.
Following the
Doolittle Raid during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, most of the B-25 American crews that came down in China eventually made it to safety with the help of Chinese civilians and soldiers. The Chinese people who helped them, however, paid dearly for sheltering the Americans. The
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emper ...
began the
Zhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign to intimidate the Chinese from helping downed American airmen. The Japanese killed an estimated 250,000 civilians of China while searching for Doolittle's men.
Geography
Mountains surround Jiangxi on three sides, with the
Mufu Mountains,
Jiuling Mountains
The Jiuling Mountains () are a range of mountains located in Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, Peopl ...
, and
Luoxiao Mountains on the west;
Huaiyu Mountains and
Wuyi Mountains on the east; and the
Jiulian Mountains () and
Dayu Mountains in the south. The southern half of the province is hilly with ranges and valleys interspersed; while the northern half is flatter and lower in altitude. The highest point in Jiangxi is
Mount Huanggang () in the Wuyi Mountains, on the border with
Fujian
Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...
. It has an altitude of .
The
Gan River dominates the province, flowing through the entire length of the province from south to north. It enters
Lake Poyang
Poyang Lake (, Gan: Po-yong U), located in Jiujiang, is the largest freshwater lake in China.
The lake is fed by the Gan, Xin, and Xiu rivers, which connect to the Yangtze through a channel.
The area of Poyang Lake fluctuates dramatical ...
in the north, the largest freshwater lake of China; that lake in turn empties into 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 ...
, which forms part of the northern border of Jiangxi. Important
reservoirs include the
Xiushui Tuolin Reservoir Xiushui may refer to several places:
China
* Xiushui County (修水县), of Jiujiang, Jiangxi
* Xiushui River, in Jiangxi
* Xiushui Street (秀水街), in Beijing
;Towns (秀水镇)
* Xiushui, Lechang, Guangdong
* Xiushui, Yushu, Jilin
* Xius ...
in the northwest of the province on the
Xiushui River, and the
Wan'an Reservoir(zh) in the upper section of the Gan.
Jiangxi has a
humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
(''Cfa'' under the
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...
), with short, cool, damp winters, and very hot, humid summers. Average temperatures are about in January and in July. Annual precipitation is , much of it falling in the heavy rains occurring in late spring and summer.
Nanchang, the provincial capital and the most densely populated city, is one of the largest Chinese
metropolis
A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications.
A big c ...
es. Nanchang is the hub of
Jiangxi civilization throughout its history, which plays a leading role in the commercial, intellectual and industrial and political fields.
Ganzhou
Ganzhou (), alternately romanized as Kanchow, is a prefecture-level city in the south of Jiangxi province, China, bordering Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, and Hunan to the west. Its administrative seat is at Zhanggong District.
Hist ...
is the largest subdivision of Jiangxi.
Major cities in Jiangxi include:
*
Nanchang
*
Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
Administrative divisions
Jiangxi is divided into eleven
prefecture-level divisions: all
prefecture-level cities:
These prefecture-level cities are in turn subdivided into 100
county-level divisions (23
district
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, subdivision ...
s, 11
county-level cities
A county-level municipality (), county-level city or county city, formerly known as prefecture-controlled city (1949–1970: ; 1970–1983: ), is a county-level administrative division of the People's Republic of China. County-level ...
, and 66
counties). Those in turn are divided into 1548
township-level divisions (770
town
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 o ...
s, 651
township
A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries.
Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, ...
s, seven
ethnic townships, and 120
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).
See
List of administrative divisions of Jiangxi for a complete list of
county-level divisions.
Urban areas
Politics
The Politics of Jiangxi is structured in a dual party-government system like all other governing institutions in mainland China.
The
Governor of Jiangxi The politics of Jiangxi 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 Jiangxi is the highest-ranking official in the People's Gove ...
is the highest-ranking official in the People's Government of Jiangxi. However, in the province's dual party-government governing system, the Governor has less power than the Jiangxi
Chinese Communist Party
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Ci ...
Provincial Committee Secretary, colloquially termed the "Jiangxi
CPC Party Chief
A Party Committee Secretary () is the leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) organization in a province, city, village, or other administrative unit. In most cases, it is the ''de facto'' highest political office of its area of jurisdictio ...
".
Economy
Rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...
is the dominant crop in Jiangxi. Cash crops commonly grown include
cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...
and
rapeseed. Jiangxi is the leading
producer of kumquats in China, particularly
Suichuan County.
Jiangxi is rich in mineral resources, leading the provinces of China in deposits of
copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pink ...
,
tungsten
Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isol ...
,
gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...
,
silver
Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...
,
uranium
Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...
,
thorium
Thorium is a weakly radioactive metallic chemical element with the symbol Th and atomic number 90. Thorium is silvery and tarnishes black when it is exposed to air, forming thorium dioxide; it is moderately soft and malleable and has a high ...
,
tantalum
Tantalum is a chemical element with the symbol Ta and atomic number 73. Previously known as ''tantalium'', it is named after Tantalus, a villain in Greek mythology. Tantalum is a very hard, ductile, lustrous, blue-gray transition metal that ...
,
niobium
Niobium is a chemical element with chemical symbol Nb (formerly columbium, Cb) and atomic number 41. It is a light grey, crystalline, and ductile transition metal. Pure niobium has a Mohs hardness rating similar to pure titanium, and it has s ...
, among others. Noted centers of mining include
Dexing (copper) and
Dayu County
Dayu () is a county in the west of the prefecture-level city of Ganzhou, in the southwest of Jiangxi Province, bordering Guangdong Province to the south. It is known for The Capital of Tungsten.
Statistics
Dayu has an area of . Total population i ...
(tungsten).
It is located in extreme proximity to some of the richest provinces of China (
Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...
,
Zhejiang
Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Ji ...
,
Fujian
Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...
), which are sometimes blamed for taking away talent and capital from Jiangxi.
Jiangxi has the lowest wages and third lowest property prices in all of China.,
As of 2016 Jiangxi's nominal GDP was CNY 1.84 trillion or USD 276.48 billion, and a per capita of CNY 40,400 or USD 6,082.
Economic and technological development zones
*Nanchang Export Processing Zone
Nanchang National Export Expressing Zone is located in NanChang Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone, it was approved by the State Council on May 8, 2006, and passed the national acceptance inspection on Sep 7th, 2007. It has a planning area of and now has built . It enjoys simple and convenient customs clearances, and special preferential policies both for Nanchang National Export Expressing Zone and NCHDZ.
*Nanchang National High-tech Industrial Development Zone
Nanchang National High-tech Industrial Development Zone (NCHDZ for short hereafter) is the only national grade high-tech zoned in Jiangxi, it was established in Mar. 1991. The zone covers an area of , in which have been completed. NCHDZ possesses unique nature condition and sound industry foundation of accepting electronics industry. NCHDZ has brought 25% industrial added value and 50% industrial benefit and tax to Nanchang city by using only 0.4% land area.
*Nanchang Economic and Technological Development Zone
*
Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
Free Trade(Tariff-free) Zone
*
Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
National Economical and Technological Development Zone
* Jiujiang
Gongqingcheng National High-tech Industrial Development Zone
Demographics
The population of Jiangxi is approximately 39.66 million. 99.73% of that is
Han Chinese
The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive v ...
, predominantly
Gan and
Hakka
The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhej ...
.
Ganzhou
Ganzhou (), alternately romanized as Kanchow, is a prefecture-level city in the south of Jiangxi province, China, bordering Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, and Hunan to the west. Its administrative seat is at Zhanggong District.
Hist ...
, Jiangxi's largest city, has an especially large number of Hakka. Ethnic minorities include
She
She most commonly refers to:
*She (pronoun), the third person singular, feminine, nominative case pronoun in modern English.
She or S.H.E. may also refer to:
Literature and films
*'' She: A History of Adventure'', an 1887 novel by H. Rider Hagga ...
.
Jiangxi and
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 Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is a ...
both have the most unbalanced gender ratios of all Chinese provinces. Based on a 2009 ''
British Medical Journal
''The BMJ'' is a weekly peer-reviewed medical trade journal, published by the trade union the British Medical Association (BMA). ''The BMJ'' has editorial freedom from the BMA. It is one of the world's oldest general medical journals. Origi ...
'' study, the ratio is over 140 boys for every 100 girls in the 1-4 age group.
In 2019 the most-common surname in Jiangxi was
Liú (刘), the only province where this was the case. Overall Liu is the fourth-most common surname in the country.
Religion
The predominant religions in Jiangxi are
Chinese folk religion
Chinese folk religion, also known as Chinese popular religion comprehends a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. Vivienne Wee described it as "an empty bowl, which can variously be filled ...
s,
Taoist traditions and
Chinese Buddhism
Chinese Buddhism or Han Buddhism ( zh, s=汉传佛教, t=漢傳佛教, p=Hànchuán Fójiào) is a Chinese form of Mahayana Buddhism which has shaped Chinese culture in a wide variety of areas including art, politics, literature, philosophy, ...
. According to surveys conducted in 2007 and 2009, 24.05% of the population believes and is 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 ...
, while 2.31% of the population identifies as Christian.
The reports didn't give figures for other types of religion; 73.64% of the population may be either irreligious or involved in
worship of nature deities, Buddhism,
Confucianism
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a Religious Confucianism, religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, ...
, Taoism,
folk religious sects.
Culture
Jiangxi is the main area of concentration of the
Gan varieties of
Chinese, spoken over most of the northern two-thirds of the province. Examples include the
Nanchang dialect,
Yichun dialect
Yi-Liu, sometimes called Yichun () after its principal dialect, is one of the Gan Chinese languages. It is spoken in Yichun in Jiangxi province and in Liuyang in Hunan, after which it is named, as well as in Shanggao, Qingjiang, Xingan, Xinyu C ...
and
Ji'an dialect. The southern one-third of the province speaks
Hakka
The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhej ...
. There are also
Mandarin,
Huizhou, and
Wu dialects spoken along the northern border.
Ganju (Jiangxi opera) is the type 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 ...
performed in Jiangxi.
Although little known outside of the province,
Jiangxi cuisine is rich and distinctive. Flavors are some of the strongest in China, with heavy use of
chili pepper
Chili peppers (also chile, chile pepper, chilli pepper, or chilli), from Nahuatl '' chīlli'' (), are varieties of the berry-fruit of plants from the genus ''Capsicum'', which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for ...
s and especially
pickled and
fermented products.
Jingdezhen is widely regarded as the producer of the best
porcelain
Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises main ...
in China.
Jiangxi also was a historical center of
Chan Buddhism
Chan (; of ), from Sanskrit ''dhyāna in Buddhism, dhyāna'' (meaning "meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahayana, Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century Common Era, CE onwards, becoming e ...
.
Prominent examples of
Hakka architecture
A Hakka walled village ( zh, 围龙屋) is a large multi-family communal living structure that is designed to be easily defensible. This building style is unique to the Hakka people found in southern China. Walled villages are typically designed ...
can be found in Jiangxi.
Transportation
As of January 2015, Jiangxi had two
Yangtze River crossings, both in Jiujiang.
Rail
The
Beijing–Kowloon Railway and
Shanghai–Kunming Railway
The Shanghai–Kunming Railway or Hukun Railway (), also known as the Hukun Line, is a major arterial railroad across eastern, south central and southwest China. It connects Shanghai, whose shorthand name is ''Hu'', and Kunming. The line has a ...
crisscross the province and intersect at Nanchang, which also has a
high-speed rail link to Jiujiang. In addition, Jiangxi is connected by rail to Anhui Province via the
Anhui–Jiangxi and
Tongling–Jiujiang Railways; to Hubei via the
Wuhan–Jiujiang Railway; and to Fujian via the
Yingtan–Xiamen,
Hengfeng–Nanping,
Ganzhou–Longyan and
Xiangtang–Putian Railways.
Tourism
There are several famous mountains in Jiangxi Province, including
Mountain Lu in
Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
, Mount jinggang at the border of jiangxi province and Hunan province, Mount Sanqing in Yushan county.
Near the northern port city of
Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
lies the well-known resort area of
Mountain Lu. Also near the city is the
Donglin (East Wood) Temple , one important
Buddhist
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 ...
temple in china.
Near the small city of
Yingtan is the resort area of
Longhushan, which purports to be the birthplace of
Taoism
Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the '' Ta ...
and hence has great symbolic value to Taoists. The region has many temples, cave complexes, mountains and villages.
The
Mountain Lu National Park has been a
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
since 1996.
Kuling town located on the top of
Mountain Lu,
Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
is a summer resort developed by European in the 19th century. There were 3000 European living in
Kuling town,
Mountain Lu,
Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
in summer time in 1920 s.
In 2007, Jiangxi (specifically the
Mountain Lu West Sea, located in
Jiujiang
Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level cit ...
) was the filming location for the fifteenth series of the American TV show ''
Survivor''.
Flora and fauna
The mountainous terrain and large forest coverage of Jiangxi has made it historically one of the more wild places of central China.
South China tiger
The South China tiger is a population of the '' Panthera tigris tigris'' subspecies that is native to southern China. The population mainly inhabited the Fujian, Guangdong, Hunan and Jiangxi provinces. It has been listed as Critically Enda ...
s have been seen as recently as fifteen or twenty years ago and projects are underway to document evidence of existing tigers, if there are any. Several mountain areas along the northern border with Hunan and Hubei are potential sites for "wilderness" preserves specifically for protecting or even reintroducing tigers.
Other wildlife, though not plentiful, are more numerous in Jiangxi than in many other developed areas of China. Numerous species of birds are common, especially around the marshes of Lake Poyang in the north. Though protected, mammals such as
muntjac
Muntjacs ( ), also known as the barking deer or rib-faced deer, (URL is Google Books) are small deer of the genus ''Muntiacus'' native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. Muntjacs are thought to have begun appearing 15–35 million years a ...
, wild boar, civet cats, and
pangolin
Pangolins, sometimes known as scaly anteaters, are mammals of the order Pholidota (, from Ancient Greek ϕολιδωτός – "clad in scales"). The one extant family, the Manidae, has three genera: '' Manis'', ''Phataginus'', and '' Smuts ...
s, are still common enough that they'll even occasionally be seen in markets for sale as game meat, or possibly even in a forest.
The late
Paleocene
The Paleocene, ( ) or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name is a combination of the Ancient Greek ''pala ...
mesonychid, ''
Jiangxia chaotoensis
''Jiangxia chaotoensis'' is a Chinese mesonychid from the Nongshanian division of the Upper Paleocene. It may be related to the genera ''Dissacus'' and '' Hukoutherium''.Zhang, Yuping, et al. "Several species of Condylarthra from the Paleocene ...
'' was found in the province, and named after it.
Education
Colleges and universities
List of colleges and universities in Jiangxi:
*
Jiangxi College of Foreign Studies (江西外语外贸职业学院)
*
East China University of Technology
*
East China Jiaotong University
*
Jiangxi Agricultural University
*
Jiangxi Institute of Education
*
Jiangxi Normal University
Jiangxi Normal University (JXNU; ), situated in Nanchang, capital city of Jiangxi Province China, is co-sponsored by the Ministry of Education and the Jiangxi Provincial Government. It is listed in the Midwest University Fundamental Capacity Buil ...
*
Jiangxi Science and Technology Normal University
*
Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics
*
Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute
The Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute (景德镇陶瓷大学), in Jingdezhen city in the Jiangxi province of the People's Republic of China, is China's only institute of higher learning dedicated to the ceramic arts. The Jingdezhen area is historically ...
*
Jinggangshan University
*
Jiujiang Financial and Economic College
*
Jiujiang Medical College
*
Jiujiang Teachers College
*
Nanchang Institute of Technology
*
Nanchang Hangkong University
*
Nanchang University
Nanchang University (NCU; ) is a public research university located in Nanchang, Jiangxi, China. NCU has also been recognized as a National Key University in the nation. Based on the new plan initiated by Chinese Ministry of Education in 2017, ...
*
Xinyu University
*
Yichun University
Sister provinces
*
Bay of Plenty Region
The Bay of Plenty ( mi, Te Moana-a-Toi) is a region of New Zealand, situated around a bight of the same name in the northern coast of the North Island. The bight stretches 260 km from the Coromandel Peninsula in the west to Cape Run ...
, New Zealand
*
Okayama Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,906,464 (1 February 2018) and has a geographic area of 7,114 km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefecture borders Tottori Prefecture to the ...
, Japan
*
Bohol
Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bohol; tl, Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. ...
, Philippines
*
Hesse
Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are ...
, Germany
*
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...
, United States
*
Mato Grosso do Sul
Mato Grosso do Sul () is one of the Midwestern states of Brazil. Neighboring Brazilian states are (from north clockwise) Mato Grosso, Goiás, Minas Gerais, São Paulo and Paraná. It also borders the countries of Paraguay, to the southwest, and ...
, Brazil
*
Sabah
Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory ...
, Malaysia
See also
*
Major national historical and cultural sites in Jiangxi
Notes
References
External links
*
*
Jiangxi Government website"Map of Jiangxi Province with Explanations"from 1573 CE - 1620 CE
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, includi ...
{{Authority control
Provinces of the People's Republic of China
East China