Mount Xianglu () is a mountain near
Shaoxing
Shaoxing (; ) is a prefecture-level city on the southern shore of Hangzhou Bay in northeastern Zhejiang province, China. It was formerly known as Kuaiji and Shanyin and abbreviated in Chinese as (''Yuè'') from the area's former inhabitants ...
,
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 ...
, China. Its summit has an elevation of .
History
Its historic name was Mount Kuaiji (),
formerly romanized as Mount K'uai-chi It was an important site for
ancient China's
Yue civilization and was legendarily connected with the
Xia dynasty
The Xia dynasty () is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, the Xia dynasty was established by the legendary Yu the Great, after Shun, the last of the Five Emperors, gave the throne to him. In tradi ...
's
Yu the Great
Yu the Great (大禹) was a legendary king in ancient China who was famed for his introduction of flood control, his establishment of the Xia dynasty which inaugurated dynastic rule in China, and his upright moral character. He figures promine ...
, who was said to have convened a gathering of his nobles there and to have died at the spot during a hunting trip. The mountain continued to preserve the
Old Yue language
The Old Yue language ( zh, c=古越語, p=''Gu Yueyu'') is an unknown unclassified language (or many different languages). It can refer to Yue, which was spoken in the realm of Yue during the Spring and Autumn period. It can also refer to the ...
even after its conquest by
Qin in 222 BC. It gave its name to the
Kuaiji Mountains The Kuaiji Mountains ( or ''Guìjī Shān''), formerly romanized as the K'uai-chi Mountains, are a long mountain range in China's Zhejiang province. They are named for Mount Kuaiji (also ''Kuàijī Shān'' in Chinese), the peak just southeast of S ...
to its south, as well as
China's former
Kuaiji Commandery
Kuaiji Commandery ( Chinese: t , s , p ''Kuàijī Jùn''), formerly romanized as K'uai-chi Commandery, was a former commandery of China in the area of Hangzhou Bay. When first established, its capital was at Wu (present ...
and (by extension) historical names for
Suzhou
Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trad ...
and
Shaoxing
Shaoxing (; ) is a prefecture-level city on the southern shore of Hangzhou Bay in northeastern Zhejiang province, China. It was formerly known as Kuaiji and Shanyin and abbreviated in Chinese as (''Yuè'') from the area's former inhabitants ...
. It was also the site of the AD 353
Orchid Pavilion Gathering which produced the ''
Lantingji Xu''.
The present site of
Yu's mausoleum to the north of the peak dates to the 6th century, but
sacrifice in his honor has occurred in the area since at least the reign of
Shi Huangdi
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 ( ...
and it featured in
Sima Qian's pilgrimage around the historical sites of China prior to his composition of the ''
Records of the Grand Historian
''Records of the Grand Historian'', also known by its Chinese name ''Shiji'', is a monumental history of China that is the first of China's 24 dynastic histories. The ''Records'' was written in the early 1st century by the ancient Chinese his ...
''.
See also
*
Kuaiji Mountains The Kuaiji Mountains ( or ''Guìjī Shān''), formerly romanized as the K'uai-chi Mountains, are a long mountain range in China's Zhejiang province. They are named for Mount Kuaiji (also ''Kuàijī Shān'' in Chinese), the peak just southeast of S ...
Notes
External links
* James M. Hargett's
: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji? Some Remarks on an Ancient Chinese Place-Name (''Sino-Platonic Papers'' No. 234)
Mountains of Zhejiang
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