Pinghu is a

county-level city A county-level municipality (), county-level city or county city, formerly known as prefecture-controlled city (1949–1970: ; 1970–1983: ), is a Administrative divisions of China#County level (3rd), county-level administrative divi ...

in the east of Jiaxing's administrative area, in the northeast of

Zhejiang Province 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 Jiangs ...

, bordering

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

to the northeast. It sits next to the

East China Sea The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated b ...

and the north shore of Hangzhou Bay. Prior to 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 ...

, Pinghu was part of Haiyan County. In 1430 Pinghu County was established. In 1991 Pinghu became a county-level city under the administration of the

prefecture-level city A prefecture-level city () or prefectural city is an administrative division of the People's Republic of China (PRC), ranking below a province and above a county in China's administrative structure. During the Republican era, many of China' ...

of Jiaxing.

History

Du Halde - Description de la Chine - Villes de Kiu tcheou fou - Pinghou hien

Zhapu, the site of a deepwater harbor, was the principal site of China's foreign trade with

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

during the 18th and 19th century.

Administration

3 neighborhoods (

subdistricts 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, Indon ...

), 7

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

*neighborhood committee and offices ** Zhongdai neighborhood ** Danghu neighborhood ** Caoqiao neighborhood *towns ** Zhapu ** Xindai ** Xincang ** Huanggu ** Quantang ** Guangchen ** Lindai

Geography and climate

Pinghu is located on a low and flat plain and is laced with a network of rivers. A number of islands, such as Wangpan Shan are located offshore. The municipality's average yearly temperature is , with average precipitation of . Agricultural production is marked by its amount of aquatic products. Important crops are rice, wheat, Chinese cabbage, prawns, and bird eggs. Specialties include

pickled egg Pickled eggs are typically hard boiled eggs that are cured in vinegar or brine. As with many foods, this was originally a way to preserve the food so that it could be eaten months later. Pickled eggs have since become a favorite among many ...

s and watermelons. Due to its proximity to Shanghai, Pinghu also attracts investment from many multinational enterprises. Industry includes

clothing Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials and natural ...

packaging Packaging is the science, art and technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution, storage, sale, and use. Packaging also refers to the process of designing, evaluating, and producing packages. Packaging can be described as a co ...

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 ...

paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distributed ...

and others. Clothing production is especially high, with the value of Pinghu's total clothing exports the greatest in China. It has been placed as one of China's one hundred most productive areas. Zhapu harbor in the municipality's southwest is an important deep water harbor along Hangzhou Bay. A port has been located here since 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 ...

, and it is still an important transshipment point. Next to the harbor is one of China's most important large thermal power plants,

Jiaxing Powerplant Jiaxing (), alternately romanized as Kashing, is a prefecture-level city in northern Zhejiang province, China. Lying on the Grand Canal of China, Jiaxing borders Hangzhou to the southwest, Huzhou to the west, Shanghai to the northeast, and the ...

, with a capacity of 3,000,000 kilowatts. In modern China many famous monks, educators and artists (music, calligraphy, painting,

seals Seals may refer to: * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impress an emblem, used as a means of a ...

, poetry) have come from Pinghu. The city's downtown contains a large memorial to

Li Shutong Hong Yi (23 October 1880 – 13 October 1942; , or ''Hung Yit'' and ), born Li Shutong (李叔同 and 李漱筒) was a Chinese Buddhist monk, artist and art teacher. He also went by the names Wen Tao, Guang Hou, and Shu Tong, but was most comm ...

and a number of other attractions and scenic spots.

References

{{Authority control County-level cities in Zhejiang Port cities and towns in China Jiaxing