HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Shanghai (; , ,
Standard Mandarin Standard Chinese ()—in linguistics Standard Northern Mandarin or Standard Beijing Mandarin, in common speech simply Mandarin, better qualified as Standard Mandarin, Modern Standard Mandarin or Standard Mandarin Chinese—is a modern standa ...
pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities 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 ...
(PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary 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, with the
Huangpu River The Huangpu (), formerly romanized as Whangpoo, is a river flowing north through Shanghai. The Bund and Lujiazui are located along the Huangpu River. The Huangpu is the biggest river in central Shanghai, with the Suzhou Creek being its maj ...
flowing through it. With a population of 24.89 million as of 2021, Shanghai is the most populous urban area in China with 39,300,000 inhabitants living in the Shanghai metropolitan area, the second most populous city proper in the world (after
Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a municipality in Southwest China. The official abbreviation of the city, "" (), was approved by the State Co ...
) and the only city in East Asia with a GDP greater than its corresponding capital. Shanghai ranks
second The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ea ...
among the administrative divisions of Mainland China in
human development index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, w ...
(after
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
). As of 2018, the Greater Shanghai metropolitan area was estimated to produce a
gross metropolitan product Gross metropolitan product (GMP) is a monetary measure of the value of all final goods and services produced within a metropolitan statistical area during a specified period (''e.g.'', a quarter, a year). GMP estimates are commonly used to compar ...
( nominal) of nearly 9.1 trillion RMB ($1.33 trillion), exceeding that of
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
with GDP of $1.22 trillion, the 15th largest in the world. Shanghai is one of the world's major centers for
finance Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of f ...
,
business and economics Business economics is a field in applied economics which uses economic theory and quantitative methods to analyze business enterprises and the factors contributing to the diversity of organizational structures and the relationships of firms with ...
,
research Research is "creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...
,
education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...
, science and technology,
manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to ...
,
tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
,
culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...
, dining, art,
fashion Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fash ...
,
sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...
, and
transportation Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipelin ...
, and the
Port of Shanghai The Port of Shanghai (), located in the vicinity of Shanghai, comprises a deep-sea port and a river port. The main port enterprise in Shanghai, the Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG), was established during the reconstitution of the S ...
is the
world's busiest container port This article lists the world's busiest container ports (ports with container terminals that specialize in handling goods transported in intermodal shipping containers), by total number of twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) transported through t ...
. Shanghai is classified as a Large-Port Megacity, the largest type of port-city in the world . In 2019, the
Shanghai Pudong International Airport Shanghai Pudong International Airport is one of two international airports serving Shanghai and a major aviation hub of East Asia. Pudong Airport serves both international flights and a smaller number of domestic fights, while the city's oth ...
was one of the world's 10 busiest airports by passenger traffic, and one of the two international airports serving the Shanghai metropolitan area, the other one being the
Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport is one of the two international airports of Shanghai and a significant airline hub of China. Hongqiao Airport mainly serves domestic and regional flights, although the airport also serves international fl ...
. Originally a fishing village and market town, Shanghai grew in importance in the 19th century due to both domestic and foreign trade and its favorable port location. The city was one of five
treaty ports Treaty ports (; ja, 条約港) were the port cities in China and Japan that were opened to foreign trade mainly by the unequal treaties forced upon them by Western powers, as well as cities in Korea opened up similarly by the Japanese Empire. ...
forced to open to European trade after the
First Opium War The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...
. The
Shanghai International Settlement The Shanghai International Settlement () originated from the merger in the year 1863 of the British and American enclaves in Shanghai, in which British subjects and American citizens would enjoy extraterritoriality and consular jurisdictio ...
and the
French Concession The Shanghai French Concession; ; Shanghainese pronunciation: ''Zånhae Fah Tsuka'', group=lower-alpha was a foreign concession in Shanghai, China from 1849 until 1943, which progressively expanded in the late 19th and early 20th centuries ...
were subsequently established. The city then flourished, becoming a primary commercial and financial hub of Asia in the 1930s. During the
Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific T ...
, the city was the site of the major
Battle of Shanghai The Battle of Shanghai () was the first of the twenty-two major engagements fought between the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) of the Republic of China (ROC) and the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) of the Empire of Japan at the beginning of the ...
. After the war, with the communists takeover of the mainland in 1949, trade was limited to other socialist countries and the city's global influence declined. Despite this, modern trade in the newly established PRC began in the late 1940s/early 1950s, and Shanghai officially became one of the biggest and most important cities among socialist states before the economic reform in 1978. By the 1990s, economic reforms introduced by
Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. Aft ...
a decade earlier resulted in an intense redevelopment of the city, especially the
Pudong Pudong is a district of Shanghai located east of the Huangpu, the river which flows through central Shanghai. The name ''Pudong'' was originally applied to the Huangpu's east bank, directly across from the west bank or Puxi, the historic city ...
New Area, aiding the return of finance and foreign investment. The city has since re-emerged as a hub for international trade and finance; it is the home of the
Shanghai Stock Exchange The Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) is a stock exchange based in the city of Shanghai, China. It is one of the three stock exchanges operating independently in mainland China, the others being the Beijing Stock Exchange and the Shenzhen Stock Excha ...
, one of the largest stock exchanges in the world by market capitalization and the Shanghai Free-Trade Zone, the first free-trade zone in mainland China. As of 2020, Shanghai was classified as an Alpha+ ( global first-tier) city by the
GaWC The Globalization and World Cities Research Network (GaWC) is a think tank that studies the relationships between world cities in the context of globalization. It is based in the geography department of Loughborough University in Leicestershir ...
and ranked as having the 3rd most competitive and largest
financial center A financial centre ( BE), financial center ( AE), or financial hub, is a location with a concentration of participants in banking, asset management, insurance or financial markets with venues and supporting services for these activities to tak ...
in the world behind New York City and London. It has the largest metro network of any city in the world, the fifth-highest number of billionaires of any city in the world, the fifth-largest number of skyscrapers of any city in the world, the fifth-most
Fortune Global 500 The ''Fortune'' Global 500, also known as Global 500, is an annual ranking of the top 500 corporations worldwide as measured by revenue. The list is compiled and published annually by ''Fortune'' magazine. Methodology Until 1989, it listed onl ...
headquarters of any city in the world within its city limits, the third-largest scientific research output of any city in the world, and highly ranked Double First Class Universities including
Fudan Fudan University () is a national public research university in Shanghai, China. Fudan is a member of the C9 League, Project 985, Project 211, and the Double First Class University identified by the Ministry of Education of China. It is also ...
, Shanghai Jiao Tong,
Tongji Tongji may refer to: * Tongji Bridge (Jinhua) () a large stone arch bridge in Jinhua, China. * Tongji Bridge (Yuyao) () a stone arch bridge in Yuyao, China. * Tongji County (), former name of Shifang, Sichuan, China. * Tongji Lu Station () metro sta ...
, East China Normal,
Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...
, Donghua, ShanghaiTech,
Shanghai University of Finance and Economics The Shanghai University of Finance and Economics (SUFE; ), founded in 1917, is a finance- and economics-oriented research university located in Shanghai, the People's Republic of China. The university is under the direct administration of the ...
, and East China University of Science and Technology. Shanghai has been described as the "showpiece" of the booming
economy of China The China, People's Republic of China has an upper middle income Developing country, developing Mixed economy, mixed socialist market economy that incorporates economic planning through Industrial policy, industrial policies and strategic Five- ...
. Featuring several architectural styles such as
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unit ...
and
shikumen Shikumen (, Shanghainese: ''zaq⁸ khu¹ men⁶,'' IPA: ᴀʔ¹¹ kʰu¹¹ mən²⁴ is a traditional Shanghainese architectural style combining Western and Chinese elements that first appeared in the 1860s. At the height of their popularity ...
, the city is renowned for its
Lujiazui Lujiazui, also known under its Shanghainese name Lohkatse (, , lit. meaning " he Lu family's mouth"), is a locality in Shanghai, a peninsula formed by a bend in the Huangpu River. Since the early 1990s, Lujiazui has been developed specifically ...
skyline A skyline is the outline or shape viewed near the horizon. It can be created by a city’s overall structure, or by human intervention in a rural setting, or in nature that is formed where the sky meets buildings or the land. City skylin ...
, museums and historic buildings including the City God Temple, Yu Garden, the China Pavilion and buildings along
the Bund The Bund or Waitan (, Shanghainese romanization: ''Nga3thae1'', , ) is a waterfront area and a protected historical district in central Shanghai. The area centers on a section of Zhongshan Road (East Zhongshan Road No.1) within the former S ...
, which includes
Oriental Pearl TV Tower The Oriental Pearl Radio & Television Tower () is a TV tower in Shanghai. Its location at the tip of Lujiazui in the Pudong New Area by the side of Huangpu River, opposite The Bund, makes it a distinct landmark in the area. Its principal design ...
. Shanghai is also known for its sugary cuisine, distinctive local language and vibrant international flair. As an important international city, Shanghai is the seat of the
New Development Bank The New Development Bank (NDB), formerly referred to as the BRICS Development Bank, is a multilateral development bank established by the BRICS states ( Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa). According to the Agreement on the ND ...
, a multilateral development bank established by the
BRICS BRICS is an acronym for five leading emerging economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The first four were initially grouped as "BRIC" (or "the BRICs") in 2001 by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill, who coined the te ...
states and the city hosts more than 75 foreign representatives, the second highest after Beijing and numerous national and international events every year, such as
Shanghai Fashion Week Shanghai Fashion Week is a fashion event held two times every year in Shanghai, each time lasting for seven days which is a part of Shanghai International Fashion Culture Festival which usually lasts for a month. The event first began in 2001. Sup ...
, the Chinese Grand Prix and ChinaJoy. Shanghai is the highest earning tourist city in the world, with the seventh most
five-star hotel Hotel ratings are often used to classify hotels according to their quality. From the initial purpose of informing travellers on basic facilities that can be expected, the objectives of hotel rating have expanded into a focus on the hotel experi ...
s in the world, and the third tallest building in the world, the
Shanghai Tower Shanghai Tower () is a 128-story, megatall skyscraper in Lujiazui, Pudong, Shanghai.
. In 2018, Shanghai hosted the first China International Import Expo (CIIE), the world's first import-themed national-level expo. Shanghai joined the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities in 2019.


Etymology

The two
Chinese character Chinese characters () are logograms developed for the writing of Chinese. In addition, they have been adapted to write other East Asian languages, and remain a key component of the Japanese writing system where they are known as ''kanji' ...
s in the city's name are (/''zan'', "upon") and (/''hae'', "sea"), together meaning "On the Sea". The earliest occurrence of this name dates from the 11th-century
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 ...
, when there was already a river confluence and a town with this name in the area. How the name should be understood has been disputed, but Chinese historians have concluded that 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 ...
, the area of modern-day Shanghai was under the sea level, so the land appeared to be literally "on the sea".Danielson, Eric N., ''Shanghai and the Yangzi Delta'', 2004, pp. 8–9. Shanghai is officially abbreviated (/''Vu''2) in Chinese, a contraction of (/''Vu Doh'', "
Harpoon A harpoon is a long spear-like instrument and tool used in fishing, whaling, sealing, and other marine hunting to catch and injure large fish or marine mammals such as seals and whales. It accomplishes this task by impaling the target ani ...
Ditch"), a 4th- or Jin name for the mouth of
Suzhou Creek Suzhou Creek (or Soochow Creek), also called the Wusong (Woosung) River, is a river that passes through the Shanghai city center. It is named after the neighboring city of Suzhou (Soochow), Jiangsu, the predominant settlement in this area pri ...
when it was the main conduit into the ocean. This character appears on all motor vehicle license plates issued in the municipality today.


Alternative names

(''Shēn'') or (''Shēnchéng'', "Shen City") was an early name originating from
Lord Chunshen Lord Chunshen (; died 238 BC), born Huang Xie (),was a Chinese military general and politician. He served as the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Chu during the late Warring States period of ancient China. He was one of the Four Lords of the Wa ...
, a 3rd-century BC nobleman and prime minister of the
state of Chu Chu, or Ch'u in Wade–Giles romanization, (, Hanyu Pinyin: Chǔ, Old Chinese: ''*s-r̥aʔ'') was a Zhou dynasty vassal state. Their first ruler was King Wu of Chu in the early 8th century BCE. Chu was located in the south of the Zhou ...
, whose
fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form ...
included modern Shanghai. Shanghai-based sports teams and newspapers often use Shen in their names, such as
Shanghai Shenhua Shanghai Shenhua F.C. () is a Chinese professional football club that participates in the Chinese Super League under license from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The term ''shen hua'' literally translates as "the Flower of Shanghai" in ...
and '' Shen Bao''. (''Huátíng'') was another early name for Shanghai. In AD 751 during the mid-Tang dynasty, Huating County was established by
Zhao Juzhen Zhao Juzhen was a Tang dynasty politician who served during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. He was the founder of Huating County, the first county-level division in Shanghai. Life Zhao was born in Dingzhou. He was a member of the Zhao cl ...
, the governor of
Wu Commandery Wu Commandery was a commandery of imperial China. It covers parts of the contemporary Northern Zhejiang and Southern Jiangsu. The capital of Wu commandery was Wu (today's Suzhou). Major counties of Wu commandery include Wu (county), Yuhang cou ...
, at modern-day Songjiang, the first county-level administration within modern-day Shanghai. The first five-star hotel in the city was named after Huating. (''Módū'', "Magical City"), a contemporary nickname for Shanghai, is widely known among the youth. The name was first mentioned in Shōfu Muramatsu's 1924 novel ''Mato'', which portrayed Shanghai as a dichotomic city where both light and darkness existed. The city has various nicknames in English, including "Pearl of the Orient" and "Paris of the East". This is similar to
Ho Chi Minh City , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...
(also known as Saigon), in Vietnam, which has also been nicknamed as "Paris of the Orient", due to Vietnam's historical French status.


History


Antiquity

The western part of modern-day Shanghai was inhabited 6000 years ago. 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 ...
(approximately 771 to 476 BC), it belonged to the Kingdom of Wu, which was conquered by the Kingdom of Yue, which in turn was conquered by the Kingdom of Chu. During the
Warring States period The Warring States period () was an era in History of China#Ancient China, ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded ...
(475 BC), Shanghai was part of the fief of
Lord Chunshen Lord Chunshen (; died 238 BC), born Huang Xie (),was a Chinese military general and politician. He served as the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Chu during the late Warring States period of ancient China. He was one of the Four Lords of the Wa ...
of Chu, one of the Four Lords of the Warring States. He ordered the excavation of the
Huangpu River The Huangpu (), formerly romanized as Whangpoo, is a river flowing north through Shanghai. The Bund and Lujiazui are located along the Huangpu River. The Huangpu is the biggest river in central Shanghai, with the Suzhou Creek being its maj ...
. Its former or poetic name, the Chunshen River, gave Shanghai its nickname of "Shēn". Fishermen living in the Shanghai area then created a fish tool called the ''hù'', which lent its name to the outlet of Suzhou Creek north of the
Old City Old City often refers to old town, the historic or original core of a city or town. Old City may refer to several places: Historical cities or regions of cities ''(by country)'' *Old City (Baku), Azerbaijan * Old City (Dhaka), Bangladesh, also ca ...
and became a common nickname and
abbreviation An abbreviation (from Latin ''brevis'', meaning ''short'') is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method. It may consist of a group of letters or words taken from the full version of the word or phrase; for example, the word ''abbrevia ...
for the city.


Imperialism

During the Tang and Song dynasties, Qinglong Town () in modern
Qingpu District Qingpu District, is a suburban district of Shanghai Municipality. Lake Dianshan is located in Qingpu. The population of Qingpu was counted at 1,081,000 people in the 2010 Census. It has an area of . Qingpu District is the westernmost distr ...
was a major trading port. Established in 746 (the fifth year of the Tang Tianbao era), it developed into what historically called a "giant town of the Southeast", with thirteen temples and seven pagodas.
Mi Fu Mi Fu (, also given as Mi Fei, 1051–1107 CE)Barnhart: 373. His courtesy name was Yuanzhang (元章) with several sobriquets: Nangong (南宮), Lumen Jushi (鹿門居士), Xiangyang Manshi (襄陽漫士), and Haiyue Waishi (海岳外史) was a ...
, a scholar and artist of the Song dynasty, served as its mayor. The port experienced thriving trade with provinces along 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 ...
and the Chinese coast, as well as with foreign countries such as Japan and
Silla Silla or Shilla (57 BCE – 935 CE) ( , Old Korean: Syera, Old Japanese: Siraki2) was a Korean kingdom located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms o ...
.By the end of the Song dynasty, the center of trading had moved downstream of the
Wusong River Suzhou Creek (or Soochow Creek), also called the Wusong (Woosung) River, is a river that passes through the Shanghai city center. It is named after the neighboring city of Suzhou (Soochow), Jiangsu, the predominant settlement in this area prior ...
to Shanghai. It was upgraded in status from a village to a market town in 1074, and in 1172, a second sea wall was built to stabilize the ocean coastline, supplementing an earlier dike. From 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 ...
in 1292 until Shanghai officially became a municipality in 1927, central Shanghai was administered as a county under Songjiang Prefecture, which had its seat in the present-day Songjiang District. Two important events helped promote Shanghai's developments in 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 ...
. A
city wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...
was built for the first time in 1554 to protect the town from raids by Japanese pirates. It measured high and in circumference.Danielson, Eric N., Shanghai and the Yangzi Delta, 2004, p.10. A City God Temple was built in 1602 during the
Wanli Wanli was the era name of the Chinese Ming dynasty. Wanli may also refer to: *Wanli Emperor (1563–1620), the 14th emperor of the Chinese Ming dynasty * Wanli District, Nanchang, district of Nanchang, Jiangxi, China * Wanli District, New Taipei ...
reign. This honor was usually reserved for prefectural capitals and not normally given to a mere county seat such as Shanghai. Scholars have theorized that this likely reflected the town's economic importance, as opposed to its low political status. During the
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
, Shanghai became one of the most important sea ports in the
Yangtze Delta The Yangtze Delta or Yangtze River Delta (YRD, or simply ) is a triangle-shaped megalopolis generally comprising the Wu Chinese-speaking areas of Shanghai, southern Jiangsu and northern Zhejiang. The area lies in the heart of the Jiangna ...
region as a result of two important central government policy changes: in 1684, the
Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 1654– 20 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, born Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1661 to ...
reversed the Ming dynasty prohibition on oceangoing vessels—a ban that had been in force since 1525; and in 1732, the
Qianlong Emperor The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, born Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1735 ...
moved the customs office for
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with it ...
province (; see Customs House, Shanghai) from the prefectural capital of Songjiang to Shanghai, and gave Shanghai exclusive control over customs collections for Jiangsu's foreign trade. As a result of these two critical decisions, Shanghai became the major trade port for all of the lower Yangtze region by 1735, despite still being at the lowest administrative level in the political hierarchy.


Rise and golden age

In the 19th century, international attention to Shanghai grew due to
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
an recognition of its economic and trade potential at the Yangtze. During the
First Opium War The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...
(1839–1842), British forces occupied the city.Rait, Robert S. (1903).
The Life and Campaigns of Hugh, First Viscount Gough, Field-Marshal
''. Volume 1. p. 267–268
The war ended in 1842 with the Treaty of Nanking, which opened Shanghai as one of the five
treaty ports Treaty ports (; ja, 条約港) were the port cities in China and Japan that were opened to foreign trade mainly by the unequal treaties forced upon them by Western powers, as well as cities in Korea opened up similarly by the Japanese Empire. ...
for international trade. The Treaty of the Bogue, the
Treaty of Wanghia The Treaty of Wanghia (also known as the Treaty of Wangxia; Treaty of peace, amity, and commerce, between the United States of America and the Chinese Empire; ) was the first of the unequal treaties imposed by the United States on China. As p ...
, and the
Treaty of Whampoa The Treaty of Whampoa () was a commercial treaty between Qing dynasty of China and Kingdom of France, which was signed by Qiying and Théodore de Lagrené on October 24, 1844 aboard the warship ''L’Archimède''. It is considered an unequal trea ...
(signed in 1843, 1844, and 1844, respectively) forced Chinese concession to European and American desires for visitation and trade on Chinese soil. Britain, France, and the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
all established a presence outside the walled city of Shanghai, which remained under the direct administration of the Chinese. The Chinese-held Old City of Shanghai fell to rebels from the
Small Swords Society Small Swords Society or Small Knife Society was a political and military organisation active in Shanghai, China, and neighbouring areas amid the Taiping Rebellion, between about 1840 and 1855. Members of the society, rebelling against the Qing dy ...
in 1853, but was recovered by the Qing government in February 1855. In 1854, the Shanghai Municipal Council was created to manage the foreign settlements. Between 1860 and 1862, the Taiping rebels twice attacked Shanghai and destroyed the city's eastern and southern suburbs, but failed to take the city.Williams, S. Wells.
The Middle Kingdom: A Survey of the Geography, Government, Literature, Social Life, Arts, and History of the Chinese Empire and its Inhabitants
', Vol. 1, p. 107. Scribner (New York), 1904.
In 1863, the British settlement to the south of Suzhou Creek (northern Huangpu District) and the American settlement to the north (southern
Hongkou District , formerly spelled Hongkew, is a district of Shanghai, forming part of the northern urban core. It has a land area of and a population of 852,476 as of 2010. It is the location of the Astor House Hotel, Broadway Mansions, Lu Xun Park, and H ...
) joined in order to form the
Shanghai International Settlement The Shanghai International Settlement () originated from the merger in the year 1863 of the British and American enclaves in Shanghai, in which British subjects and American citizens would enjoy extraterritoriality and consular jurisdictio ...
. The French opted out of the Shanghai Municipal Council and maintained its own concession to the south and southwest. The
First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the p ...
concluded with the 1895
Treaty of Shimonoseki The , also known as the Treaty of Maguan () in China and in the period before and during World War II in Japan, was a treaty signed at the , Shimonoseki, Japan on April 17, 1895, between the Empire of Japan and Qing China, ending the Firs ...
, which elevated Japan to become another foreign power in Shanghai. Japan built the first factories in Shanghai, which was soon copied by other foreign powers. All this international activity gave Shanghai the nickname "the Great
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates a ...
of China". In 1914, the Old City walls were dismantled because they blocked the city's expansion. In July 1921, the
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 ...
was founded in the French Concession. On 30 May 1925, the
May Thirtieth Movement The May Thirtieth Movement () was a major labor and anti-imperialist movement during the middle-period of the Republic of China era. It began when the Shanghai Municipal Police opened fire on Chinese protesters in Shanghai's International Set ...
broke out when a worker in a Japanese-owned
cotton mill A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system. Although some were driven b ...
was shot and killed by a Japanese foreman.Ku, Hung-Ting 979(1979). Urban Mass Movement: The May Thirtieth Movement in Shanghai. Modern Asian Studies, Vol.13, No.2. pp.197–216 Workers in the city then launched
general strikes A general strike refers to a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large coa ...
against
imperialism Imperialism is the state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other areas, often through employing hard power (economic powe ...
, which became nationwide protests that gave rise to
Chinese nationalism Chinese nationalism () is a form of nationalism in the People's Republic of China (Mainland China) and the Republic of China on Taiwan which asserts that the Chinese people are a nation and promotes the cultural and national unity of all Chi ...
. The golden age of Shanghai began with its elevation to municipality after it was separated from
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with it ...
on 7 July 1927. This new Chinese municipality covered an area of , including the modern-day districts of Baoshan, Yangpu, Zhabei, Nanshi, and
Pudong Pudong is a district of Shanghai located east of the Huangpu, the river which flows through central Shanghai. The name ''Pudong'' was originally applied to the Huangpu's east bank, directly across from the west bank or Puxi, the historic city ...
, but excluded the foreign concessions territories. Headed by a Chinese mayor and municipal council, the new city government's first task—the Greater Shanghai Plan—was to create a new city center in Jiangwan town of Yangpu district, outside the boundaries of the foreign concessions. The plan included a public museum, library, sports stadium, and city hall, which were partially constructed before being interrupted by the Japanese invasion. In the 1920s, '' shidaiqu'' became a new form of entertainment and was popularised in Shanghai. The city flourished, becoming a primary commercial and financial hub of the
Asia-Pacific Asia-Pacific (APAC) is the part of the world near the western Pacific Ocean. The Asia-Pacific region varies in area depending on context, but it generally includes East Asia, Russian Far East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and Paci ...
region in the 1930s. During the ensuing decades, citizens of many countries and all continents came to Shanghai to live and work; those who stayed for long periods⁠⁠—some for generations⁠—called themselves " Shanghailanders". In the 1920s and 1930s, almost 20,000 White Russians fled the newly established Soviet Union to reside in Shanghai. These Shanghai Russians constituted the second-largest foreign community. By 1932, Shanghai had become the world's fifth largest city and home to 70,000 foreigners. In the 1930s, some 30,000 Jewish refugees from Europe arrived in the city. File:SkylineShanghaiPudongSeptember2021.jpg, Skyline of Shanghai Pudong at night, September 2021 File:1937 Shanghai, China VP8.webm, Shanghai filmed in 1937 File:Shanghai Bund seen from the French Concession.jpg,
The Bund The Bund or Waitan (, Shanghainese romanization: ''Nga3thae1'', , ) is a waterfront area and a protected historical district in central Shanghai. The area centers on a section of Zhongshan Road (East Zhongshan Road No.1) within the former S ...
in the late 1920s seen from the
French Concession The Shanghai French Concession; ; Shanghainese pronunciation: ''Zånhae Fah Tsuka'', group=lower-alpha was a foreign concession in Shanghai, China from 1849 until 1943, which progressively expanded in the late 19th and early 20th centuries ...
File:Shanghai tram, British section, 1920s, John Rossman's collection.jpg, Nanking Road (modern-day East Nanjing Road) in the 1930s File:Shanghai Park Hotel 2007.jpg, alt=Shanghai Park Hotel was the tallest building in Asia for decades, Shanghai Park Hotel was the tallest building in Asia for decades. File:Former Shanghai Library.jpg, Former Shanghai Library File:The Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank, built in 1923 and The Customs House built in 1927.jpg, The HSBC Building built in 1923 and the
Customs House A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting ...
built in 1927


Japanese invasion

On 28 January 1932, Japanese forces invaded Shanghai while the Chinese resisted. More than 10,000 shops and hundreds of factories and public buildings were destroyed, leaving Zhabei district ruined. About 18,000 civilians were either killed, injured, or declared missing. A ceasefire was brokered on 5 May. In 1937, the
Battle of Shanghai The Battle of Shanghai () was the first of the twenty-two major engagements fought between the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) of the Republic of China (ROC) and the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) of the Empire of Japan at the beginning of the ...
resulted in the occupation of the Chinese-administered parts of Shanghai outside of the International Settlement and the French Concession. People who stayed in the occupied city suffered on a daily basis, experiencing hunger, oppression, or death. The foreign concessions were ultimately occupied by the Japanese on 8 December 1941 and remained occupied until Japan's surrender in 1945; multiple war crimes were committed during that time. A side-effect of the Japanese invasion of Shanghai was the Shanghai Ghetto. Japanese consul to
Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Traka ...
,
Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
, Chiune Sugihara issued thousands of visas to Jewish refugees who were escaping the Nazi's Final Solution to the Jewish Question. They traveled from Keidan, Lithuania across Russia by railroad to the
Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, ...
from where they traveled by ship to Kobe, Japan. Their stay in Kobe was short as the Japanese government transferred them to Shanghai by November 1941. Other Jewish refugees found haven in Shanghai, not through Sugihara, but came on ships from Italy. The refugees from Europe were interned into a cramped ghetto in the Hongkou District, and after the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...
, even the Iraqi Jews who had been living in Shanghai from before the outbreak of WWII were interned. Among the refugees in the Shanghai Ghetto was the Mirrer Yeshiva, including its students and faculty. On 3 September 1945, the Chinese Army liberated the Ghetto and most of the Jews left over the next few years. By 1957, there were only one hundred Jews remaining in Shanghai. On 27 May 1949, the
People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the principal military force of the China, People's Republic of China and the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The PLA consists of five Military branch, service branches: the People's ...
took control of Shanghai through the Shanghai Campaign. Under the new People's Republic of China (PRC), Shanghai was one of only three municipalities not merged into neighboring provinces (the others being
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
and
Tianjin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popu ...
). Most foreign firms moved their offices from Shanghai to
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...
, as part of a foreign
divestment In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for financial, ethical, or political objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm. A divestment is the opposite of an investment. Divestiture is ...
due to the PRC's victory.


Modernity

After the war, Shanghai's economy was restored—from 1949 to 1952, the city's agricultural and industrial output increased by 51.5% and 94.2%, respectively. There were 20 urban districts and 10 suburbs at the time. On 17 January 1958, Jiading, Baoshan, and Shanghai County in Jiangsu became part of Shanghai Municipality, which expanded to . The following December, the land area of Shanghai was further expanded to after more surrounding suburban areas in Jiangsu were added: Chongming, Jinshan, Qingpu, Fengxian,
Chuansha Pudong is a district of Shanghai located east of the Huangpu, the river which flows through central Shanghai. The name ''Pudong'' was originally applied to the Huangpu's east bank, directly across from the west bank or Puxi, the historic city ...
, and
Nanhui Nanhui District (), formerly romanized as Nanhwei, was a district of Shanghai until it was merged into Pudong New Area in May 2009. It had a land area of about and a coastline. The population of Nanhui was as of August 2006. On May 6, 20 ...
. In 1964, the city's administrative divisions were rearranged to 10 urban districts and 10 counties. As the industrial center of China with the most skilled industrial workers, Shanghai became a center for radical leftism during the 1950s and 1960s. The radical leftist Jiang Qing and her three allies, together the
Gang of Four The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes. The gang ...
, were based in the city. During the
Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goa ...
(1966–1976), Shanghai's society was severely damaged, with 310,000 wrongful convictions involving more than 1 million people. About 11,500 people were unjustly persecuted to death. Despite this, Shanghai maintained economic production with a positive annual growth rate. The Shanghai People's Commune was established in the city during the January Storm of 1967. Since 1949, Shanghai has been a comparatively heavy contributor of tax revenue to the central government; in 1983, the city's contribution in tax revenue was greater than investment received in the past 33 years combined. Its importance to the fiscal well-being of the central government also denied it from economic liberalizations begun in 1978. In 1990,
Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. Aft ...
finally permitted Shanghai to initiate economic reforms, which reintroduced foreign capital to the city and developed the Pudong district, resulting in the birth of
Lujiazui Lujiazui, also known under its Shanghainese name Lohkatse (, , lit. meaning " he Lu family's mouth"), is a locality in Shanghai, a peninsula formed by a bend in the Huangpu River. Since the early 1990s, Lujiazui has been developed specifically ...
. As of 2020, Shanghai is classified as an Alpha+ city by the
Globalization and World Cities Research Network The Globalization and World Cities Research Network (GaWC) is a think tank that studies the relationships between world cities in the context of globalization. It is based in the geography department of Loughborough University in Leicestershir ...
, making it one of the world's Top 10 major cities. In early 2022, Shanghai experienced a large outbreak of
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...
cases. After localized lockdowns failed to stem the rise in cases, the Chinese government locked down the entire city on April 5. This resulted in widespread food shortages across the city emerged as food-supply chains were severely disrupted by the government's lockdown measures, which was not lifted until June 1.


Geography

Shanghai is located on the Yangtze
Estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...
of China's east coast, with the Yangtze River to the north and
Hangzhou Bay Hangzhou Bay, or the Bay of Hangzhou (), is a funnel-shaped inlet of the East China Sea, bordered by the province of Zhejiang and the municipality of Shanghai, which lies north of the Bay. The Bay extends from the East China Sea to its head ...
to the south, with 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 ...
to the east. The land is formed by the Yangtze's natural
deposition Deposition may refer to: * Deposition (law), taking testimony outside of court * Deposition (politics), the removal of a person of authority from political power * Deposition (university), a widespread initiation ritual for new students practiced f ...
and modern
land reclamation Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamat ...
projects. As such, it has sandy soil, and skyscrapers have to be built with deep concrete piles to avoid sinking into the soft ground. The provincial-level Municipality of Shanghai administers both the estuary and many of its surrounding islands. It borders the provinces of
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 south and
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with it ...
to the west and north. The municipality's northernmost point is on
Chongming Island Chongming, formerly known as Chungming, is an alluvial island at the mouth of the Yangtze River in eastern China covering as of 2010. Together with the islands Changxing and Hengsha, it forms Chongming District, the northernmost area of the ...
, which is the second-largest island in mainland China after its expansion during the 20th century."Chongming Island" in the ''Encyclopedia of Shanghai'', p. 52.
Shanghai Scientific & Technical Publishers (Shanghai), 2010. Hosted by the Municipality of Shanghai.
It does not administratively include an
exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...
of Jiangsu on northern Chongming or the two islands forming Shanghai's Yangshan Port, which are parts of Zhejiang's
Shengsi County Shengsi County is a county in the northeast of Zhejiang province consisting of an archipelago islands located to the east of Hangzhou Bay. It is under the administration of Zhoushan City and is the easternmost county-level division in the provin ...
. Shanghai is roughly 1,100 km equidistant from
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
to the north-west and 1400 km from
Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, sou ...
to the south-east. Shanghai is located on an
alluvial plain An alluvial plain is a largely flat landform created by the deposition of sediment over a long period of time by one or more rivers coming from highland regions, from which alluvial soil forms. A floodplain is part of the process, being the smal ...
. As such, the vast majority of its land area is flat, with an average elevation of . Tidal flat ecosystems exist around the estuary, however, they have long been reclaimed for agricultural purposes. The city's few hills, such as She Shan, lie to the southwest, and its highest point is the peak of Dajinshan Island () in Hangzhou Bay. Shanghai has many rivers, canals, streams, and lakes, and it is known for its rich water resources as part of the
Lake Tai Taihu (), also known as Lake Tai or Lake Taihu, is a lake in the Yangtze Delta and one of the largest freshwater lakes in China. The lake is in Jiangsu province and a significant part of its southern shore forms its border with Zhejiang. ...
drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...
. Downtown Shanghai is bisected by the Huangpu River, a man-made
tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of the Yangtze created by order of Lord Chunshen during the Warring States period. The historic center of the city was located on the west bank of the Huangpu ( Puxi), near the mouth of Suzhou Creek, connecting it with Lake Tai and the Grand Canal. The central financial district, Lujiazui, has been established on the east bank of the Huangpu (Pudong). Along Shanghai's eastern shore, the destruction of local
wetlands A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The p ...
due to the construction of Pudong International Airport has been partially offset by the protection and expansion of a nearby shoal,
Jiuduansha Jiuduansha is a collection of four intertidal wetland shoals at the mouth of China's Yangtze River. They are administered as an island region of the municipality of Shanghai's Pudong New Area. These shoals and the submerged land surrounding t ...
, as a nature preserve."Fourth Island Wetland Emerging", pp. 1–2.
'' Shanghai Daily''. 8 December 2009. Hosted at China.org.


Climate

Shanghai 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), with an average annual temperature of for urban districts and for suburbs. The city experiences four distinct seasons. Winters are temperate to cold and damp—northwesterly winds from
Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive 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 part ...
can cause nighttime temperatures to drop below freezing. Each year, there are an average of 6.2 days with snowfall and 2.8 days with snow cover. Summers are hot and humid, and occasional downpours or freak
thunderstorms A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorms are somet ...
can be expected. On average, 8.7 days exceed annually. In summer and the beginning of autumn, the city is susceptible to
typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...
s. The most pleasant seasons are generally spring, although changeable and often rainy, and autumn, which is usually sunny and dry. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 34% in March to 54% in August, the city receives 1,895 hours of bright sunshine annually. Extremes since 1951 have ranged from on 31 January 1977 (unofficial record of was set on 19 January 1893) to on 13 July 2022 at a
weather station A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include tempera ...
in Xujiahui.


Cityscape

The Bund The Bund or Waitan (, Shanghainese romanization: ''Nga3thae1'', , ) is a waterfront area and a protected historical district in central Shanghai. The area centers on a section of Zhongshan Road (East Zhongshan Road No.1) within the former S ...
, located by the bank of the Huangpu River, is home to a row of early 20th-century architecture, ranging in style from the neoclassical HSBC Building to the
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unit ...
Sassoon House (now part of the Peace Hotel). Many areas in the former foreign concessions are also well-preserved, the most notable being the French Concession. Shanghai is also home to many architecturally distinctive and even eccentric buildings, including the
Shanghai Museum The Shanghai Museum is a museum of ancient Chinese art, situated on the People's Square in the Huangpu District of Shanghai, China. Rebuilt at its current location in 1996, it is considered one of China's first world-class modern museums and fa ...
, the
Shanghai Grand Theatre The Shanghai Grand Theater () is a complex located at the intersection of Central Boulevard and Huangpi Road South in the northern part of the People's Square in the Huangpu District of Shanghai. The building houses the Shanghai Opera House ...
, the
Shanghai Oriental Art Center The Shanghai Oriental Art Center (), abbreviated SHOAC, is one of the leading performance and cultural facilities in Shanghai. The five interconnected hemispherical halls or "petals" are shaped to resemble a butterfly orchid from above.SHOAC"Prelu ...
, and the Oriental Pearl Tower. Despite rampant redevelopment, the Old City still retains some traditional architecture and designs, such as the Yu Garden, an elaborate
Jiangnan Jiangnan or Jiang Nan (; formerly romanized Kiang-nan, literally "South of the River" meaning "South of the Yangtze") is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, incl ...
style garden. As a result of its construction boom during the 1920s and 1930s, Shanghai has among the most Art Deco buildings in the world. One of the most famous architects working in Shanghai was László Hudec, a Hungarian-Slovak who lived in the city between 1918 and 1947. His most notable Art Deco buildings include the Park Hotel, the
Grand Cinema ''Grand Cinema'' is a 1989 Iranian comedy film directed by Hassan Hedayat. It was entered into the 16th Moscow International Film Festival. Cast * Ebrahim Abadi * Akbar Abdi * Fereydoon Aboo Zia * Morteza Ahmadi * Hosein Amirfazli * Mahmoud B ...
, and the Paramount. Other prominent architects who contributed to the Art Deco style are Clement Palmer and Arthur Turner, who together designed the Peace Hotel, the Metropole Hotel, and the Broadway Mansions; and Austrian architect C.H. Gonda, who designed the Capitol Theatre. The Bund has been revitalized several times. The first was in 1986, with a new
promenade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...
by the Dutch architect Paulus Snoeren. The second was before the 2010 Expo, which includes restoration of the century-old
Waibaidu Bridge The Waibaidu Bridge (), called the Garden Bridge in English, is the first all-steel bridge,"The Preservation and Renovation of Waibaidu Bridge,"''WHITR-AP (Shanghai) NEWSLETTER'' 9 (March 2009):4.; http://whitr-ap.org/download/Newsletter%209.pdf an ...
and reconfiguration of traffic flow. One distinctive cultural element is the
shikumen Shikumen (, Shanghainese: ''zaq⁸ khu¹ men⁶,'' IPA: ᴀʔ¹¹ kʰu¹¹ mən²⁴ is a traditional Shanghainese architectural style combining Western and Chinese elements that first appeared in the 1860s. At the height of their popularity ...
(, "stone storage door") residence, typically two- or three-story gray brick houses with the front yard protected by a heavy wooden door in a stylistic stone arch. Each residence is connected and arranged in straight alleys, known as longtang (). The house is similar to western-style
terrace house In architecture and city planning, a terrace or terraced house ( UK) or townhouse ( US) is a form of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the 16th century, whereby a row of attached dwellings share side walls. In the United Sta ...
s or
townhouse A townhouse, townhome, town house, or town home, is a type of terraced housing. A modern townhouse is often one with a small footprint on multiple floors. In a different British usage, the term originally referred to any type of city residence ...
s, but distinguishes by the tall, heavy brick wall and archway in front of each house. The shikumen is a cultural blend of elements found in Western architecture with traditional Jiangnan Chinese architecture and social behavior. Like almost all traditional Chinese dwellings, it has a
courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary ...
, which reduces outside noise. Vegetation can be grown in the courtyard, and it can also allow for sunlight and ventilation to the rooms. Some of Shanghai's buildings feature
Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
neoclassical architecture or Stalinist architecture, though the city has fewer such structures than Beijing. These buildings were mostly erected between the founding of the People's Republic in 1949 and the
Sino-Soviet Split The Sino-Soviet split was the breaking of political relations between the China, People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union caused by Doctrine, doctrinal divergences that arose from their different interpretations and practical applications ...
in the late 1960s. During this time period, large numbers of Soviet experts, including architects, poured into China to aid the country in the construction of a communist state. An example of Soviet neoclassical architecture in Shanghai is the modern-day
Shanghai Exhibition Center The Shanghai Exhibition Centre () or the Shanghai Exhibition Hall () is an exhibition and convention centre in central Shanghai. The building was built in 1955 as the Sino-Soviet Friendship Building () to commemorate the alliance between China ...
. Shanghai—Lujiazui in particular—has numerous skyscrapers, making it the fifth city in the world with the most skyscrapers. Among the most prominent examples are the high
Jin Mao Tower The Jin Mao Tower (; Shanghainese:'' Cinmeu Dagho''; lit. ‘Golden Prosperity Building’), also known as the or , is a , 88-story (93 if counting the floors in the spire) landmark skyscraper in Lujiazui, Pudong, Shanghai, China. It contains a s ...
, the high
Shanghai World Financial Center The Shanghai World Financial Center (SWFC; , Shanghainese: ''Zånhae Guejieu Cinyon Tsonsin'') is a supertall skyscraper located in the Pudong district of Shanghai. It was designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox and developed by the Mori Building Compan ...
, and the high
Shanghai Tower Shanghai Tower () is a 128-story, megatall skyscraper in Lujiazui, Pudong, Shanghai.
, which is the tallest building in China and the second tallest in the world. Completed in 2015, the tower takes the form of nine twisted sections stacked atop each other, totaling 128 floors. It is featured in its
double-skin facade The double-skin façade is a system of building consisting of two skins, or façades, placed in such a way that air flows in the intermediate cavity. The ventilation of the cavity can be natural, fan supported or mechanical. Apart from the type ...
design, which eliminates the need for either layer to be opaqued for reflectivity as the double-layer structure has already reduced the heat absorption. The futuristic-looking Oriental Pearl Tower, at , is located nearby at the northern tip of Lujiazui. Skyscrapers outside of Lujiazui include the
White Magnolia Plaza The White Magnolia Plaza, also known as Sinar Mas Center, is a skyscraper whose construction was earlier suspended, but resumed construction in 2013, and was completed on January 4, 2017. It is located north of the Bund, the historic river-front ...
in Hongkou, the Shimao International Plaza in Huangpu, and the Shanghai Wheelock Square in Jing'an. File:·˙·ChinaUli2010·.· Shanghai - panoramio (231).jpg, The
Shanghai Museum The Shanghai Museum is a museum of ancient Chinese art, situated on the People's Square in the Huangpu District of Shanghai, China. Rebuilt at its current location in 1996, it is considered one of China's first world-class modern museums and fa ...
File:Shanghaigrandtheatre.jpg, The
Shanghai Grand Theater The Shanghai Grand Theater () is a complex located at the intersection of Central Boulevard and Huangpi Road South in the northern part of the People's Square in the Huangpu District of Shanghai. The building houses the Shanghai Opera House a ...
File:The Sino-Soviet Friendship Mansion.JPG, The
Shanghai Exhibition Center The Shanghai Exhibition Centre () or the Shanghai Exhibition Hall () is an exhibition and convention centre in central Shanghai. The building was built in 1955 as the Sino-Soviet Friendship Building () to commemorate the alliance between China ...
, an example of Stalinist architecture File:The Oriental Pearl Radio & Television Tower at night.jpg, The Oriental Pearl Tower at night File:Shanghai - Shanghai Tower - 0003.jpg,
Shanghai Tower Shanghai Tower () is a 128-story, megatall skyscraper in Lujiazui, Pudong, Shanghai.
File:Skyscrapers in Shanghai.jpg, Glass facades of two skyscrapers


Politics


Structure

Like virtually all
governing institutions in mainland China, Shanghai has a parallel party-government system, in which the
Party Committee Secretary 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 ...
, officially termed the Communist Party of China Shanghai Municipal Committee Secretary, outranks the Mayor. The acts as the top policy-formulation body, and is typically composed of 12 members (including the secretary). Political power in Shanghai has frequently been a stepping stone to higher positions in the central government. Since
Jiang Zemin Jiang Zemin (17 August 1926 – 30 November 2022) was a Chinese politician who served as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002, as chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to 2004, and as p ...
became the
General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party The general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party () is the head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Since 1989, the CCP general secretary has been the paramount lead ...
in June 1989, all former Shanghai party secretaries but one were elevated to the
Politburo Standing Committee The Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), officially the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, is a committee consisting of the top leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Histori ...
, the ''de facto'' highest decision-making body in China, including Jiang himself (Party General Secretary), Zhu Rongji (Premier),
Wu Bangguo Wu Bangguo (born 12 July 1941) is a retired high-ranking politician in the People's Republic of China. He was the Chairman and Chinese Communist Party Committee Secretary of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress from 2003 to ...
(Chairman of the National People's Congress),
Huang Ju Huang Ju (28 September 1938 – 2 June 2007) was a Chinese politician and a high-ranking leader in the Chinese Communist Party. He was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee, China's top decision making body, between 2002 until his death ...
(Vice Premier),
Xi Jinping Xi Jinping ( ; ; ; born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and thus as the paramount leader of China, ...
(current General Secretary), Yu Zhengsheng, Han Zheng, and
Li Qiang Li Qiang (; born 23 July 1959) is a Chinese politician and a senior leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), serving as the second-ranking member of the 20th CCP Politburo Standing Committee, behind CCP general secretary Xi Jinping. From ...
. Zeng Qinghong, a former deputy party secretary of Shanghai, also rose to the Politburo Standing Committee and became the Vice President and an influential power broker. The only exception is Chen Liangyu, who was fired in 2006 and later convicted of
corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...
. Officials with ties to the Shanghai administration collectively form a powerful faction in the central government known as the
Shanghai Clique The Shanghai clique (), also referred to as the Shanghai gang, Jiang clique, or Jiang faction, refers to an informal group of Chinese Communist Party ( CCP) officials who rose to prominence under former CCP General Secretary Jiang Zemin while h ...
, which has often been viewed to compete against the rival
Youth League Faction The Tuanpai (), or Youth League Faction, is a term used by political observers and analysts to describe an informal political faction in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which includes cadres and government officials who originated from the Com ...
over personnel appointments and policy decisions. However, Xi Jinping, successor to
Hu Jintao Hu Jintao (born 21 December 1942) is a Chinese politician who served as the 16–17th general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 2002 to 2012, the 6th president of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from 2003 to 2013, and ...
as General Secretary and
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
, was largely an independent leader and took anti-corruption campaigns on both factions.


Administrative divisions

Shanghai is one of the four
municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...
under the direct administration of the
Government of the People's Republic of China The Government of the People's Republic of China () is an authoritarian political system in the People's Republic of China under the exclusive political leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It consists of legislative, executive, mili ...
, and is divided into 16 county-level
districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...
. Although every district has its own urban core, the city hall and major administrative units are located in Huangpu District, which also serves as a commercial area, including the famous Nanjing Road. Other major commercial areas include Xintiandi and Huaihai Road in Huangpu District, and Xujiahui in
Xuhui District Xuhui District is a core urban district of Shanghai. It has a land area of and a population of 982,200 as of 2008. The Xuhui District is named after its namesake, the historic area of Xujiahui. Xujiahui was historically land owned by Ming dyna ...
. Many universities in Shanghai are located in residential areas in Yangpu District and Putuo District. Seven of the districts govern Puxi ( "The West Bank", or "West of the River Pu"), the older part of urban Shanghai on the west bank of the Huangpu River. These seven districts are collectively referred to as Shanghai Proper () or the core city (), which comprise Huangpu, Xuhui, Changning, Jing'an, Putuo, Hongkou, and Yangpu. Pudong ( "The East Bank", or "East of the River Pu"), the newer part of urban and suburban Shanghai on the east bank of the Huangpu River, is governed by Pudong New Area (). Seven of the districts govern suburbs, satellite towns, and rural areas farther away from the urban core: Baoshan,
Minhang Minhang District is a suburban district of Shanghai with a land area of and population of 2,429,000 residents as of 2010. The original Minhang consist of present-day Jiangchuan Road Subdistrict (Former Minhang Town) and the eastern strip of Wu ...
, Jiading, Jinshan, Songjiang, Qingpu, and Fengxian. Chongming District comprises the islands of Changxing and Hengsha and most—but not all—of Chongming Island. The former district of Nanhui was absorbed into Pudong District in 2009. In 2011, Luwan District merged with Huangpu District. , these county-level divisions are further divided into the following 210 township-level divisions: 109
towns A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an or ...
, 2 townships, and 99
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. Those are in turn divided into the following village-level divisions: 3,661 neighborhood committees and 1,704 village committees. There is a sizable
Korean community of Shanghai As of 2011 about 50,000 Koreans reside in Shanghai."Searching for Seoul in Koreatown." ''Shanghai Daily'' at '' China.org.cn''. January 21, 2001. p1 Retrieved on February 18, 2014. According to 2006 estimates about 85,000 Joseonjok (ethnic Koreans ...
and
Japanese community of Shanghai Shanghai has a Japanese expatriate group, particularly in. the Gubei area of Changning District, which houses the majority of Japanese expatriates in Shanghai.Minhang District.


Economy

Shanghai has been described as the "showpiece" of the booming
economy of China The China, People's Republic of China has an upper middle income Developing country, developing Mixed economy, mixed socialist market economy that incorporates economic planning through Industrial policy, industrial policies and strategic Five- ...
. The city is a global center for
finance Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of f ...
and
innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed enti ...
, and a national center for commerce, trade, and transportation, with the world's busiest container port—the
Port of Shanghai The Port of Shanghai (), located in the vicinity of Shanghai, comprises a deep-sea port and a river port. The main port enterprise in Shanghai, the Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG), was established during the reconstitution of the S ...
. , Shanghai had a GDP of () that makes up 3.85% of China's GDP, and a
GDP per capita Lists of countries by GDP per capita list the countries in the world by their gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. The lists may be based on nominal or purchasing power parity GDP. Gross national income (GNI) per capita accounts for inflo ...
of (). As of 2018, the Greater Shanghai metropolitan area, which includes
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 ...
,
Wuxi Wuxi (, ) is a city in southern Jiangsu province, eastern China, by car to the northwest of downtown Shanghai, between Changzhou and Suzhou. In 2017 it had a population of 3,542,319, with 6,553,000 living in the entire prefecture-level city a ...
,
Nantong Nantong (; alternate names: Nan-t'ung, Nantung, Tongzhou, or Tungchow; Qihai dialect: ) is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Jiangsu province, China. Located on the northern bank of the Yangtze River, near the river mouth. Nantong is a vit ...
,
Ningbo Ningbo (; Ningbonese: ''gnin² poq⁷'' , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly romanized as Ningpo, is a major sub-provincial city in northeast Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. It comprises 6 urban districts, 2 sate ...
, Jiaxing,
Zhoushan Zhoushan , formerly romanized as Chusan, is an urbanized archipelago with the administrative status of a prefecture-level city in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang. It consists of an archipelago of islands at the southern mouth of ...
, and
Huzhou Huzhou (, ; Huzhounese: ''ghou² cieu¹'') is a prefecture-level city in northern Zhejiang province (Hangzhou–Jiaxing–Huzhou Plain, China). Lying south of the Lake Tai, it borders Jiaxing to the east, Hangzhou to the south, and the provin ...
, was estimated to produce a
gross metropolitan product Gross metropolitan product (GMP) is a monetary measure of the value of all final goods and services produced within a metropolitan statistical area during a specified period (''e.g.'', a quarter, a year). GMP estimates are commonly used to compar ...
( nominal) of nearly 9.1 trillion RMB ($1.33 trillion), exceeding that of
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
with GDP of $1.22 trillion, the 15th largest in the world. As of 2020, the economy of Shanghai was estimated to be $1 trillion ( PPP), ranking the most productive metro area of China and among the top ten largest metropolitan economies in the world. Shanghai's six largest industries—
retail Retail is the sale of goods and Service (economics), services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturing, manufacturers, dire ...
, finance, IT,
real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more genera ...
, machine manufacturing, and automotive manufacturing—comprise about half the city's GDP. In 2021, the average annual
disposable income Disposable income is total personal income minus current income taxes. In national accounts definitions, personal income minus personal current taxes equals disposable personal income. Subtracting personal outlays (which includes the major ...
of Shanghai's residents was () per capita, making it one of the wealthiest cities in China, but also the most expensive city in
mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the China, People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming Island, Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territorie ...
to live in according to a 2017 study by the
Economist Intelligence Unit The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is the research and analysis division of the Economist Group, providing forecasting and advisory services through research and analysis, such as monthly country reports, five-year country economic forecasts, ...
. In 2021, Shanghai was the most expensive city in the world. Shanghai was the 5th wealthiest city in the world, with a total wealth amounts to $1.8 trillion, and Shanghai was ranked fifth-highest in the number of billionaires by Forbes. Shanghai's nominal GDP was projected to reach US$1.3 trillion in 2035 (ranking first in China), making it one of the world's Top 5 major cities in terms of GRP according to a study by Oxford Economics. As of August 2022, Shanghai ranked 5th in the world and 2nd in China (after Beijing) by the largest number of the ''Fortune'' Global 500 companies in the world. Shanghai was the largest and most prosperous city in
East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea ...
during the 1930s, and its rapid redevelopment began in the 1990s. In the last two decades, Shanghai has been one of the fastest-developing cities in the world; it has recorded double-digit GDP growth in almost every year between 1992 and 2008, before the
financial crisis of 2007–08 Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of f ...
.


Finance

Shanghai is a global
financial center A financial centre ( BE), financial center ( AE), or financial hub, is a location with a concentration of participants in banking, asset management, insurance or financial markets with venues and supporting services for these activities to tak ...
, ranking first in the whole of Asia & Oceania region and third globally (after New York and London) in the 28th edition of the
Global Financial Centres Index The Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) is a ranking of the competitiveness of financial centres based on over 29,000 financial centre assessments from an online questionnaire together with over 100 indices from organisations such as the World ...
, published in September 2020 by Z/Yen and China Development Institute. Shanghai is also a large hub of the Chinese and global technology industry and home to a large startup ecosystem. As of 2021, the city was ranked as the 2nd Fintech powerhouse in the world after New York City. , the
Shanghai Stock Exchange The Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) is a stock exchange based in the city of Shanghai, China. It is one of the three stock exchanges operating independently in mainland China, the others being the Beijing Stock Exchange and the Shenzhen Stock Excha ...
had a
market capitalization Market capitalization, sometimes referred to as market cap, is the total value of a publicly traded company's outstanding common shares owned by stockholders. Market capitalization is equal to the market price per common share multiplied by ...
of , making it the largest
stock exchange A stock exchange, securities exchange, or bourse is an exchange where stockbrokers and traders can buy and sell securities, such as shares of stock, bonds and other financial instruments. Stock exchanges may also provide facilities for t ...
in China and the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world. In 2009, the trading volume of six key commodities—including rubber, copper, and zinc—on the
Shanghai Futures Exchange The Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE; ) was formed from the amalgamation of the national level futures exchanges of China, the Shanghai Metal Exchange, Shanghai Foodstuffs Commodity Exchange, and the Shanghai Commodity Exchange in December 1999. It i ...
all ranked first globally. By the end of 2017, Shanghai had 1,491 financial institutions, of which 251 were foreign-invested. In September 2013 with the backing of Chinese Premier
Li Keqiang Li Keqiang (born 1 July 1955) is a Chinese politician who is the outgoing premier of China. An economist by profession, Li is head of China's executive branch as well as one of the leading figures behind China's Financial and Economic Affa ...
, the city launched the
China (Shanghai) Pilot Free-Trade Zone Shanghai Free-Trade Zone (Shanghai FTZ or SFTZ), officially China (Shanghai) Pilot Free-Trade Zone, is a free-trade zone in Shanghai, China. On 22 August 2013, the State Council approved the establishment of the zone. Officially launched on 2 ...
—the first free-trade zone in mainland China. The zone introduced a number of pilot reforms designed to incentivize foreign investment. In April 2014, ''
The Banker ''The Banker'' is an English-language monthly international financial affairs publication owned by ''The Financial Times'' Ltd. and edited in London, United Kingdom. The magazine was first published in January 1926 through founding Editor, Bren ...
'' reported that Shanghai "has attracted the highest volumes of financial sector
foreign direct investment A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business in one country by an entity based in another country. It is thus distinguished from a foreign portfolio investment by a notion of direct c ...
in the Asia-Pacific region in the 12 months to the end of January 2014". In August 2014, '' fDi magazine'' named Shanghai the "Chinese Province of the Future 2014/15" due to "particularly impressive performances in the Business Friendliness and Connectivity categories, as well as placing second in the Economic Potential and Human Capital and Lifestyle categories".


Manufacturing

As one of the main industrial centers of China, Shanghai plays a key role in domestic manufacturing and
heavy industry Heavy industry is an industry that involves one or more characteristics such as large and heavy products; large and heavy equipment and facilities (such as heavy equipment, large machine tools, huge buildings and large-scale infrastructure); o ...
. Several industrial zones—including Shanghai Hongqiao Economic and Technological Development Zone, Jinqiao Export Economic Processing Zone, Minhang Economic and Technological Development Zone, and Shanghai Caohejing High-Tech Development Zone—are backbones of Shanghai's
secondary sector In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in construc ...
. Shanghai is home to China's largest steelmaker
Baosteel Group China Baowu Steel Group Corp., Ltd., commonly known as Baowu, is a state-owned iron and steel company headquartered in the Baosteel Tower in Pudong, Shanghai, China. The company was formed by Baosteel Group absorbing its smaller state-owned pe ...
, China's largest
shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to bef ...
base Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group, and one of China's oldest shipbuilders, the
Jiangnan Shipyard Jiangnan Shipyard () is a historic shipyard in Shanghai, China. The shipyard has been state-owned since its founding in 1865 and is now operated as Jiangnan Shipyard (Group) Co. Ltd. Before 2009, the company was south of central Shanghai at ...
. Auto manufacturing is another important industry. The Shanghai-based
SAIC Motor SAIC Motor Corp., Ltd. (formerly Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation) is a Chinese State-owned enterprises of China, state-owned automobile manufacturer headquartered in Anting, Shanghai. Founded in 1955, it is currently the largest of the ...
is one of the three largest automotive corporations in China, and has strategic partnerships with
Volkswagen Volkswagen (),English: , . abbreviated as VW (), is a German Automotive industry, motor vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front under the Nazi Party and revived into a ...
and
General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
.


Tourism

Tourism is a major industry of Shanghai. In 2017, the number of domestic tourists increased by 7.5% to 318 million, while the number of overseas tourists increased by 2.2% to 8.73 million. In 2017, Shanghai was the highest earning tourist city in the world, which is expected to maintain until 2027. As of 2019, Shanghai had 71
five-star hotel Hotel ratings are often used to classify hotels according to their quality. From the initial purpose of informing travellers on basic facilities that can be expected, the objectives of hotel rating have expanded into a focus on the hotel experi ...
s, 61
four star hotel Hotel ratings are often used to classify hotels according to their quality. From the initial purpose of informing travellers on basic facilities that can be expected, the objectives of hotel rating have expanded into a focus on the hotel experie ...
s, 1,758
travel agencies A travel agency is a private retailer or public service that provides travel and tourism-related services to the general public on behalf of accommodation or travel suppliers to offer different kinds of travelling packages for each destinatio ...
, 113 rated tourist attractions, and 34 red tourist attractions. The conference and meeting sector is also growing. According to the
International Congress and Convention Association The International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) was founded in 1963 by a group of travel agents to exchange information on international congresses and conventions. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, the ICCA is a nonprof ...
, Shanghai hosted 82 international meetings in 2018, a 34% increase from 61 in 2017.


Free-trade zone

Shanghai is home to China (Shanghai) Pilot Free-Trade Zone, the first free-trade zone in mainland China. , it is also the second largest free-trade zone in mainland China in terms of land area (behind , which covers the whole
Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...
province) by covering an area of and integrating four existing bonded zones—Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone, Waigaoqiao Free Trade Logistics Park, Yangshan Free Trade Port Area, and Pudong Airport Comprehensive Free Trade Zone. Several preferential policies have been implemented to attract foreign investment in various industries to the zone. Because the zone is not technically considered Chinese territory for tax purposes, commodities entering the zone are exempt from duty and customs clearance.


Demographics

, Shanghai had a total population of 24,281,400, including 14,504,300 (59.7%) hukou holders (registered locally). According to the 2010 national census, 89.3% of Shanghai's population live in urban areas, and 10.7% live in rural areas. Based on the population of its total administrative area, Shanghai is the second largest of the four municipalities of China, behind
Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a municipality in Southwest China. The official abbreviation of the city, "" (), was approved by the State Co ...
, but is generally considered the largest Chinese city because the urban population of Chongqing is much smaller. p. 395 According to the
OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate ...
, Shanghai's
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually ...
has an estimated population of 34 million. According to the Shanghai Municipal Statistics Bureau, about 157,900 residents in Shanghai are foreigners, including 28,900 Japanese, 21,900 Americans and, 20,800 Koreans. The actual number of foreign citizens in the city is probably much higher. Shanghai is also a domestic immigration city—40.3% (9.8 million) of the city's residents are from other regions of China. Shanghai has a
life expectancy Life expectancy is a statistical measure of the average time an organism is expected to live, based on the year of its birth, current age, and other demographic factors like sex. The most commonly used measure is life expectancy at birth ...
of 83.6 years for the city's registered population, the highest life expectancy of all cities in mainland China. This has also caused the city to experience population aging—in 2017, 33.1% (4.8 million) of the city's registered population was aged 60 or above. In 2017, the Chinese government implemented population controls for Shanghai, resulting in a population decline of 10,000 people by the end of the year.


Religion

Due to its cosmopolitan history, Shanghai has a blend of religious heritage; religious buildings and institutions are scattered around the city. According to a 2012 survey, only 13.1% of the city's population belongs to organized religions, including
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 ...
with 10.4%,
Protestants Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
with 1.9%,
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 0.7%, and other faiths with 0.1% while the remaining 86.9% of the population could be either
atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
s or involved in worship of nature deities and ancestors or folk religious sects. Buddhism, in its
Chinese varieties Chinese, also known as Sinitic, is a branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family consisting of hundreds of local varieties, many of which are not mutually intelligible. Variation is particularly strong in the more mountainous southeast of main ...
, has had a presence in Shanghai since the
Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and was followed by the West ...
period, during which the Longhua Temple—the largest temple in Shanghai—and the Jing'an Temple were founded. Another significant temple is the Jade Buddha Temple, which was named after a large statue of
Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...
carved out of
jade Jade is a mineral used as jewellery or for ornaments. It is typically green, although may be yellow or white. Jade can refer to either of two different silicate minerals: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in the amphibole group ...
in the temple. , Buddhism in Shanghai had 114 temples, 1,182 clergical staff, and 453,300 registered followers. The religion also has its own college, the , and its own press, . Catholicism was brought into Shanghai in 1608 by Italian missionary Lazzaro Cattaneo. The Apostolic Vicariate of Shanghai was erected in 1933, and was further elevated to the Diocese of Shanghai in 1946. Notable Catholic sites include the
St. Ignatius Cathedral St. Ignatius Cathedral (), also known as the Xujiahui Cathedral () or the Xujiahui Catholic Church (), is a Roman Catholic cathedral, located in Xujiahui, Shanghai, China. Since 1960, St Ignatius has been the seat of the Bishop of Shanghai an ...
in Xujiahui—the largest Catholic church in the city, the St. Francis Xavier Church, and the
She Shan Basilica The Sheshan Basilica, officially the National Shrine and Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Sheshan () and also known as Basilica of Mary, Help of Christians is a prominent Roman Catholic church in Shanghai. Its common name comes from its location on ...
. Other forms of
Christianity in Shanghai __NOTOC__ Christianity is a minority faith in Shanghai, a municipality in China. Shanghai has the highest proportion of Catholic residents of any province-level division in Mainland China (2003).According to Johnstone, Patrick; Schirrmacher, Thomas ...
include
Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...
minorities and, since 1996, registered Christian Protestant churches. Although currently making up a fraction of the religious population in Shanghai, Jewish people have played an influential role in the city's history. After the Treaty of Nanking ended the
First Opium War The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...
in 1842, the city was opened up to western populations and merchants traveled to Shanghai for its rich business potential, including many prominent Jewish families. The Sassoons amassed great wealth in the opium and textile trades, cementing their status by funding many of the buildings that have become iconic in Shanghai's skyline, such as the Cathay Hotel in 1929. The
Hardoon Silas Aaron Hardoon (; 1851– June, 1931) was a wealthy businessman and well-known public figure in the city of Shanghai in the early 20th century. Biography Silas was born Saleh Hardoon (סאלח חרדון) into a poor Jewish family in Baghda ...
s were another prominent Baghdadi Jewish family that used their business success to define Shanghai in the 20th century. The head of the family, Silas Hardoon, one of the richest people in the world during the 1800s, financed Nanjing Road, which then housed departmental stores in the International Settlement, that is now one of the busiest shopping centers in the world. 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 ...
, thousands of Jews emigrated to Shanghai in an effort to flee
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
. They lived in a designated area called the Shanghai Ghetto and formed a community centered on the Ohel Moishe Synagogue, which is now the
Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum The Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum is a museum commemorating the Jewish refugees who lived in Shanghai during World War II after fleeing Europe to escape the Holocaust. It is located at the former Ohel Moshe or Moishe Synagogue, in the Tilanqia ...
. In 1939, Horace
Kadoorie Kaddouri ( ar, خضوري, derived from "green", ''akhdar'' in Arabic; he, כדורי (transliterated; does not mean ''green'', which would be ירוק, yarok)) and many other transliterations, is an Arabic surname. People with the surname inclu ...
, the head of the powerful philanthropic Sephardic Jewish family in Shanghai, founded the Shanghai Jewish Youth Association to support Jewish refugees through English education so they would be prepared to emigrate from Shanghai when the time came.
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...
came into Shanghai during the Yuan dynasty. The city's first mosque,
Songjiang Mosque The Songjiang Mosque (), formerly called the Real Religion Mosque, is a mosque in Songjiang District, Shanghai, China. It is the oldest mosque in Shanghai. History The mosque was originally constructed during the Toghon Temür reign of the Yua ...
, was built during the Zhizheng () era under Emperor Huizong. Shanghai's
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
population increased in the 19th and early 20th centuries (when the city was a treaty port), during which time many mosques—including the Xiaotaoyuan Mosque, the
Huxi Mosque The Huxi Mosque () is a mosque in Putuo District, Shanghai, China. History The mosque was originally constructed at Xikang Road in 1914-1921 and completed in 1922 under the name Yaoshuinong Mosque. In 1935, the mosque underwent renovation and ...
, and the
Pudong Mosque The Pudong Mosque () is a mosque in Pudong, Shanghai, China. History The mosque was originally constructed in 1935 at No. 16 Wujiating, Pudong Avenue. It underwent expansion in 1984 due to its small size. In 1995, the mosque was rebuilt at its ...
—were built. The Shanghai Islamic Association is located in the Xiaotaoyuan Mosque in Huangpu. Shanghai has several folk religious temples, including the City God Temple at the heart of the Old City, the
Dajing Ge Pavilion The Dàjìng Gé Pavillon (上海古城墙和大境阁) is a museum and ancient temple of Shanghai, incorporating the last remaining portions of the walls of the Old City of Shanghai The Old City of Shanghai (; Shanghainese: ''Zånhae Lo Zens ...
dedicated to the Three Kingdoms general
Guan Yu Guan Yu (; ), courtesy name Yunchang, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Along with Zhang Fei, he shared a brotherly relationship with Liu Bei and accompanied him on ...
, the
Confucian Temple of Shanghai The Confucian Temple or Temple of Confucius of Shanghai (), is a folk Confucian temple in the old city of Shanghai. It is similar to the original temple of Confucius in his hometown Qufu and to the Beijing temple, but on a smaller scale. The t ...
, and a major Taoist center where the Shanghai Taoist Association locates.


Language

The
vernacular A vernacular or vernacular language is in contrast with a "standard language". It refers to the language or dialect that is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The vernacular is typically the native language, n ...
language spoken in the city is Shanghainese, a dialect of the Taihu Wu subgroup of the
Wu Chinese The Wu languages (; Wu romanization and IPA: ''wu6 gniu6'' [] ( Shanghainese), ''ng2 gniu6'' [] (Suzhounese), Mandarin pinyin and IPA: ''Wúyǔ'' []) is a major group of Sinitic languages spoken primarily in Shanghai, Zhejiang, Zhejiang Provin ...
family. This is different from the official Chinese dialect, Mandarin, which is mutually unintelligible with Wu Chinese. Modern Shanghainese is based on other dialects of Taihu Wu: Suzhounese, Ningbonese, and the local dialect of Songjiang Prefecture. Prior to its expansion, the language spoken in Shanghai was subordinate to those spoken around Jiaxing and later
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 was known as "the local tongue" (), which is now being used in suburbs only. In the late 19th century, downtown Shanghainese () appeared, undergoing rapid changes and quickly replacing Suzhounese as the
prestige dialect Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnet ...
of the
Yangtze River Delta The Yangtze Delta or Yangtze River Delta (YRD, or simply ) is a triangle-shaped megalopolis generally comprising the Wu Chinese-speaking areas of Shanghai, southern Jiangsu and northern Zhejiang. The area lies in the heart of the Jiangnan re ...
region. At the time, most of the city's residents were immigrants from the two adjacent provinces, Jiangsu and Zhejiang, so Shanghainese was mostly a hybrid between Southern Jiangsu and Ningbo dialects. After 1949, Putonghua (Standard Mandarin) has also had a great impact on Shanghainese as a result of being rigorously promoted by the government. Since the 1990s, many migrants outside of the Wu-speaking region have come to Shanghai for education and jobs. They often cannot speak the local language and therefore use Putonghua as a
lingua franca A lingua franca (; ; for plurals see ), also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language, auxiliary language, vehicular language, or link language, is a language systematically used to make communication possible between groups ...
. Because Putonghua and English were more favored, Shanghainese began to decline, and fluency among young speakers weakened. In recent years, there have been movements within the city to promote the local language and protect it from fading out. Notable people: *
Xu Guangqi Xu Guangqi or Hsü Kuang-ch'i (April 24, 1562– November 8, 1633), also known by his baptismal name Paul, was a Chinese agronomist, astronomer, mathematician, politician, and writer during the Ming dynasty. Xu was a colleague and collaborato ...
(徐光启):(ad 1562-ad 1633) Christian, high-ranking official and scientist of the Ming dynasty. *
Desmond Shum Desmond Shum ()is the author of '' Red Roulette: An Insider’s Story of Wealth, Power, Corruption and Vengeance in Today’s China'' and is the former husband of arrested Chinese billionaire Duan Weihong. Shum was born in Shanghai, spent his ...
(沈桐):entrepreneur, author of the book: ''
Red Roulette ''Red Roulette: An Insider’s Story of Wealth, Power, Corruption, and Vengeance in Today’s China'' is a 2021 memoir by Desmond Shum (ghost-written by John Pomfret). James Palmer of ''Foreign Policy'' wrote that the work serves as "one of the ...
'' *
Tingyu Fang Tingyu Fang (born 1935 in Shanghai) is a Chinese professor of English. He graduated from the Beijing University of Foreign Studies in 1957. Career Fang has taught medical English in Beijing University for the study of Chinese medicine. Fang was ...
: Chinese professor of English.


Education and research

Shanghai is an international center of research and development and as of 2022, it was ranked 3rd globally and 2nd in the whole Asia & Oceania region (after
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
) by scientific research outputs, as tracked by the
Nature Index The Nature Index is a database that tracks institutions and countries and their scientific output since its introduction in November, 2014. Each year, Nature Index ranks the leading institutions (which can be companies, universities, government agen ...
. It is also a major center of
higher education in China Higher education in China is the largest in the world. By the end of 2021, there were over 3,000 colleges and universities, with over 44.3 million students enrolled in mainland China and 240 million Chinese citizens having received high educat ...
. As of 2022, Shanghai had 64 universities and colleges, ranking first in
East China East China () is a geographical and a loosely defined cultural region that covers the eastern coastal area of China. A concept abolished in 1978, for economical purposes the region was defined from 1949 to 1961 by the Chinese Central Governme ...
region as a city with most higher education institutions. Shanghai has many highly ranked educational institutions, with 15 universities listed in 147 Double First-Class Universities ranking second nationwide among all cities in China (after Beijing). A number of China's most prestigious universities appearing in the global university rankings are based in Shanghai, including Fudan University,
Shanghai Jiao Tong University Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU; ) is a Public university, public research university in Shanghai, Shanghai, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, Ministry of Education of China ...
, Tongji University, East China Normal University, Shanghai University, East China University of Science and Technology, Donghua University,
Shanghai University of Finance and Economics The Shanghai University of Finance and Economics (SUFE; ), founded in 1917, is a finance- and economics-oriented research university located in Shanghai, the People's Republic of China. The university is under the direct administration of the ...
, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai International Studies University,
University of Shanghai for Science and Technology University of Shanghai for Science and Technology (USST; ), founded in 1906, is a public university in Shanghai, China. With more than 110 years of history, USST has today become a comprehensive university, which now covers six main disci ...
,
Shanghai University of Electric Power Shanghai University of Electric Power (; SUEP) is a public university in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. The campus is at 2103 Pingliang Road, Yangpu District, Shanghai 200090. History Shanghai University of Electric Power was originate ...
, Shanghai Normal University,
Shanghai Maritime University Shanghai Maritime University (SMU; ) is a public university in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Shanghai Maritime University is multidisciplinary with six fields of study: Engineering, Management, Economics, Literature, Science and Law. It ...
,
Second Military Medical University The People's Liberation Army Naval Medical University (), also known as the PLA Second Military Medical University (SMMU) (), is a public university in Shanghai, China. It was founded in September 1949 and named in July 1951. It is a national ke ...
,
Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine This is a list of universities and colleges in Shanghai. Others * People's Liberation Army Naval Medical University (中国人民解放军海军军医大学) * China Executive Leadership Academy in Pudong (中国浦东干部学院) * Chi ...
,
Shanghai Ocean University Shanghai Ocean University () is a public university in Shanghai, China. The university changed its name to the current name on 6 May 2008, authorized by the Ministry of Education The People's Republic of China, and the whole school was to ...
,
Shanghai University of Engineering Science Shanghai University of Engineering Science (SUES; ) is a public university located in Shanghai, China. It was originally established in 1978 under the name of Shanghai Jiao Tong University Electrical & Mechanical Branch () and merged with a bra ...
, Shanghai Institute of Technology, Shanghai Conservatory of Music and
Shanghai University of Sport Shanghai University of Sport (上海体育学院; Shànghǎi tǐyù xuéyuàn) is a public university in Yangpu District, Shanghai, China. Founded in 1952, it is the first university of its kind in the People's Republic of China. It is a Chine ...
. Some of these universities were selected as " 985 universities" or " 211 universities" since the 90s by the Chinese government in order to build world-class universities. Shanghai is a seat of two members ( Fudan University and
Shanghai Jiao Tong University Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU; ) is a Public university, public research university in Shanghai, Shanghai, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, Ministry of Education of China ...
) of the
C9 League The C9 League () is an alliance of nine universities in China, initiated by the Chinese Central Government to promote the development and reputation of higher education in China in 2009. Collectively, universities in the C9 League account for 3% ...
, an alliance of elite Chinese universities offering comprehensive and leading education, and these two universities are ranked in the global top 100 research comprehensive universities according to the most influential university rankings in the world such as
QS Rankings ''QS World University Rankings'' is an annual publication of university rankings by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). The QS system comprises three parts: the global overall ranking, the subject rankings (which name the world's top universities for the ...
,
Shanghai Rankings The ''Academic Ranking of World Universities'' (''ARWU''), also known as the Shanghai Ranking, is one of the annual publications of world university rankings. The league table was originally compiled and issued by Shanghai Jiao Tong University ...
, and Times Higher Education Rankings. The other two members of the " Project 985", Tongji University and East China Normal University, are also based in Shanghai and internationally; they are regarded as one of the most reputable Chinese universities by the '' Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings'' where they ranked 150-175th globally. Fudan University established a joint EMBA program with Washington University in St. Louis in 2002 which has since consistently been ranked as one of the best in the world. The city has many , such as the Shanghai University
University of Technology Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Although its origins are said to trace back to the 1830s, the university was founded in its current form in 1988. As of 2021 ...
Business School since 1994, the
University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
–Shanghai Jiao Tong University Joint Institute since 2006, and New York University Shanghai—the first China–U.S. joint venture university—since 2012. In 2013, the Shanghai Municipality and the
Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); ), known by Academia Sinica in English until the 1980s, is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for natural sciences. It has historical origins in the Academia Sinica during the Republi ...
founded the ShanghaiTech University in the
Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park The Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park is a technology park in the Pudong district of Shanghai, China. It is operated by Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park Development Co., Ltd. The park specializes in research in life sciences, software, semiconductors, and inform ...
in Pudong. Shanghai is also home to the cadre school China Executive Leadership Academy in Pudong and the
China Europe International Business School China Europe International Business School (CEIBS; ) is a business school located in Shanghai, China. Established under an agreement between the Chinese government and the European Commission in Shanghai in November 1994, CEIBS was the first bu ...
. The city government's education agency is the
Shanghai Municipal Education Commission The Shanghai Municipal Education Commission () is the agency of the municipal government of Shanghai in charge of education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering sk ...
. The city is also a seat of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences,
China's 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 ...
oldest
think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-govern ...
for the
humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at t ...
and
social sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of so ...
. It is the largest one outside the capital of Beijing after the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS). By the end of 2019, the city also had 929 secondary schools, 698 primary schools, and 31 special schools. In Shanghai, the nine years of
compulsory education Compulsory education refers to a period of education that is required of all people and is imposed by the government. This education may take place at a registered school or at other places. Compulsory school attendance or compulsory schooling ...
—including five years of
primary education Primary education or elementary education is typically the first stage of formal education, coming after preschool/ kindergarten and before secondary school. Primary education takes place in '' primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or ...
and four years of junior secondary education—are free, with a
gross enrollment ratio Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) or Gross Enrolment Index (GEI) is a statistical measure used in the education sector, and formerly by the UN in its Education Index An Education index is a component of the Human Development Index published every ye ...
of over 99.9%. The city's compulsory education system is among the best in the world: in 2009 and 2012, 15-year-old students from Shanghai ranked first in every subject (math, reading, and science) in the Program for International Student Assessment, a worldwide study of academic performance conducted by the OECD. The consecutive three-year senior secondary education is priced and uses the Senior High School Entrance Examination (''Zhongkao'') as a selection process, with a gross enrollment ratio of 98%. Among all senior high schools, the four with the best teaching quality— Shanghai High School,
No. 2 High School Attached to East China Normal University No. 2 High School of East China Normal University is a high school located in Zhangjiang High-Tech Park, Pudong, Shanghai, China. Overview Founded in 1958, No. 2 High School of East China Normal University is the only 'key high school' in Shangh ...
,
High School Affiliated to Fudan University The High School Affiliated to Fudan University (Simplified Chinese: ''fùdàndàxuéfùshǔzhōngxué'', or 复旦大学附属中学, Acronym: FDFZ), a public boarding high school located in Yangpu, Shanghai, near Fudan University campus, is on ...
, and
High School Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University High School Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University (JDFZ; HSASJTU) () is a major boarding school in Shanghai. The school is located on the border of Yangpu, Hongkou and Baoshan Districts of Shanghai, People's Republic of China. Founded in ...
—are termed "The Four Schools" () of Shanghai. , the city's National College Entrance Examination (''Gaokao'') is structured under the "3+3" system, in which all general senior high school students study three compulsory subjects (Chinese, English, and math) and three subjects chosen from six options (physics, chemistry, biology, history, geography, and politics).


Transportation


Public

Shanghai has an extensive public transportation system comprising metros, buses, ferries, and taxis, all of which can be accessed using a
Shanghai Public Transport Card The Shanghai Public Transportation Card (SPTC) ( also known as ) is a contactless card, utilizing RFID technology, which can be used to access many forms of public transport and related services in and around Shanghai. Uses The SPTC is a form ...
. Shanghai's rapid transit system, the
Shanghai Metro The Shanghai Metro (; Shanghainese: ''Zaon6he5 Di6thiq7'') is a rapid transit system in Shanghai, operating urban and suburban transit services to 14 of its 16 municipal districts and to Kunshan, Jiangsu Province. Served as a part of Shang ...
, incorporates both subway and light metro lines and extends to every core urban district as well as neighboring suburban districts. , there are 19 metro lines (excluding the Shanghai maglev train and Jinshan Railway), 515
stations Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...
, and of lines in operation, making it the longest network in the world. On 8 March 2019, it set the city's daily metro ridership record with 13.3 million. The average fare ranges from () to (), depending on the travel distance. Opened in 2004, the Shanghai maglev train is the first and the fastest commercial high-speed
maglev Maglev (derived from '' magnetic levitation''), is a system of train transportation that uses two sets of electromagnets: one set to repel and push the train up off the track, and another set to move the elevated train ahead, taking advantage ...
in the world, with a maximum operation speed of . The train can complete the journey between Longyang Road Station and Pudong International Airport in 7 minutes 20 seconds, comparing to 32 minutes by Metro Line 2 and 30 minutes by car. A one-way ticket costs (), or () for those with airline tickets or public transportation cards. A round-trip ticket costs (), and VIP tickets cost double the standard fare. With the first tram line been in service in 1908, trams were once popular in Shanghai in the early 20th century. By 1925, there were 328 tramcars and 14 routes operated by Chinese, French, and British companies collaboratively, all of which were
nationalized Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to p ...
after the PRC's victory in 1949. Since the 1960s, many tram lines were either dismantled or replaced by
trolleybus A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or trol ...
or
motorbus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for char ...
lines; the last tram line was demolished in 1975. Shanghai reintroduced trams in 2010, as a modern rubber-tire
Translohr Translohr is a rubber-tired tramway (or guided bus) system, originally developed by Lohr Industrie of France and now run by a consortium of Alstom Transport and Fonds stratégique d'investissement (FSI) as '' newTL,'' which took over from L ...
system in Zhangjiang area of East Shanghai as Zhangjiang Tram. In 2018, the steel wheeled Songjiang Tram started operating in Songjiang District. Additional tram lines are under planning in Hongqiao Subdistrict and Jiading District . Shanghai also has the world's most extensive
bus network A bus network is a network topology in which nodes are directly connected to a common half-duplex link called a bus. A host on a bus network is called a ''station''. In a bus network, every station will receive all network traffic, and the ...
, including the world's oldest continuously operating trolleybus system, with 1,575 lines covering a total length of by 2019. The system is operated by multiple companies. Bus fares generally cost (). , a total of 40,000 taxis were in operation in Shanghai. The base fare for taxis is (), which covers the first and includes a () fuel surcharge. The base fare is () between 11:00 pm and 5:00 am. Each additional kilometer costs (), or () between 11:00 pm and 5:00 am.
Taxicab A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choi ...
s and DiDi play major roles in urban transportation and DiDi is often cheaper than taxis. As of January 2021, Shanghai Metro has 459 stations and 772 km. The scale of operation is the first in the world. in 2017, the average daily passenger traffic of the Shanghai metro was 9.693 million, and the total passenger traffic reached 3.538 billion. It is one of the busiest metro cities in the world. The metro lines cover the central city densely and connect most districts and counties.


Roads and expressways

Shanghai is a major hub of China's expressway network. Many national expressways (prefixed with the letter G) pass through or end in Shanghai, including
Jinghu Expressway Jinghu may refer to: * Jinghu (instrument) (京胡), Chinese bowed string instrument in the ''huqin'' family Places * Jinghu District (镜湖区), a district in Wuhu, Anhui, China * Jinghu Subdistrict (镜湖街道), a subdistrict in Ningjiang Di ...
(overlaps with Hurong Expressway),
Shenhai Expressway ''Blue Cha Cha'' (Chinese: ''Shēn hǎi'', 深海) is a 2005 Taiwanese film directed by Chen Wen-Tang. It was Taiwan's submission to the 79th Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but was not accepted as a nominee. ...
, Hushaan Expressway, Huyu Expressway, Hukun Expressway (overlaps with Hangzhou Bay Ring Expressway), and Shanghai Ring Expressway. There are also numerous municipal expressways prefixed with the letter S. As of 2019, Shanghai has a total of 12 bridges and 14 tunnels crossing the Huangpu River. The
Shanghai Yangtze River Bridge The Shanghai Yangtze River Tunnel and Bridge is a bridge–tunnel complex across the south fork of the Yangtze River near the river mouth in Shanghai. The tunnel connects the Pudong District of Shanghai on the south bank of the river with Chan ...
is the city's only bridge–tunnel complex across Yangtze River. The expressway network within the city center consists of North–South Elevated Road,
Yan'an Elevated Road Yan'an Elevated Road () is an elevated expressway in the city of Shanghai, China. It runs along Yan'an Road in its entirety, continuing from the east terminus of G50 Shanghai-Chongqing Expressway at Huqingping Interchange (close to Hongqiao Int ...
, and Inner Ring Road. Other ring roads in Shanghai include Middle Ring Road, Outer Ring Expressway, and Shanghai Ring Expressway. Bicycle lanes are common in Shanghai, separating non-motorized traffic from car traffic on most surface streets. However, on some main roads, including all expressways, bicycles and motorcycles are banned. In recent years, cycling has seen a resurgence in popularity due to the emergence of a large number of dockless app-based
bicycle-sharing system A bicycle-sharing system, bike share program, public bicycle scheme, or public bike share (PBS) scheme, is a shared transport service where bicycles are available for shared use by individuals at low cost. The programmes themselves include bo ...
s, such as Mobike,
Bluegogo Bluegogo () was a bicycle-sharing system based in Tianjin, China, founded and owned by Tianjin Luding Technology Co., Ltd (). It operated in six Chinese cities, and briefly operated in San Francisco, United States in 2017. The station-less bicy ...
, and
ofo Ofo (), stylised as ofo, was a Beijing-based Bicycle-sharing system, bicycle sharing company founded in 2014. It used a Bicycle-sharing system#Dockless bikes, dockless system with a smartphone app to unlock and locate nearby bicycles, charging ...
. , bicycle-sharing systems had an average of 1.15 million daily riders within the city. Private car ownership in Shanghai is rapidly increasing: in 2019, there were 3.40 million private cars in the city, a 12.5% increase from 2018. New private cars cannot be driven without a
license plate A vehicle registration plate, also known as a number plate (British English), license plate (American English), or licence plate (Canadian English), is a metal or plastic plate attached to a motor vehicle or trailer for official identificatio ...
, which are sold in monthly license plate auctions. Around 9,500 license plates are auctioned each month, and the average price is about () in 2019. According to the city's vehicle regulations introduced in June 2016, only locally registered residents and those who have paid social insurance or individual income taxes for over three years are eligible to be in the auction. The purpose of this policy is to limit the growth of automobile traffic and alleviate congestion.


Railways

Shanghai has four major railway stations: Shanghai railway station, Shanghai South railway station,
Shanghai West railway station Shanghaixi (Shanghai West) railway station () is a railway station in the Putuo District of Shanghai which in the past, lost its importance as a result of Shanghai railway station further to the east. It has, however, been recently redeveloped. ...
, and Shanghai Hongqiao railway station. All are connected to the metro network and serve as hubs in the railway network of China. And now Shanghai has around twenty railway lines running under this city, which largely facilitate people's life in Shanghai. Built in 1876, the Woosung railway was the first railway in Shanghai and the first railway in operation in China By 1909,
Shanghai–Nanjing railway The Shanghai–Nanjing or Huning RailwayChinese: t , s , p ''Hù–Níng Tiělù''. is a railway in China running from Shanghai to Nanjing. The railway is about long. The Huning line is one of the busiest in China. The Shanghai–Nanjing int ...
and
Shanghai–Hangzhou railway The Shanghai–Hangzhou railway, also known as the Huhang railway (), is a double-track railroad in eastern China between Shanghai and Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province. Its name in Chinese, the Huhang Line, is named after the railway's two terminal ...
were in service. , the two railways have been integrated into two main railways in China: Beijing–Shanghai 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 ...
, respectively. Shanghai has four high-speed railways (HSRs): Beijing–Shanghai HSR (overlaps with
Shanghai–Wuhan–Chengdu passenger railway Shanghai–Wuhan–Chengdu passenger-dedicated railway (), is a fully completed higher-speed railway corridor in China. It is operated by CR Shanghai Group, CR Wuhan Group and CR Chengdu Group. The Chinese name of the railway line, Huhanrong ...
), Shanghai–Nanjing intercity railway, Shanghai–Kunming HSR, and Shanghai–Nantong railway. One HSR is under construction: Shanghai–Suzhou–Huzhou HSR. Shanghai also has four commuter railways: Pudong railway (passenger service is currently suspended) and Jinshan railway operated by
China Railway China State Railway Group Company, Ltd., doing business as China Railway (CR), is the national passenger and freight railroad corporation of the People's Republic of China. China Railway operates passenger and freight transport throughout C ...
, and Line 16 and Line 17 operated by Shanghai Metro. , four additional lines—
Chongming line The Chongming line () is a rapid transit line on the Shanghai Metro that is part of the 2018–2023 Shanghai Metro plan. The Chongming line was previously treated as the last phase of Line 9, and was Line 19 until 2016, when it was renamed the ...
, Jiamin line, Airport link line and
Lianggang Express line Lianggang Express Line () is a commuter rail line currently under planning on the Shanghai Suburban Railway, and will be run by China Railway. The Lianggang Express Line is an express suburban railway between the Lingang New Area and Pudong Hub ...
—are under construction.


Air and sea

Shanghai is one of the largest air transportation hubs in Asia. The city has two commercial airports:
Shanghai Pudong International Airport Shanghai Pudong International Airport is one of two international airports serving Shanghai and a major aviation hub of East Asia. Pudong Airport serves both international flights and a smaller number of domestic fights, while the city's oth ...
and
Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport is one of the two international airports of Shanghai and a significant airline hub of China. Hongqiao Airport mainly serves domestic and regional flights, although the airport also serves international fl ...
. Pudong International Airport is the primary international airport, while Hongqiao International Airport mainly operates domestic flights with limited short-haul international flights. In 2018, Pudong International Airport served 74.0 million passengers and handled 3.8 million tons of cargo, making it the ninth-busiest airport by passenger volume and third-busiest airport by cargo volume. The same year, Hongqiao International Airport served 43.6 million passengers, making it the 19th-busiest airport by passenger volume. Since its opening, the Port of Shanghai has rapidly grown to become the largest port in China. Yangshan Port was built in 2005 because the river was unsuitable for docking large
container ships A container ship (also called boxship or spelled containership) is a cargo ship that carries all of its load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. Container ships are a common means of commercial intermoda ...
. The port is connected with the mainland through the long Donghai Bridge. Although the port is run by the Shanghai International Port Group under the government of Shanghai, it administratively belongs to Shengsi County, Zhejiang. Overtaking the
Port of Singapore The Port of Singapore refers to the collective facilities and terminals that conduct maritime trade and handles Singapore's harbours and shipping. It has been ranked as the top maritime capital of the world since 2015. Currently the world's se ...
in 2010, the Port of Shanghai has become
world's busiest container port This article lists the world's busiest container ports (ports with container terminals that specialize in handling goods transported in intermodal shipping containers), by total number of twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) transported through t ...
with an annual TEU transportation of 42 million in 2018.One Hundred Ports 2019
Lloyd's List,2019
Besides cargo, the Port of Shanghai handled 259 cruises and 1.89 million passengers in 2019. Shanghai is part of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road that runs from the Chinese coast to the south via the southern tip of
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
to
Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town ...
, from there to the Mediterranean, there to the Upper Adriatic region to the northern Italian hub of
Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...
with its rail connections to
Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...
and the
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...
.


Culture

The culture of Shanghai was formed by a combination of the nearby Wuyue culture and the "East Meets West" Haipai culture. Wuyue culture's influence is manifested in Shanghainese language—which comprises dialectal elements from nearby Jiaxing, Suzhou, and Ningbo—and Shanghai cuisine, which was influenced by
Jiangsu cuisine Jiangsu cuisine (), also known as Su cuisine, is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of Chinese cuisine. It is derived from the native cooking styles of Jiangsu Province. In general, Jiangsu cuisine's texture is characterised as soft, but not ...
and
Zhejiang cuisine Zhejiang cuisine, alternatively known as Zhe cuisine, is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of Chinese cuisine. Zhejiang cuisine contains four different styles, Hangzhou, Shaoxing, Ningbo, and Wenzhou (also known as Ou cuisine). It derives fr ...
. Haipai culture emerged after Shanghai became a prosperous port in the early 20th century, with numerous foreigners from Europe, America, Japan, and India moving into the city. The culture fuses elements of
Western cultures Leonardo da Vinci's ''Vitruvian Man''. Based on the correlations of ideal Body proportions">human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius in Book III of his treatise ''De architectura''. image:Plato Pio-Cle ...
with the local Wuyue culture, and its influence extends to the city's literature, fashion, architecture, music, and cuisine. The term Haipai—originally referring to a painting school in Shanghai—was coined by a group of Beijing writers in 1920 to criticize some Shanghai scholars for admiring
capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, private ...
and Western culture. In the early 21st century, Shanghai has been recognized as a new influence and inspiration for
cyberpunk Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting that tends to focus on a "combination of lowlife and high tech", featuring futuristic technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and ...
culture. Futuristic structures, such as the Oriental Pearl Tower and the
neon Neon is a chemical element with the symbol Ne and atomic number 10. It is a noble gas. Neon is a colorless, odorless, inert monatomic gas under standard conditions, with about two-thirds the density of air. It was discovered (along with krypt ...
-illuminated Yan'an Elevated Road, are examples that have boosted Shanghai's cyberpunk image.


Museums

Cultural curation in Shanghai has seen significant growth since 2013, with several new museums having been opened in the city. This is in part due to the city's 2018 development plans, which aim to make Shanghai "an excellent global city". As such, Shanghai has several museums of regional and national importance. The Shanghai Museum has one of the largest collections of Chinese artifacts in the world, including a large collection of
ancient Chinese bronze Sets and individual examples of ritual bronzes survive from when they were made mainly during the Chinese Bronze Age. Ritual bronzes create quite an impression both due to their sophistication of design and manufacturing process, but also beca ...
s and
ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...
. The China Art Museum, located in the former China Pavilion of Expo 2010, is one of the largest museums in Asia and displays an animated replica of the 12th century painting Along the River During the Qingming Festival. The
Shanghai Natural History Museum The Shanghai Natural History Museum (; Shanghainese: Zånhae Zyzoe Pohvehguoe) is a museum dedicated to natural history in the city of Shanghai. It is one of the largest museums of natural sciences in China. Formerly housed in the Shanghai Cot ...
and the
Shanghai Science and Technology Museum Shanghai Science and Technology Museum is a large museum in Pudong, Shanghai, close to Century Park, the largest park within the inner districts of the city.
are notable natural history and science museums. In addition, there are numerous smaller, specialist museums housed in important archeological and historical sites, such as the Songze Museum, the Museum of the First National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, the site of the former
Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea The Korean Provisional Government (KPG), formally the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea, was a partially recognized Korean government-in-exile based in Shanghai, China, and later in Chongqing, during the period of Japanese co ...
, the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum, and the Shanghai Post Office Museum (located in the General Post Office Building).


Cuisine

Benbang cuisine () is cooking style that originated in the 1600s, with influences from surrounding provinces. It emphasizes the use of condiments while retaining the original flavors of the raw ingredients. Sugar is an important ingredient in Benbang cuisine, especially when used in combination with soy sauce. Signature dishes of Benbang cuisine include Xiaolongbao,
Red braised pork belly Red braised pork belly or hong shao rou () is a classic pork dish from mainland China, red-cooked using pork belly and a combination of ginger, garlic, aromatic spices, chilies, sugar, star anise, light and dark soy sauce, and rice wine. The ...
, and Shanghai hairy crab.
Haipai cuisine Haipai cuisine () is a Western-style cooking that is unique to Shanghai, China. It absorbs the traditions of several cuisines from other regions of China and of Western cooking, adapting them to suit the local taste according to the features of l ...
, on the other hand, is a Western-influenced cooking style that originated in Shanghai. It absorbed elements from French, British, Russian, German, and Italian cuisines and adapted them to suit the local taste according to the features of local ingredients. Famous dishes of Haipai cuisine include Shanghai-style
borscht Borscht () is a sour soup common in Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. In English, the word "borscht" is most often associated with the soup's variant of Ukrainian origin, made with red beetroots as one of the main ingredients, which g ...
(, "Russian soup"), crispy pork cutlets, and
Shanghai salad Shanghai-style salad () is a traditional appetizer in Haipai cuisine. Generally considered a localized dish derived from the Olivier salad, it originated from Western cuisine but was modified according to the customary taste of Shanghai people. ...
derived from
Olivier salad Olivier salad ( rus, link=no, салат Оливье, salat Olivye) is a traditional salad dish in Russian cuisine, which is also popular in other post-Soviet countries and around the world. In different modern recipes, it is usually made with ...
. Both Benbang and Haipai cuisine make use of a variety of seafood, including
freshwater fish Freshwater fish are those that spend some or all of their lives in fresh water, such as rivers and lakes, with a salinity of less than 1.05%. These environments differ from marine conditions in many ways, especially the difference in levels o ...
,
shrimps Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are referre ...
, and crabs.


Arts

The Songjiang School (), containing the Huating School () founded by
Gu Zhengyi Gu Zhengyi () was a famed Chinese painter active during the Ming Dynasty. His birth and death years are unknown. His style name was 'Zhongfan' (仲方) and his pseudonym was Tinglin (亭林). He was a native Huating (now Songjiang, Shanghai). His st ...
, was a small painting school in Shanghai during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It was represented by
Dong Qichang Dong Qichang (; courtesy name Xuanzai (玄宰); 1555–1636), was a Chinese painter, calligrapher, politician, and art theorist of the later period of the Ming dynasty. Life as a scholar and calligrapher Dong Qichang was a native of Hua Ting ( ...
. The school was considered an expansion of the Wu School in Suzhou, the cultural center of the Jiangnan region at the time. In the mid 19th century, the
Shanghai School ''Haipai'' (, Shanghainese: ''hepha'', ; literally " hangai style") refers to the avant-garde but unique "East Meets West" culture from Shanghai in the 20th and 21st centuries. It is a part of the culture of Shanghai. Etymology The term was co ...
movement commenced, focusing less on the symbolism emphasized by the Literati style but more on the visual content of painting through the use of bright colors. Secular objects like flowers and birds were often selected as themes. Western art was introduced to Shanghai in 1847 by Spanish missionary Joannes Ferrer (), and the city's first Western atelier was established in 1864 inside the . During the Republic of China, many famous artists including Zhang Daqian,
Liu Haisu Liu Haisu (; 16 March 1896 – 7 August 1994) was a prominent twentieth-century Chinese painter and a noted art educator. He excelled in Chinese painting and oil painting. He was one of the four pioneers of Chinese modern art who earned the titl ...
,
Xu Beihong Xu or XU may refer to: People and characters * Xu (surname), one of two Chinese surnames ( or /), transliterated as Xu in English * ǃXu, a name for the ǃKung group of Bushmen; may also refer to the ǃKung language or the ǃKung people * ǃXu ...
, Feng Zikai, and Yan Wenliang settled in Shanghai, allowing it to gradually become the art center of China. Various art forms—including
photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is emplo ...
,
wood carving Wood carving is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculptural ornamentati ...
,
sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable ...
,
comics a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...
(
Manhua () are Chinese-language comics produced in China and Taiwan. Whilst Chinese comics and narrated illustrations have existed in China in some shape or form throughout its imperial history, the term first appeared in 1904 in a comic titled ''Cu ...
), and
Lianhuanhua ''Lianhuanhua'' () is a type of palm-size picture books of sequential drawings popular in China in the 20th century. It influenced modern manhua.Wong, Wendy Siuyi. 002(2001) Hong Kong Comics: A History of Manhua. Princeton Architectural Press. Ne ...
—thrived. Sanmao was created to dramatize the chaos created by the Second Sino-Japanese War. Today, the most comprehensive art and cultural facility in Shanghai is the China Art Museum. In addition, the Chinese Painting Academy features traditional
Chinese painting Chinese painting () is one of the oldest continuous artistic traditions in the world. Painting in the traditional style is known today in Chinese as ''guó huà'' (), meaning "national painting" or "native painting", as opposed to Western style ...
, while the Power Station of Art displays
contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic ...
. The city also has many art galleries, many of which are located in the
M50 Art District 50 Moganshan Road () or "M50" is a contemporary art district in Shanghai, China, that houses a community of more than a hundred artists whose studios are open to the public. It is often compared with New York's SoHo and Beijing's 798 Art Zone.
and Tianzifang. First held in 1996, the
Shanghai Biennale The Shanghai Biennale is one of the highest-profile contemporary art events in Shanghai and the most established art biennale in China. It was initially held in the Shanghai Art Museum. From 2012 on, it has been hosted in Power Station of Art, th ...
has become an important place for Chinese and foreign arts to interact. Traditional
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 ...
(Xiqu) became a popular source of public entertainment in the late 19th century. In the early 20th century,
monologue In theatre, a monologue (from el, μονόλογος, from μόνος ''mónos'', "alone, solitary" and λόγος ''lógos'', "speech") is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts aloud, though sometimes a ...
and
burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.
in Shanghainese appeared, absorbing elements from traditional dramas. The
Great World The Great World () is an amusement arcade and entertainment complex located in Shanghai, China. Built in 1917 on the corner of Avenue Edward VII (now Yan'an Road) and Yu Ya Ching Road (now Middle Xizang Road), it was the first and for a long time ...
opened in 1912 and was a significant stage at the time. In the 1920s, Pingtan expanded from Suzhou to Shanghai. Pingtan art developed rapidly to 103 programs every day by the 1930s because of the abundant commercial radio stations in the city. Around the same time, a Shanghai-style Beijing Opera was formed. Led by
Zhou Xinfang Zhou Xinfang (14 January 1895 – 8 March 1975), also known by his stage name (meaning "Qilin Boy") was a Chinese actor and musician who was a Peking opera actor who specialized in its "old male" (, ''laosheng'') roles. He is considered one of ...
and , it attracted many Xiqu masters, like
Mei Lanfang Mei Lan (22 October 1894 – 8 August 1961), better known by his stage name Mei Lanfang, was a notable Peking opera artist in modern Chinese theater. Mei was known as "Queen of Peking Opera". Mei was exclusively known for his female lead ...
, to the city. A small troupe from Shengxian (now Shengzhou) also began to promote Yue opera on the Shanghainese stage. A unique style of opera, Shanghai opera, was formed when local folksongs were fused with modern operas. As of 2012, prominent troupes in Shanghai include Shanghai Jingju Theatre Company, ,
Shanghai Yue Opera House The Shanghai Yue Opera Group is a theatre in Shanghai, China, founded in 1950 and dedicated to Yue opera Yue opera, also known as Shaoxing opera, is the Chinese opera genre. Only Peking opera is more popular nationwide. Originating in Shen ...
, and Shanghai Huju Opera House.
Drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...
appeared in missionary schools in Shanghai in the late 19th century. At the time, it was mainly performed in English. ''Scandals in Officialdom'' (), staged in 1899, was one of the earliest-recorded plays. In 1907, '' Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly'' () was performed at the . After the
New Culture Movement The New Culture Movement () was a movement in China in the 1910s and 1920s that criticized classical Chinese ideas and promoted a new Chinese culture based upon progressive, modern and western ideals like democracy and science. Arising out of ...
, drama became a popular way for students and intellectuals to express their views. The city has several major institutes of theater training, including the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre, the
Shanghai Opera House Shanghai Opera House (; Shanghainese: ''Zånhae Kujihyoe'') is the official government-funded western-style opera company of Shanghai, China, and the resident opera company at the new Shanghai Grand Theatre (上海大剧院 ''Shanghai Da Juyu ...
, and the Shanghai Theatre Academy. Notable theaters in Shanghai include the Shanghai Grand Theatre, the
Oriental Art Center The Shanghai Oriental Art Center (), abbreviated SHOAC, is one of the leading performance and cultural facilities in Shanghai. The five interconnected hemispherical halls or "petals" are shaped to resemble a butterfly orchid from above.SHOAC"Prel ...
, and the People's Theatre. Shanghai is considered to be the birthplace of
Chinese cinema The cinema of China is one of three distinct historical threads of Chinese languages, Chinese-language cinema together with the cinema of Hong Kong and the cinema of Taiwan. Cinema was introduced in China in 1896 in China, 1896 and the first C ...
. China's first short film, ''
The Difficult Couple ''The Difficult Couple'' (), also translated as ''Die for Marriage'', is a 1913 Chinese film. It is known for being the earliest Chinese feature film. Although it had a dialogue of only a little more than 1,000 characters, it was the first Chines ...
'' (1913), and the country's first fictional feature film, ''An Orphan Rescues His Grandfather'' (, 1923) were both produced in Shanghai. Shanghai's film industry grew during the early 1930s, generating stars such as Hu Die, Ruan Lingyu,
Zhou Xuan Zhou Xuan (; born Su Pu (); August 1, 1920 – September 22, 1957), also romanized as Chow Hsuan, was an iconic Chinese singer and film actress. By the 1940s, she had become one of China's Seven Great Singing Stars. She was the best known o ...
,
Jin Yan Jin Yan (; April 7, 1910 – December 27, 1983), also known by his English name Raymond King, was a Korean-born Chinese actor who gained fame during China's golden age of cinema, based in Shanghai. His acting talents and good looks gained hi ...
, and
Zhao Dan Zhao Dan (June 27, 1915 – October 10, 1980) was a Chinese actor popular in the golden age of Chinese Cinema. Biography Zhao first became famous working in the Mingxing Film Company in the 1930s including playing opposite Zhou Xuan in '' St ...
. Another film star, Jiang Qing, went on to become Madame
Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also Romanization of Chinese, romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the List of national founde ...
. The exile of Shanghainese filmmakers and actors as a result of the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Communist revolution contributed enormously to the development of the Hong Kong film industry. The movie ''
In the Mood for Love ''In the Mood for Love'' is a 2000 romantic drama film written, produced and directed by Wong Kar-wai. A co-production between Hong Kong and France, it portrays a man ( Tony Leung) and a woman ( Maggie Cheung) whose spouses have an affair to ...
'' directed by
Wong Kar-wai Wong Kar-wai (born 17 July 1958) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter, and producer. His films are characterised by nonlinear narratives, atmospheric music, and vivid cinematography involving bold, saturated colours. A pivotal figure ...
, a Shanghai native, depicts a slice of the displaced Shanghainese community in Hong Kong and the nostalgia for that era, featuring 1940s music by Zhou Xuan. Shanghai's cultural festivals include Shanghai International Television Festival, Shanghai International Film Festival, Shanghai International Art Festival, Shanghai International Tourism Festival, Shanghai Spring International Music Festival, etc. Shanghai TV Festival is the earliest international TV festival founded in China. It was founded in 1986. The Shanghai International Film Festival was founded in 1993 and is one of the nine major international film festivals in the A category. The highest award is the "Golden Goblet Award"


Fashion

Since 2001, Shanghai has held its own
fashion week A fashion week is a fashion industry event, lasting approximately one week, where fashion designers, brands or "houses" display their latest collections in runway fashion shows to buyers and the media. These events influence the upcoming fashi ...
called
Shanghai Fashion Week Shanghai Fashion Week is a fashion event held two times every year in Shanghai, each time lasting for seven days which is a part of Shanghai International Fashion Culture Festival which usually lasts for a month. The event first began in 2001. Sup ...
twice every year in April and October. The main venue is in
Fuxing Park Fuxing Park () is located in the former French Concession of Shanghai, China, in Luwan District near Nanchang Road; the main entrance is at the cross street of Fuxingzhong Road and Chongqingnan Road. It was once the largest park in Shanghai. The ...
, and the opening and closing ceremonies are held in the Shanghai Fashion Center. The April session is also part of the one-month
Shanghai International Fashion Culture Festival 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 flowin ...
. Shanghai Fashion Week is considered to be an event of national significance featuring both international and Chinese designers. The international presence has included many promising young British fashion designers. The event is hosted by the Shanghai Municipal Government and supported by the People's Republic Ministry of Commerce.


Sports

Shanghai is home to several
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
teams, including two in the
Chinese Super League The Chinese Football Association Super League, commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the China Ping An Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional football in ...
:
Shanghai Shenhua Shanghai Shenhua F.C. () is a Chinese professional football club that participates in the Chinese Super League under license from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The term ''shen hua'' literally translates as "the Flower of Shanghai" in ...
and
Shanghai Port The Port of Shanghai (), located in the vicinity of Shanghai, comprises a deep-sea port and a river port. The main port enterprise in Shanghai, the Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG), was established during the reconstitution of the S ...
. China's top-tier
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
team, the
Shanghai Sharks The Shanghai Sharks () are a Chinese Basketball Association team based in Shanghai. It is best known outside China as the club that developed Yao Ming before he entered the National Basketball Association. With Yao on the team, the Sharks made t ...
of the Chinese Basketball Association, developed
Yao Ming Yao Ming (; born September 12, 1980) is a Chinese basketball executive and former professional player. He played for the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) and the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Associa ...
before he entered the NBA. Shanghai's baseball team, the Shanghai Golden Eagles, plays in the China Baseball League. The
Shanghai Cricket Club The Shanghai Cricket Club is a cricket club based in Shanghai, China. The club dates back to 1858 when the first recorded cricket match was played between a team of British naval officers and a Shanghai XI. The original Shanghai Cricket Club cease ...
dates back to 1858 when the first recorded cricket match was played between a team of British Naval officers and a Shanghai 11. Following a 45-year dormancy after the founding of the PRC in 1949, the club was re-established in 1994 by expatriates living in the city and has since grown to over 300 members. The
Shanghai cricket team The Shanghai cricket team was a cricket team that played various international matches between 1866 and 1948. The team was organised by the Shanghai Cricket Club. With cricket in the rest of China almost non-existent, for that period they were the ...
played various international matches between 1866 and 1948. With cricket in the rest of China almost non-existent, for that period they were the de facto
China national cricket team The China national cricket team is the team that represents China in international cricket. The team was organised by the Chinese Cricket Association, which became an affiliate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2004 and an a ...
. Shanghai is home to many prominent Chinese professional athletes, such as basketball player Yao Ming,
110-meter hurdler The 110 metres hurdles, or 110-metre hurdles, is a hurdling track and field event for men. It is included in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympic Games. The female counterpart is the 100 metres hurdles. As part of a racing event, ten hur ...
Liu Xiang,
table tennis Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...
player
Wang Liqin Wang Liqin (; born June 18, 1978, Shanghai) is a retired Mainland Chinese table tennis player. As of January 2014, he is ranked 12th in the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF). He began playing at the age of 6 and was picked for the Ch ...
, and
badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...
player
Wang Yihan Wang Yihan (born 18 January 1988) is a retired Chinese professional badminton player and former women's singles world champion and Olympic silver medalist. Wang started her career with her coach Wang Pengren at only nine years of age. She was ...
. Shanghai is the host of several international sports events. Since 2004, it has hosted the Chinese Grand Prix, a round of the Formula One World Championship. The race is staged annually at the Shanghai International Circuit. It hosted the 1000th Formula One race on 14 April 2019. In 2010, Shanghai became the host city of
Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters The Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM, German Touring Car Masters) is a grand touring car series sanctioned by ITR e.V. who have been affiliated to the DMSB- FIA since 1984. The series is based in Germany, with rounds elsewhere in Europe. The s ...
, which raced in a street circuit in Pudong. In 2012, Shanghai began hosting
4 Hours of Shanghai The 4 Hours of Shanghai (previously 6 Hours of Shanghai) is a sports car race that is held at the Shanghai International Circuit in Jiading District of Shanghai in the People's Republic of China. It was created for the FIA FIA is the Fédération ...
as one round from the inaugural season of the
FIA World Endurance Championship The FIA World Endurance Championship is an auto racing world championship organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The series supersedes the ACO's former Intercont ...
. The city also hosts the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament, which is part of
ATP World Tour Masters 1000 The ATP Masters 1000 tournaments (previously known as ATP Masters Series) is an annual series of nine tennis tournaments featuring the top-ranked players on the ATP Tour. The series' events have been held in Europe and North America since the ...
, as well as golf tournaments including the
BMW Masters The BMW Masters was a golf tournament played annually at Lake Malaren Golf Club, in Luodian, Shanghai, China. The tournament began in 2011 and became a European Tour event in 2012. It was dropped from the European Tour in 2016. In 2011, the tourna ...
and WGC-HSBC Champions. On 21 September 2017, Shanghai hosted a
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...
(NHL)
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
exhibition game in an effort to increase fan interest for the
2017–18 NHL season The 2017–18 NHL season was the 101st season of operation (100th season of play) of the National Hockey League. With the addition of a new expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights, 31 teams competed in an 82-game regular season. The regular sea ...
.


Environment


Parks and resorts

Shanghai has an extensive public park system; by 2018, the city had 300 parks, of which 281 had free admission, and the per capita park area was . Some of the parks also have become popular tourist attractions due to their unique location, history, or architecture. The
People's Square People's Square is a large public square in the Huangpu District of Shanghai. It is south of Nanjing Road (West) and north of Huaihai Road (East). People's Square is the site of Shanghai's municipal government headquarters building and th ...
park, located in the heart of downtown Shanghai, is especially well known for its proximity to other major landmarks in the city. Fuxing Park, located in the former French Concession, features formal French-style gardens and is surrounded by high-end bars and cafes. Zhongshan Park in western central Shanghai is famous for its monument of Chopin, the tallest statue dedicated to the composer in the world. Built in 1914 as Jessfield Park, it once contained the campus of St. John's University, Shanghai's first international college; today, the park features
sakura A cherry blossom, also known as Japanese cherry or sakura, is a flower of many trees of genus ''Prunus'' or ''Prunus'' subg. ''Cerasus''. They are common species in East Asia, including China, Korea and especially in Japan. They generally ...
and
peony The peony or paeony is a flowering plant in the genus ''Paeonia'' , the only genus in the family Paeoniaceae . Peonies are native to Asia, Europe and Western North America. Scientists differ on the number of species that can be distinguished, ...
gardens and a 150-year-old
platanus ''Platanus'' is a genus consisting of a small number of tree species native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae. All mature members of ''Platanus'' are tall, reaching in height. All excep ...
, and it also serves as an interchange hub in the metro system. One of Shanghai's newer parks is the
Xujiahui Park Xujiahui Park is a park in Xuhui District, 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 estuar ...
, which was built in 1999, on the former grounds of the Great Chinese Rubber Works Factory and the EMI Recording Studio (now La Villa Rouge restaurant). The park has an artificial lake with a sky bridge running across the park. Shanghai Botanical Garden is located southwest of the city center and was established in 1978. In 2011, the largest botanical garden in Shanghai—
Shanghai Chen Shan Botanical Garden 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 flowin ...
—opened in Songjiang District. Other notable parks in Shanghai include
Lu Xun Park Lu Xun Park, formerly Hongkou (Hongkew) Park, is a municipal park in Hongkou District of Shanghai, China. It is located on 146 East Jiangwan Road, right behind Hongkou Football Stadium. It is bounded by Guangzhong Road to the north, Ouyang Road ...
, Century Park, ,
Gongqing Forest Park Gongqing Forest Park () is the second-largest park in the city of Shanghai. It is located in the Yangpu District in the north section of the city. To reach the park you can take line 8 on the metro to Shiguang Road. From the metro station the park ...
, and
Jing'an Park Jing'an Park () is a park located at the Western section of Nanjing Road, just opposite the Jing'an Temple in Shanghai, China. It occupies the site of the former Bubbling Well Road Cemetery. Location The park is located at the crossing of Nanj ...
. The Shanghai Disney Resort Project was approved by the government on 4 November 2009 and opened in 2016. The $4.4 billion theme park and resort in Pudong features a castle that is the biggest among Disney's resorts. More than 11 million people visited the resort in its first year of operation.


Air pollution

Air pollution Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are many different type ...
in Shanghai is not as severe as in many other Chinese cities, but is still considered substantial by world standards. During the December
2013 Eastern China smog The 2013 Eastern China smog was a severe air pollution episode that affected East China, including all or parts of the municipalities of Shanghai and Tianjin, and the provinces of Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu, Anhui, Henan, and Zhejiang, during Dec ...
, air pollution rates reached between 23 and 31 times the international standard. On 6 December 2013, levels of PM2.5
particulate matter Particulates – also known as atmospheric aerosol particles, atmospheric particulate matter, particulate matter (PM) or suspended particulate matter (SPM) – are microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air. The te ...
in Shanghai rose above 600 micrograms per cubic meter and in the surrounding area, above 700 micrograms per cubic meter. Levels of PM2.5 in Putuo District reached 726 micrograms per cubic meter. As a result, the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission received orders to suspend students' outdoor activities. Authorities pulled nearly one-third of government vehicles from the roads, while much construction work was halted. Most inbound flights were canceled, and more than 50 flights at Pudong International Airport were diverted. On 23 January 2014, Yang Xiong, the
mayor of Shanghai This is a list of mayors of Shanghai, China. In the People's Republic of China, the mayor is subordinate to the Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai. Republic of China Mayor of the Shanghai Special Municipal Government # Huang Fu (July 7, 1 ...
, announced that three main measures would be taken to manage the air pollution in Shanghai, along with surrounding Anhui, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang provinces. The measures involved implementing the 2013 air-cleaning program, establishing a linkage mechanism with the three surrounding provinces, and improving the city's early-warning systems. On 12 February 2014, China's cabinet announced that a () fund will be set up to help companies meet the new environmental standards. The effect of the policy was significant. From 2013 to 2018, more than 3,000 treatment facilities for industrial waste gases were installed, and the city's annual
smoke Smoke is a suspension of airborne particulates and gases emitted when a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis, together with the quantity of air that is entrained or otherwise mixed into the mass. It is commonly an unwanted by-produc ...
,
nitrogen oxide Nitrogen oxide may refer to a binary compound of oxygen and nitrogen, or a mixture of such compounds: Charge-neutral *Nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen(II) oxide, or nitrogen monoxide * Nitrogen dioxide (), nitrogen(IV) oxide * Nitrogen trioxide (), or ...
, and
sulfur dioxide Sulfur dioxide (IUPAC-recommended spelling) or sulphur dioxide (traditional Commonwealth English) is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a toxic gas responsible for the odor of burnt matches. It is released naturally by volcanic a ...
emission decreased by 65%, 54%, and 95%, respectively.


Environmental protection

Public awareness of the environment is growing, and the city is investing in a number of environmental protection projects. A 16-year rehabilitation of Suzhou Creek, which runs through the city, was finished in 2012, clearing the creek of barges and factories and removing 1.3 million cubic meters of sludge. Additionally, the government has moved almost all the factories within the city center to either the outskirts or other provinces, and provided incentives for transportation companies to invest in LPG buses and taxis. On 1 July 2019, Shanghai adopted a new garbage-classification system that sorts out waste into residual waste, kitchen waste, recyclable waste, and hazardous waste. The wastes are collected by separate vehicles and sent to incineration plants, landfills,
recycling Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. The Energy recycling, recovery of energy from waste materials is often included in this concept. The recyclability of a material depends on its ability t ...
centers, and hazardous-waste-disposal facilities, respectively.


Media

covers newspapers, publisher, broadcast, television, and Internet, with some media having influence over the country. In regard to foreign publications in Shanghai, Hartmut Walravens of the IFLA Newspapers Section said that when the Japanese controlled Shanghai in the 1940s "it was very difficult to publish good papers – one either had to concentrate on emigration problems, or cooperate like the ''
Chronicle A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and ...
''". , newspapers publishing in Shanghai include: * '' Jiefang Daily'' * ''
Oriental Sports Daily ''Oriental Sports Daily'' (Chinese: 东方体育日报; Pinyin: Dōngfāng Tǐyù Rìbào), formerly called ''Xinmin Sports'', was the first Chinese sports newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information abo ...
'' * ''
Shanghai Review of Books ''Shanghai Review of Books'' () is a Chinese weekly paper-magazine supplement to Shanghai's ''Oriental Morning Daily'' (东方早报) with articles on literature, culture, history, art and current affairs, including book reviews, interviews and e ...
'' * '' Shanghai Daily'' * ''
Shanghai Star ''Shanghai Star'' (上海英文星报) was a weekly English-language newspaper published in Shanghai, China, between 1992 and 2006. It was owned and run by its parent, the Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ) ...
'' * '' Xinmin Evening News'' * '' Wen Hui Bao'' * ''
Wenhui Book Review ''Wenhui Book Review'' () is a state-owned weekly newspaper based in Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is loca ...
'' Newspapers formerly published in Shanghai include: * '' Der Ostasiatische Lloyd'' * ''
Deutsche Shanghai Zeitung The ''Deutsche Shanghai Zeitung'' (DSZ), later ''Der Ostasiatische Lloyd'', was a German language newspaper published in Shanghai, China. That publication was associated with the Nazi Party. History The newspaper was established on 27 September 1 ...
'' * '' Gelbe Post'' * ''
North China Daily News The ''North China Daily News'' (in Chinese: ''Zilin Xibao''), was an English-language newspaper in Shanghai, China, called the most influential foreign newspaper of its time. History The paper was founded as the weekly ''North-China Herald'' ( ...
'' * '' Shanghai Evening Post & Mercury'' * ''
The Shanghai Gazette ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
'' * '' Shanghai Jewish Chronicle'' * ''
Shanghai Herald ''The Shanghai Herald'' was an English-language newspaper published in Shanghai, China. The editor of the ''Shanghai Herald and China Critic'', Kwei Chung-shu, had graduated from the University of Wisconsin. Günther Lenhardt, a journalist from ...
'' * '' The Shanghai Mercury'' * ''The Shanghai Post (German-language newspaper), The Shanghai Post'' * ' * '' Shen Bao'' * ''Israel's Messenger'' The city's main broadcaster is Shanghai Media Group.


International relations

The city is the home of the
New Development Bank The New Development Bank (NDB), formerly referred to as the BRICS Development Bank, is a multilateral development bank established by the BRICS states ( Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa). According to the Agreement on the ND ...
, a multilateral development bank established by the
BRICS BRICS is an acronym for five leading emerging economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The first four were initially grouped as "BRIC" (or "the BRICs") in 2001 by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill, who coined the te ...
states.


Twin towns – sister cities

Shanghai is Sister city, twinned with:


Consulates and consulates general

As of September 2020, Shanghai hosts 71 consulates general and 5 consulates, excluding Hong Kong and Macao trade office.


See also

* List of economic and technological development zones in Shanghai * List of fiction set in Shanghai * List of films set in Shanghai * List of people from Shanghai * Shanghai Detention Center * Shanghai International Football Tournament * Shanghai Scientific and Technical Publishers * Shuping Scholarship * Urban planning in Shanghai


Notes


References


Further reading

* * * * * Haarmann, Anke. ''Shanghai (Urban Public) Space'' (Berlin: Jovis, 2009). 192 pp
online review
* * * * * Yan Jin. "Shanghai Studies: An evolving academic field" ''History Compass'' (October 2018) e12496 Historiography of recent scholarship
online


External links

*
Official website
()
ShanghaiEye
an English news website of SMG *
WikiSatellite view of Shanghai at WikiMapia
* {{Authority control Shanghai, 10th-century establishments in China Articles containing video clips East China Jiangnan Metropolitan areas of China Municipalities of China Populated coastal places in China Populated places established in the 10th century Port cities and towns in China Province-level divisions of China Wu (region) Yangtze River Delta