Suzhou, () formerly romanized as Suchow, is a

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

in northern

Anhui, China Anhui is an inland Provinces of China, province located in East China. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze and Huai rivers, bordering Jiangsu and Zhejiang to the east, Jiang ...

. The city straddles the and rivers, which fork at its western end. The Tuohe was formerly a left

tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''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 into which they ...

of the

Huai River The Huai River, formerly romanized as the Hwai, is a major river in East China, about long with a drainage area of . It is located about midway between the Yellow River and Yangtze River, the two longest rivers and largest drainage basins ...

, while the latter is a modern artificial canal, but now both drain into Hongze Lake. It borders the prefectural cities of

Huaibei Huaibei () is a prefecture-level city in northern Anhui Province (China), Province, China. It borders Suzhou, Anhui, Suzhou (Anhui) to the east, Bengbu to the south, Bozhou to the west, and the provinces of Henan to the northwest and Jiangsu to ...

and

Bengbu Bengbu () is a city in northern Anhui Province, China. Its population was 3,296,408 registered residents at the 2020 census. 1,968,027 lived in the built-up area made of four Bengbu urban districts and Fengyang County in Chuzhou Prefecture, large ...

to the southwest and south respectively, and the provinces of

Jiangsu Jiangsu is a coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the List of Chinese administra ...

to the east,

Shandong Shandong is a coastal Provinces of China, province in East China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It has served as a pivotal cultural ...

to the north, and

Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...

to the northwest. Its population was 5,324,476 inhabitants at the 2020 census, of whom 1,766,285 lived in the

built-up area Buildup may refer to: * Atomic buildup In atomic physics and quantum chemistry, the Aufbau principle (, from ), also called the Aufbau rule, states that in the ground state of an atom or ion, electrons first fill Electron shell#Subshells, sub ...

(or metro) of Yongqiao District, even though that district remains largely rural.

History

Suzhou was formerly Su County ().

Administration

Suzhou administers five county-level divisions, including one

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

and four

counties A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

. * Yongqiao District () * Dangshan County () * Xiao County () * Lingbi County () * Si County () These are further divided into 118

township-level divisions The administrative divisions of China have consisted of several levels since 1412, due to mainland China's large population and geographical area. In the People's Republic of China, the constitution provides for three levels of government. Ho ...

Climate

Suzhou has a

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...

-influenced,

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Cwa''), with four distinct seasons. Winters are cold and damp, with average low temperatures in January dipping just below freezing; the January 24-hour average temperature is . Summers are typically hot and humid, with a July average of . The annual mean is , while annual precipitation averages about , a majority of which occurs from May to August.

Festivals

Sacrifice to The Kitchen God ()
This festival is the traditional lunar festival of

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

, celebrated in Suzhou. People think this festival is to give presents to gods. In Suzhou, this festival is celebrated by offering food and burning incense on a table and baijiu on the floor to worship the gods. This food is left untouched for, more or less, one day. Also, some food is shared with family and friends. Pear Flower Festival ()
There are many pear trees in Suzhou and when their flowers bloom people get together to appreciate it and have a picnic. At night there is a festival program on Anhui TV to show how beautiful it is. Sacred Stone Festival ()
Suzhou Lingbi Sacred Stone Festival aims to promote the charming and admirable Lingbi sculptures. This festival expands the economy, sets up an investment promotion platform, promotes Suzhou economic and social development, and enhances its visibility and reputation. People get together and show their unique and beautiful stones. They can be viewed at the Suzhou QiShi Museum. The city mayor chooses the best one to be sent to the

National Museum of China The National Museum of China is an art museum, art and history museum located on the eastern side of Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The National Museum of China has a total construction area of about 200,000 square meters, a collection of more than ...

Tourist Attractions

Huangzangyu National Forest Park Anhui Huangzangyu National Forest Park is located in the denuded low hills in the south of the Taoxu Mountain System. The mountain rocks are limestone bodies, and there are many natural caves, well springs, and rock landscapes. The highest peak is Pingdingshan, 389 meters above sea level, and the general peak height is between 100 and 300 meters. Zhong Kui Wine Culture Museum Zhongkui Wine Culture Museum is located in Lingbi County Economic Development Zone. It is a typical Huizhou building, with white walls, black tiles and horse head walls, Zhongkui Hall in the courtyard and corridor, towering towers and pavilions, small bridges and flowing water houses, strange rocks, trees, and a total area of more than 3,000 square meters, with a total construction area of more than 1,000 square meters, of which the main exhibition hall - "Zhong Kui Wine Culture Museum" has an exhibition area of more than 500 square meters, consisting of a gatehouse, curved corridors and the main exhibition hall. The decorative display in the main exhibition hall borrows the architectural elements of Huizhou style and coexists harmoniously with the external environment, complementing each other, the whole is smooth and smooth, and the ancient charm is vivid. The display content of the entire main exhibition hall consists of five parts.

Notes and references

External links

Government website of Suzhou
(in Simplified Chinese) {{Authority control Cities in Anhui National Civilized City