Baiyun Mountain, also known as White Cloud Mountain, is a mountain located a few miles to the north of

Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. It has a height of .

Name

''Báiyún'' is

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

Chinese for "White Clouds", derived from views of the mountain's peaks shrouded in mist during late Spring or after a rain. Its former English name, Pakwan (

Jyutping The Linguistic Society of Hong Kong Cantonese Romanization Scheme, also known as Jyutping, is a romanisation system for Cantonese developed in 1993 by the Linguistic Society of Hong Kong (LSHK). The name ''Jyutping'' (itself the Jyutping ro ...

: ''baak6 wan4)'', is a form of the

Cantonese Cantonese is the traditional prestige variety of Yue Chinese, a Sinitic language belonging to the Sino-Tibetan language family. It originated in the city of Guangzhou (formerly known as Canton) and its surrounding Pearl River Delta. While th ...

pronunciation of the same name. In English, it is also known as or—since the "

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

" is, properly speaking, a "

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

"—the "Baiyun Mountains". Baiyun is informally known as the "City's Lung" (), from its greenery. It is also acclaimed as the "First Beauty in Guangzhou” () or the “Most Famous Mountain South of Ling” (). Moxing Peak, its highest point, is similarly sometimes called the “First Peak under the Southern Sky” ().

History

Baiyun Mountain has been famed as a scenic spot since

ancient times Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian language, ...

.. Its visitors predated the foundation of

Panyu Panyu, formerly romanized as Punyü, is one of 11 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong Province, China. Since January 1975, Panyu County has been under Guangzhou's administration. In 1992, Panyu C ...

(now

) in 214 BC, with various celebrities of the

Warring States period The Warring States period in history of China, Chinese history (221 BC) comprises the final two and a half centuries of the Zhou dynasty (256 BC), which were characterized by frequent warfare, bureaucratic and military reforms, and ...

(5th–3rd centuries BC) known to have traveled there. Its beauty was again celebrated during the 3rd–5th century

Jin dynasty Jin may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) ...

and the 7th–9th century Tang.. & Since the

Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

, various scenes at Baiyun have been named among the

Eight Sights of Ram City 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. Etymology English ''eight'', from Old English '', æhta'', Proto-Germanic ''*ahto'' is a direct continuation of Proto-Indo-European '' *oḱtṓ(w)-'', and as such cognate wi ...

, lists of Guangzhou's loveliest spots.. However, few of the historical sites have survived to the present day and others—such as the view of Guangzhou's old walled city at dusk—have changed drastically as the city has expanded to and around the mountain. In its most recent years, Baiyun has become home to a small Kung Fu community. Baiyun Kung Fu or White Cloud Kung Fu. Named after the landscape they train in.

Gallery

File:锁爱台.JPG, Suoai Tai File:Moxing Summit gate.jpg, The entrance to Moxing Peak File:Moxing Summi Guangzhou China mobile towers.JPG,

China Mobile China Mobile is the trade name of both China Mobile Limited and its ultimate controlling shareholder, China Mobile Communications Group Co., Ltd., a Chinese State-owned enterprises of China, state-owned telecommunicationsStrait deals ''The Econ ...

's telecom tower File:"锦绣南天"牌坊.JPG, The Beautiful Southern Sky (, ''Jinxiu Nantian'') Memorial Arch

Wildlife

The

White Cloud Mountain minnow The White Cloud Mountain minnow (''Tanichthys albonubes'') is a hardy species of freshwater fish and coldwater fish often kept in an aquarium. The species was considered to be a member of the carp family (family Cyprinidae) of the order Cyprinifo ...

, now a popular aquarium fish worldwide, was discovered in this area in the 1930s.

References

External links

Official website
{{coord, 23.186642, 113.294749, display=title Mountains of Guangdong Baiyun District, Guangzhou Tourist attractions in Guangzhou