Heshan, Guangdong

Heshan, formerly romanized as Hokshan, is a county-level city of Jiangmen City in the southern part of Guangdong Province, China with a total land area of 1,108.3 square kilometres (427.9 sq mi) and a population of 360,000, and some 200,000 internal migrants. There are approximately 360,000 people of Heshan origin or descent living in other parts of the world.

Heshan

鹤山市
County-level city
Location of Heshan City (pink) in Jiangmen City (yellow), Guangdong province, and the PRC
Heshan
Location of the city centre in Guangdong
Coordinates: 22°46′N 112°57′E
CountryPeople's Republic of China
ProvinceGuangdong
Prefecture-level cityJiangmen
County seatShaping
Area
 • Total1,108.3 km2 (427.9 sq mi)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total492,814
 • Density440/km2 (1,200/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+8 (China Standard)
Postal code
529700
Area code(s)0750
Heshan
Simplified Chinese鹤山
Traditional Chinese鶴山
PostalHokshan
Literal meaningCrane Mountain

Situated about 60 kilometres (37 mi) south west of the provincial capital, Guangzhou, Heshan occupies a strategic location on the Pearl River Delta, commanding the northern gateway to Jiangmen's five prefectures. Along the opposite bank of the same river, lie the two municipalities of Nanhai and Shunde. Heshan is around one hour from Hong Kong and Macau by road. The city's harbour can accommodate vessels of up to 3,000 long tons (3,050 t). Ships ply from here to Hong Kong directly.

Name

Heshan—one of several places in China whose name means "Mount Crane"—takes its name from a nearby mountain thought to resemble the shape of the bird. The spelling Heshan derives from the pinyin romanization of the name's Mandarin pronunciation. The Postal Map spelling Hokshan was a combination of the local Cantonese pronunciation of the first character and the Mandarin pronunciation of the second. Heshan has also been romanized as Ho Shan[1] and Ho-shan.[2]

History

Heshan was made a prefecture in 1732 during the reign of the Yongzheng Emperor of the Qing. By the 19th century, Heshan County made up part of the commandery of Zhaoqing.[1] In 1993, it was promoted to a county-level city.

Administrative divisions

Heshan Municipality administers ten towns:

NameChinese (S)Hanyu PinyinPopulation (2010)[3]
Shaping Subdistrict沙坪街道Shāpíng Jiēdào197,155
Longkou town龙口镇Lóngkǒu Zhèn36,625
Yayao town雅瑶镇Yǎyáo Zhèn38,851
Gulao town古劳镇Gǔláo Zhèn35,606
Taoyuan town桃源镇Táoyuán Zhèn25,902
Hecheng town鹤城镇Hèchéng Zhèn32,170
Gonghe town共和镇Gònghé Zhèn41,338
Zhishan town址山镇Zhǐshān Zhèn32,009
Zhaiwu town宅梧镇Zháiwú Zhèn26,254
Yunxiang town云乡镇Yúnxiāng Zhèn12,453
Shuanghe town双合镇Shuānghé Zhèn16,575

Industry

Heshan is located at the center of one of China's largest furniture producing areas, with approximately 10% of the world's furniture produced on its outskirts.

Culture

Heshan is the birthplace of the Southern dance style known as the Hok San lion dance.

Notable individuals

Heshan is the birthplace of NBA player Yi Jianlian.

Singaporean community leader and businessman, Yam Kok Yuen (任國源), was born in Ha Lok Village (下六村) in Heshan. He was a founding member of the Malayan Chinese Association in Singapore and was Chairman of the Nanyang Hok San Association and Siew Heng Association in the 1950s. His grandson, Alex Yam, is a current Member of Parliament in Singapore.

Climate

References

Citations
  1. Bolton & al. (1941), p. 262.
  2. Encyclopædia Britannica, 9th ed. (1878), Vol. V, "China".
  3. shi, Guo wu yuan ren kou pu cha ban gong; council, Guo jia tong ji ju ren kou he jiu ye tong ji si bian = Tabulation on the 2010 population census of the people's republic of China by township / compiled by Population census office under the state; population, Department of; statistics, employment statistics national bureau of (2012). Zhongguo 2010 nian ren kou pu cha fen xiang, zhen, jie dao zi liao (Di 1 ban. ed.). Beijing Shi: Zhongguo tong ji chu ban she. ISBN 978-7-5037-6660-2.

Bibliography
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