|
Shandong (Simplified Chinese:
山东, Traditional: 山東, Hanyu Pinyin: Shāndōng, WG: Shan-tung) is a coastal province of eastern People's Republic of China. Located in the lower reaches of the Huang He (Yellow River), it borders on the Bohai Sea and the
Yellow Sea.
History
Shandong became a province during the Ming dynasty.
Qingzhou used to be its capital.
In 412, the Chinese Buddhist monk Faxian landed at Laoshan, on the southern edge of
the Shandong peninsula, and proceeded to Qingzhou to edit and translate the
scriptures he had brought back from India.
Jimo was founded in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty and was the second largest settlement in Shandong at the time. The town lies north of
Qingdao.
In 1996, the discovery of over 200 buried Buddhist statues at Qingzhou was hailed as a
major archaeological find. The statues included early examples of painted
figures, and are thought to have been buried due to Emperor Huizong's Song Dynasty repression of Buddhism (he favoured
Taoism).
Geography
Neighboring provinces: Jiangsu, Anhui,
Henan, and Hebei.
Shandong is located in the lower reaches of the Huang He (Yellow River). It
borders on the Bohai Gulf and the Yellow Sea. Coastline: 3,000 km.
The Grand Canal of China flows through Shandong.
Major cities include:
Other geographical features include:
- Laizhou Bay - the southernmost
of the 3 bays of the Bohai Sea
- Shandong
Peninsula - southern limit of the Bohai Sea
Economy
Shandong ranks first among the provinces in the production of a variety of products, including cotton and wheat as well as precious metals such as gold and diamonds.
Demographics
Culture
Tourism
Miscellaneous topics
Professional sports teams based in Shandong include:
- Chinese Football Association Super League
- Shandong Luneng
- Qingdao Beilaite
- Chinese Football Association Jia League
- Chinese Basketball Association
Colleges and universities
External links
|