Xuyi is a county under the administration of Huai'an Prefecture in central Jiangsu Province in eastern China. The southernmost of Huai'an's county-level divisions, it borders the prefecture-level cities of Suqian, Jiangsu, to the north and Chuzhou, Anhui, to the south and west. Xuyi is the site of the Ming Zuling tombs and also noted for production of crayfish.

Xuyi
盱眙县
Xuyi County in October 2020
Xuyi County in October 2020
Xuyi is located in Jiangsu
Xuyi
Xuyi
Location in Jiangsu
Coordinates: 32°58′48″N 118°33′36″E / 32.980°N 118.560°E / 32.980; 118.560[1]
CountryPeople's Republic of China
ProvinceJiangsu
Prefecture-level cityHuai'an
Area
 • Total2,497 km2 (964 sq mi)
Population
 (2018)
 • Total798,600
 • Density320/km2 (830/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+8 (China Standard)
Postal code
211700
Websitehttp://www.xuyi.gov.cn/
Xuyi County
Xuyi south of Sizhou, the Ming Zuling tombs, and the River Huai in a Qing-era depiction of the area before Hongze Lake's 1680 flood, from the Complete Library of the Four Treasuries
Traditional Chinese盱眙
Simplified Chinese盱眙
PostalChuyi
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinXūyí xiàn
Wade–GilesHsü-i Hsien

Name

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Xuyi is the atonal pinyin romanization of the Standard Mandarin pronunciation of the Chinese name 盱眙. The same name was previously romanized as Hsü-i in Wade-Giles and Chuyi in Postal Map romanization. The meaning of the name is unclear, but probably derives from phonetic transcription of an earlier name from the Dongyi or Wu who once held the area. It has also been variously derived from the idea of looking ahead with one's eyes opened wide—in reference to its position on a hill in wide plain[2][3]—or to another nearby hill named Xuyi.[4]

History

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In medieval China, the area around Xuyi was administered as part of the prefecture or subprefecture of Sizhou. It was the hometown of Zhu Yuanzhang's family, which fled to Fengyang before his birth and rise to power as the Hongwu Emperor of the Ming. He subsequently erected the expansive Ming Zuling tomb nearby, where veneration could be offered to his grandfather, great-grandfather, and great-great-grandfather, all posthumously elevated to the dignity of honorary emperors. Under the Ming, the area was part of Nanzhili, the special directly-administered district around the southern capital at Nanjing.

Under the Qing, the province was renamed Jiangnan. Sizhou fell under its "Left" Governor and was later made part of Anhui Province. During the reign of the Kangxi Emperor, the Yellow River—then still flowing along a course south of Shandong—diverted to join the Huai further upstream. Its silt blocked the previous course of the Huai and caused Hongze Lake to grow enormously, swallowing both Sizhou and Ming Zuling tombs. With the previous county seat submerged, administration was moved first to Xuyi in 1680 and then west to the new Si County in 1777.

After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, Xuyi and Sihong were both moved from Anhui to Jiangsu in 1955 to allow for unified administration for the entire area around Hongze Lake.[5] By the early 1960s, the lake had receded enough that the long-flooded Ming Zuling was rediscovered. After the Cultural Revolution ended, the provincial and national cultural administrations excavated and restored the tombs.[6]

Administrative divisions

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At present, Xuyi County has 14 towns and 5 townships.[7]

14 towns
5 townships

Climate

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Climate data for Xuyi (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1981–2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 20.6
(69.1)
26.5
(79.7)
29.8
(85.6)
33.8
(92.8)
36.7
(98.1)
37.5
(99.5)
39.3
(102.7)
38.6
(101.5)
37.4
(99.3)
33.3
(91.9)
28.9
(84.0)
22.7
(72.9)
39.3
(102.7)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 6.2
(43.2)
9.1
(48.4)
14.4
(57.9)
21.0
(69.8)
26.0
(78.8)
29.1
(84.4)
31.4
(88.5)
30.8
(87.4)
27
(81)
22.1
(71.8)
15.5
(59.9)
8.7
(47.7)
20.1
(68.2)
Daily mean °C (°F) 1.9
(35.4)
4.4
(39.9)
9.3
(48.7)
15.6
(60.1)
20.9
(69.6)
24.7
(76.5)
27.5
(81.5)
26.9
(80.4)
22.7
(72.9)
17.1
(62.8)
10.5
(50.9)
4.2
(39.6)
15.5
(59.9)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −1.3
(29.7)
0.8
(33.4)
5.1
(41.2)
10.8
(51.4)
16.4
(61.5)
20.9
(69.6)
24.4
(75.9)
23.9
(75.0)
19.3
(66.7)
13.2
(55.8)
6.7
(44.1)
0.7
(33.3)
11.7
(53.1)
Record low °C (°F) −12.6
(9.3)
−13.3
(8.1)
−7.4
(18.7)
−0.5
(31.1)
6.2
(43.2)
12.0
(53.6)
16.8
(62.2)
15.8
(60.4)
10.4
(50.7)
1.1
(34.0)
−6.4
(20.5)
−13.5
(7.7)
−13.5
(7.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 36.5
(1.44)
40.2
(1.58)
62.4
(2.46)
55.6
(2.19)
76.0
(2.99)
156.5
(6.16)
239.5
(9.43)
184.7
(7.27)
89.2
(3.51)
55.9
(2.20)
50.3
(1.98)
29.0
(1.14)
1,075.8
(42.35)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 6.8 7.8 8.7 8.2 8.9 9.6 13.3 12.8 8.4 6.9 7.3 6.1 104.8
Average snowy days 3.8 2.7 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.7 1.2 9.4
Average relative humidity (%) 72 71 69 68 70 76 83 84 80 74 73 70 74
Mean monthly sunshine hours 126.6 128.5 159.5 186.3 188.3 151.8 167.2 174.8 162.5 163.6 140.1 137.3 1,886.5
Percent possible sunshine 40 41 43 48 44 36 39 43 44 47 45 44 43
Source: China Meteorological Administration[8][9]

Sports

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The Xuyi Olympic Sports Centre Stadium is located in the city of Xuyi. The football stadium has a capacity of 18,000 and it opened in 2017.[10]

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References

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  1. ^ "Xuyi" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved 2014-07-02.
  2. ^ 說文解字 Shuowen jiezi[Explanation of Single Component Graphs and Analysis of Composite Characters], Vol. 4: "盱:張目也...眙:直視也".
  3. ^ 讀史方輿紀要[Essentials of Geography for Reading History], Vol. 21: "盱眙者,城居山上,可以矚遠也".
  4. ^ Draft History of Qing, Vol. 59: "東:盱眙山,縣以此名".
  5. ^ 江苏省志·水利志 [Gazetteers of Jiangsu: Water Resources Gazetteer]. 2001. pp. 700–761. ISBN 7-80643-555-7.
  6. ^ Danielson, Eric N. (December 2008), "The Ming Ancestor Tomb", China Heritage Quarterly.
  7. ^ "淮安市-行政区划网 www.xzqh.org" (in Chinese). XZQH. Retrieved 2012-05-24.
  8. ^ 中国气象数据网 – WeatherBk Data (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  9. ^ 中国气象数据网 (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  10. ^ "Daum 카페".