Ji'nan (Tsinan or Chinan)
City and capital of Shandong province, China; population (2000) 2,795,100. Industries include engineering, food-processing, flour-milling, and the manufacture of textiles, iron, steel, heavy goods vehicles, machine tools, and chemicals.
History
Founded in the 8th century
BC, Ji'nan was an early religious centre. The city was visited by Marco Polo, the Venetian traveller, in the 13th century, and was made the capital of Shandong province under the Ming dynasty (1368–1644). It was the first city in the Chinese Empire in which a foreign commercial settlement was voluntarily opened by the Chinese government in 1904. A considerable number of foreigners and foreign institutions, including the Shantung Christian University (later incorporated in Shandang University), established themselves here.
Features Ji'nan is notable for 72 springs and a large lake within the city. The quality of its water supply gave it the reputation of being one of the healthiest cities in China, but the over-extraction of its groundwater has caused many of the springs to dry up. Part of Ji'nan's water supply is now drawn from the Huang He River which flows north of the city; at this point the river runs 5 m/16 ft above the surrounding plain. Mount Tai, one of China's holiest mountains, lies nearby, and there are several early Buddhist sites south of the city. The population includes a sizeable Muslim minority. |
