Taiyuan Commandery (Chinese:太原郡) was acommandery of China from theWarring States period toTang dynasty. It was located in modern centralShanxi province.
The commandery was established by theQin state in 248 BC, after Qin generalMeng Ao attacked Taiyuan, then part of theState of Zhao, and annexed 37 Zhao cities including Yuci (榆次), Xincheng (新城) and Langmeng (狼孟).[1] The seat was Jinyang (晉陽, near modernTaiyuan city), a former capital of Zhao. In early Western Han dynasty, the territory was successively part of the Han Kingdom ofKing Xin, and the kingdoms of Dai and Taiyuan. In 114 BC, Taiyuan was once again administered directly as a commandery. In 2 AD, the commandery administered 21 counties, namely Jinyang, Junren (葰人),Jiexiu (界休),Yuci (榆次), Zhongdu (中都), Yuli (于離), Cishi (茲氏), Langmeng (狼孟), Wu (鄔), Yu (盂),Pingtao (平陶),Fenyang (汾陽), Jingling (京陵),Yangqu (陽曲), Daling (大陵),Yuanping (原平), Qi (祁), Shang'ai (上艾), Lüchi (慮虒), Yangyi (陽邑), and Guangwu (廣武). The population was 680,488, or 169,863 households.[2] By 140 AD, the number of counties had decreased to 16, and the population to 200,124, or 30,902 households.[3]
In 280 AD, after the unification ofWestern Jin, the commandery had 13 counties (Jinyang, Yangqu, Yuci, Yuli, Yu, Langmeng, Yangyi, Daling, Qi, Pingtao, Jingling, Zhongdu, Wu) and 14,000 households.[4] The commandery was abolished in 583 during earlySui dynasty.
In Sui and Tang dynasties, Taiyuan Commandery became an alternative name ofBing Prefecture (并州), and later, Taiyuan Prefecture (太原府). In 742 AD, the commandery had a population of 778,278, or 128,905 households in 13 counties.[5][6]
| Sili |  Han provinces and commanderies in 219 CE | |
|---|---|---|
| Yu Province | ||
| Ji Province | ||
| Yan Province | ||
| Xu Province | ||
| Qing Province | ||
| Jing Province | ||
| Yang Province | ||
| Yi Province | ||
| Liang Province | ||
| Bing Province | ||
| Shuofang Province | ||
| You Province | ||
| Jiaozhi Province | ||
Full list(202 BC – 220 AD) | ||
