Quanzhou (also known asZayton orZaiton in British and American historical sources, derived from the Arabic name) is theatonalpinyinromanization of the city'sChinese name泉州, using its pronunciation in theMandarindialect. The name derives from the city's former status as the seat of theimperial ChineseQuan ("Spring")Prefecture.Ch'üan-chou was theWade-Giles romanization of the same name;[4][5][6] other forms includeChwanchow-foo,[7]Chwan-chau fu,[8]Chwanchew,[9]Ts'üan-chou,[10]Tswanchow-foo,[7]Tswanchau,[9]T'swan-chau fu,[8]Ts'wan-chiu,[11]Ts'wan-chow-fu,[12]Thsiouan-tchéou-fou,[8] andThsíouan-chéou-fou.[7] The romanizationsChuan-chiu,[11]Choan-Chiu,[13] andShanju[14] reflect thelocalHokkien pronunciation.
ThePostal Mapname of the city was "Chinchew",[15] an English variant ofChincheo, which is also the historicalSpanish,Portuguese (and later alsoDutch andFrench) name for the city. The exact etymon of the term is uncertain with multiple explanations on the matter. Historically, "Chincheo" or also "Chengchio" or "Chenchiu" was likely a name that originally referred to neighboringZhangzhou, due to the name generally being used by European sailors to denote theBay of Amoy and its hinterland, or even the wholeFujian province.[16] The confusion is also discussed byCharles R. Boxer (1953)[17] and the 1902 Encyclopedia[18] in that it is apparently the transcription of thelocal QuanzhouHokkien pronunciation of the name ofZhangzhou,[16][c]Quanzhou HokkienChinese:漳州;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Cheng-chiu;lit. 'Zhangzhou' (IPA: /t͡ɕiɪŋ³³ t͡ɕiu³³/),[d] the major Fujianese port in the 16th and 17th centuries, specifically the old port ofYuegang inHaicheng, Zhangzhou, trading withSpanish Manila andPortuguese Macao.[7] It is uncertain when exactly and why Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, and later also British and French sailors first applied the name to Quanzhou, but perhaps there were initially some confusion due tomiscommunication on firstlanguage contact by European sailors withHokkien speakers around theBay of Amoy, which the term later stuck and continued due to thelanguage barrier among Hokkien speakers and those who do not speak the language. Another by Duncan (1902) claims that it comes from a supposed previous"Tsuien-chow"Mandarin romanization[19] (MandarinChinese:泉州;pinyin:Quánzhōu;IPA: /t͡ɕʰy̯ɛn³⁵ ʈ͡ʂoʊ̯⁵⁵/). In theChineesch-Hollandsch Woordenboek van het Emoi dialekt (1882), a Hokkien-Dutch Dictionary fromDutch Batavia (modern-dayJakarta) of theDutch East Indies, the name of theQuanzhou dialect of Hokkien is transcribed as the"Tsin-tsiu dialekt".[20] It is uncertain which term they transcribed"Tsin-tsiu" from, specifically the first syllable, unless it was simply their attempt at giving a Hokkien term to explain the origins of"Chincheo". On that regard though, as part of Quanzhouprefecture and directly adjacent from the historic city of Quanzhou over theJin River liesJinjiang, called in HokkienChinese:晉江;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Chìn-kang;Tâi-lô:Tsìn-kang, which is now also acounty-level city. The now county-level city ofJinjiang (Hokkien:晉江;Chìn-kang) has the exact same name in Hokkien as theJin River (Hokkien:晉江;Chìn-kang;IPA: /t͡sin⁵⁵⁴ kaŋ³³/), directly in between the historic city of Quanzhou to its west and to the north ofJinjiang, which both the river and thecounty-level city got their name from theJin dynasty (晉朝)[21] from when the earliestMin-speaking Chinese settlers coming from theMin River area settled the banks of theJin River around 284 AD.[22]Zhou (州) or at leastHokkienChinese:州 / 洲;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:chiu originally referred to alluvial islands in the middle of rivers or at the mouth of rivers,[23] which can somewhat geographically describe the historic city of Quanzhou's geographic position in between theJin River and theLuoyang River. Similarly, Zhangzhou (漳州;Chiang-chiu) is also named withHokkienChinese:州;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:chiu withHokkienChinese:漳;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Chiang referring toHokkienChinese:漳江;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Chiang-kang, which is the old name of theJiulong River (Hokkien:九龍江;Kiú-liông-kang) that surrounds the historic city ofZhangzhou.
Quanzhou proper lies on a split of land between the estuaries of theJin River andLuoyang River as they flow intoQuanzhou Bay [zh] on theTaiwan Strait. Its surrounding prefecture extends west halfway across the province and is hilly and mountainous. Along withXiamen andZhangzhou to its south andPutian to its north, it makes upFujianProvince's Southern Coast region. In its mountainous interior, it bordersLongyan to the southwest andSanming to the northwest.
The city features ahumid subtropical climate. Quanzhou has four distinct seasons. Its moderate temperature ranges from 0 to 38 degrees Celsius. In summer, there aretyphoons that bring rain and some damage to the city.
Climate data for Quanzhou (Jinjiang), elevation 135 m (443 ft), (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1991–present)
Wang Guoqing [zh] (王國慶) used the area as a base of operations for theChen State before he was subdued by theSui generalYang Su in the AD590s.[37] Quanzhou proper was established under theTang in 718[24] on a spit of land between two branches of theJin River.[7] Muslim traders reached the city early on in its existence, along with their existing trade atGuangzhou andYangzhou.[38]
Map of Qingyuan CircuitMap showing the location of Qingyuan Circuit
In the early period of theFive Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, Quanzhou was a part ofMin state. After Min was destroyed by theSouthern Tang, theQingyuan Circuit rose up in the original southern territory of Min. The Qingyuan Circuit was ade facto independent entity that lasted 29 years (949–978) with 4 rulers with its territory including present-daysouthern Fujian andPutian, with Quanzhou as its capital. Its founder,Liu Congxiao, the Prince of Jinjiang andJiedushi (military governor) of Qingyuan Circuit, vigorously expanded overseas trade and city development.Erythrina trees were planted throughout Quanzhou city, so Quanzhou was called Erythrina City.[39][40] In 964, the circuit was renamed the Pinghai Circuit. In 978,Chen Hongjin, theJiedushi of Pinghai Circuit, was forced to surrender to theNorthern Song to avoid war and ravage.[41]
Already connected to inlandFujian byroads andcanals, Quanzhou grew to international importance in the first century of theNorthern Song.[42] It received an office of the maritime trade bureau (shibosi, 市舶司) in 1079[43] or 1087[24][44] and functioned as the starting point of theMaritime Silk Road into theYuan, eclipsing both theoverland trade routes[45] andGuangzhou. A 1095 inscription recordstwo convoys, each of twenty ships, arriving from the Southern Seas each year.[42] Quanzhou's maritime trade developed the area'sceramics,sugar,alcohol, andsalt industries.[42] Ninety per cent of Fujian's ceramic production at the time wasjade-coloredceladon, produced for export.[46]Frankincense was such a coveted import that promotions for the trade superintendents at Guangzhou and Quanzhou were tied to the amount they were able to bring in during their terms in office.[47] During this period it was one of the world's largest and most cosmopolitan seaports.[e] By 1120, itsprefecture claimed a population of around 500,000.[48] ItsLuoyang Bridge was formerly the most celebrated bridge in China[7] and the 12th centuryAnping Bridge is also well known.
Over the course of the 13th century, however, Quanzhou's prosperity declined due to instability among its trading partners[42] and increasing restrictions introduced by the Southern Song in an attempt to restrict the outflow of copper and bronze currency from areas forced to usehyperinflating paper money.[54] The increasing importance ofJapan to China's foreign trade also benefitedNingbonese merchants at Quanzhou's expense, given their extensive contacts with Japan's major ports onHakata Bay onKyushu.[42]
In 1277 under theMongolianYuan dynasty a superintendent of foreign trade was established in the city.[55] The superintendentPu Shougeng wasMuslim[56] and used his contacts to restore the city's trade under its new rulers.[55] He was broadly successful, restoring much of the port's former greatness.[57] His office became hereditary to his descendants.[55]
Into the 1280s Quanzhou sometimes served as the provincial capital for Fujian.[10][f] Its population was around 455,000 in 1283, the major items of trade beingpepper and other spices, gemstones,pearls, andporcelain.[24]
Marco Polo recorded that the Yuan emperors derived "a vast revenue" from their 10 percent duty on the port's commerce;[58] he called Quanzhou's port "one of the two greatest havens in the world for commerce"[58] and "theAlexandria of theEast".[59]Ibn Battuta simply called it the greatest port in the world.[10][g] Polo notedits tattoo artists were famed throughout Southeast Asia.[58] It was the point of departure for Marco Polo's 1292 return expedition, escorting the 17-year-oldMongolian princessKököchin to her fiancé in thePersianIlkhanate;[60] a few decades later, it was the point of arrival and departure for Ibn Battuta.[12][49][h]Kublai Khan'sinvasions of Japan[24][49][61] andJava sailed primarily from its port.[62] The Islamic geographerAbulfeda noted, inc. 1321, thatits city walls remained ruined from its conquest by the Mongols.[8] In the mid-1320sFriar Odoric noted the town's twoFranciscan friaries, but admitted theBuddhist monasteries were much larger, with over 3000 monks in one.[8]
Between 1357 and 1367 the Yisibaxi Muslim Persian garrison started theIspah rebellion against the Yuan dynasty in Quanzhou and southern Fujian due to increasingly anti-Muslim laws. Persian militia leadersSayf ad-Din [zh] (賽甫丁) andAmir ad-Din [zh] (阿迷里丁) led the revolt. Arabic officialYawuna [zh] (那兀纳) assassinated Amir ad-Din in 1362 and took control of the Muslim rebel forces. The Muslim rebels tried to strike north and took over some parts of Xinghua but were defeated atFuzhou. Yuan provincial loyalist forces from Fuzhou defeated the Muslim rebels in 1367.[63] Sayf ad-Din and Amir ad-Din fought for Fuzhou and Xinghua for five years. They both were murdered by another Muslim called Nawuna in 1362 so he then took control of Quanzhou and the Ispah garrison for five more years until his defeat by the Yuan authorities.[64]
Nawuna was killed in turn byChen Youding. Chen began a campaign of persecution against the city's Sunni community—including massacres and grave desecration—that eventually became a three-days anti-foreign massacre. Emigrants fleeing the persecution rose to prominent positions throughout Southeast Asia, spurring the development of Islam onJava and elsewhere.[56] The Yuan were expelled in 1368,[24] and they turned against Pu Shougeng's family and the Muslims and slaughtered Pu Shougeng's descendants in the Ispah rebellion. Mosques and other buildings with foreign architecture were almost all destroyed and the Yuan imperial soldiers killed most of the descendants of Pu Shougeng and mutilated their corpses.[65]
TheSelden Map during the early 17th century, with Quanzhou as its trade route epicenter
TheMing discouraged foreign commerce other than formaltributary missions. By 1473 trade had declined to the point that Quanzhou was no longer the headquarters of the imperial customs service for Fujian.[49] TheWokou, who came from many different ethnicities, including Japanese, Korean, and Chinese, forced Quanzhou's Superintendency of Trade to close completely in 1522.[66]
During theQing dynasty theSea Ban did not help the city's traders or fishermen. They were forced to abandon their access to the sea for years at a time and coastal farmers forced to relocate miles inland to inner counties like Yongchun and Anxi. Violent large scale clan fights with the thousands of non-native families fromGuangdong who were deported to Quanzhou city by the Qing immediately occurred.[67]
When Chinese pirates overran the receiving ships inShenhu Bay to capture their stockpiles ofsilverbullion in 1847, however, the traders moved to Quanzhou Bay regardless.[66] Around 1862, aProtestantmission was set up in Quanzhou. As late as the middle of the century, largeChinese junks could still access the town easily, trading intea,sugar,tobacco,porcelain, andnankeens,[7] butsand bars created by the rivers around the town had generally incapacitated its harbor by theFirst World War. It remained a large and prosperous city, but conducted its maritime trade throughAnhai.[4]
*Since its founding in 1949, thePeople's Republic of China ("Mainland China") has claimed theKinmen Islands (Quemoy) as part of Quanzhou but has never controlled them; they are administered by and also claimed by theRepublic of China (Taiwan).
Locals speak the Quanzhou dialect ofHokkien (Min Nan) partly the same as theAmoy dialect spoken in Xiamen, and similar toMalaysian Hokkien,Singaporean Hokkien,Philippine Hokkien, and Quanzhou-descendedTaiwanese dialects. It is unintelligible withMandarin. Many overseas Chinese whose ancestors came from the Quanzhou area, especially those in Southeast Asia, often speak mainly Hokkien at home. Around the "Southern Min triangle area," which includes Quanzhou,Xiamen andZhangzhou, locals all speak theHokkien language. The dialects of Hokkien itself that they speak are similar but have different tones and sometimes different pronunciation and vocabulary.
Historically Quanzhou exportedblack tea,camphor, sugar,indigo, tobacco,ceramics, cloth made ofgrass, and minerals. As of 1832 Quanzhou imported, primarily fromGuangzhou, wool cloth, wine, and watches. TheEast India Company was exporting an estimated £150,000 a year in black tea from Quanzhou.[72]
Its GDP ranked first in Fujian Province for 20 years from 1991 to 2010. In 2008 Quanzhou's textile and apparel production accounted for 10 percent of China's overall apparel production, stone exports account for 50 percent of Chinese stone exports, resin handicraft exports account for 70 percent of the country's total, ceramic exports account for 67 percent of the country's total, candy production accounts for 20 percent, and the production of sport and tourism shoes accounts for 80% of Chinese, and 20 percent of world production.
Quanzhou is known today as China'sshoe city. Quanzhou's 3,000 shoe factories produce 500 million pairs a year, making nearly one in every four pairs of sneakers made in China.
Quanzhou is the biggest automotive market in Fujian. It has the highest rate of privateautomobile possession.[74] Quanzhou is connected by major roads fromFuzhou to the north andXiamen to the south.
Quanzhou is an important transport hub within southeastern Fujian province. Many export industries in the Fujian interior cities will transport goods to Quanzhou ports.Quanzhou Port was one of the most prosperous port inTang dynasty and is now still an important Chinese port for exporting.
There is a passenger ferry terminal inShijing, Nan'an, Fujian, with regular service to the Shuitou Port in theROC-controlledKinmen Island.
Quanzhou Jinjiang International Airport is Quanzhou's sole airport, served by passenger flights within mainland China and other regional/international destinations throughout southeast Asia, including Hong Kong, Macau, Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok etc. Major airlines operated in JJN are Xiamen Air, Shenzhen Airlines and West Air.
TheZhangping–Quanzhou–Xiaocuo railway connects several cargo stations within Quanzhou Prefecture with the interior of Fujian and the rest of the country. Until 2014 this line also had passenger service, with fairly slow passenger trains from Beijing.
Passenger trains from China terminated at the Quanzhou East Railway Station, a few kilometers northeast of the center of the city. Passenger service on this line was terminated, and Quanzhou East railway station closed 9 December 2014.[75]
Since 2010, Quanzhou has been served by the high-speedFuzhou–Xiamen railway, a part of theHangzhou–Fuzhou–Shenzhen high-speed railway, which runs along China's southeastern sea coast. High-speed trains on this line stop atQuanzhou railway station (inBeifeng Subdistrict ofFengze District, some 10 miles north of Quanzhou city center) andJinjiang railway station. Trains to Xiamen take under 45 minutes, making it a convenient weekend or day trip. By 2015, direct high-speed service was made available to a number of cities in the country's interior, from Beijing to Chongqing and Guiyang.
Notable Historical and cultural sites (the 18 views of Quanzhou as recommended by the Fujian tourism board) include the Ashab Mosque and Kaiyuan Temple mentioned above, as well as:
Qing Yuan mountain (清源山) – The tallest hill within the city limits, which hosts a great view of West lake.
East Lake Park (东湖) – Located in the city center. It is home to a small zoo.
West Lake Park (西湖公园) – The largest body of fresh water within the city limits.
Scholar Street (状元街) – Champion street about 500 meters long, elegant environment, mainly engaged in tourism and cultural crafts.
Notable Modern cultural sites include:
Fengze Square – Located in the city center and acts as a venue for shows and events.
Dapingshan – The second tallest hill within the city limits, crowned with an enormous equestrian statue ofZheng Chenggong.
The Embassy Lounge – Situated in the "1916 Cultural Ideas Zone" which acts as a platform for mixing traditional Chinese art with modern building techniques and designs[77]
Relics from Quanzhou's past are preserved at the Maritime[59] orOverseas-Relations History Museum.[78] It includes large exhibits on Song-era ships and Yuan-era tombstones.[59] A particularly important exhibit is the so-calledQuanzhou ship, a seagoingjunk that sunk some time after 1272 and was recovered in 1973–74.[78]
The old city center preserves "balcony buildings" (骑楼;qílóu), a style of southernChinese architecture from the Republican Era.[59]
^Zaiton's identification with Quanzhou was controversial in the 19th century, with some scholars preferring to associate Polo and Ibn Battuta's great port with the much more attractive harbor atXiamen on a variety of pretexts. The Chinese records are, however, clear as to Quanzhou's former status and the earlier excellence of its harbor, which slowly silted up over the centuries. Alternative spellings includeZeiton andZaytun.
^Among other testaments to this age are tombstones which have been found written in Chinese,Arabic,Syriac, andLatin.[24]
^It was considered so important by theJesuits that they sometimes called all of FujianChinheo.[7] In 1515Giovanni d'Empoli mistakenly recorded that "Zeiton" was the seat of the "Great Can" who ruled China[49] but Quanzhou never served as an imperial capital.
^Notwithstanding the derivation of Zayton from Quanzhou's old nickname "City of theTung Trees", some details ofIbn Battuta's description suggest he was referring toZhangzhou.[10]
^Quanzhou was also the probable point of departure for theFranciscan friarJohn of Marignolli around the same time but this is uncertain given the partial nature of the record of his time in China.
^abcWade, Geoff (2015). "Chinese Engagement with the Indian Ocean during the Song, Yuan, and Ming Dynasties (Tenth to Sixteenth Centuries)". In Pearson, Michael (ed.).Trade, Circulation, and Flow in the Indian Ocean World. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 72.ISBN9781137566249.
^abWade, Geoff (2012). Geoff Wade; Li Tana (eds.).Anthony Reid and the Study of the Southeast Asian Past. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. p. 131.ISBN9789814311960.
^Rossabi, Morris (26 April 2012).The Mongols: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, USA. p. 111.ISBN9780199840892.
^Sen, Tan Ta; Dasheng, Chen (2009).Cheng Ho and Islam in Southeast Asia. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. p. 186.ISBN9789812308375.
^Liu 刘, Yingsheng 迎胜 (2008). "Muslim Merchants in Mongol Yuan China". In Schottenhammer, Angela (ed.).The East Asian Mediterranean: Maritime Crossroads of Culture, Commerce and Human Migration. East Asian economic and socio-cultural studies: East Asian maritime history. Vol. 6. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 121.ISBN9783447058094.ISSN1860-1812.
^Chaffee, John W. (2018).The Muslim Merchants of Premodern China: The History of a Maritime Asian Trade Diaspora, 750–1400. Cambridge University Press. p. 157.ISBN9781108640091.
^abcNield, Robert (March 2015).China's Foreign Places: The Foreign Presence in China in the Treaty Port Era. Hong Kong University Press. p. 68.ISBN9789888139286.
^Stephan Feuchtwang (10 September 2012).Making Place: State Projects, Globalisation and Local Responses in China. Routledge. p. 41.ISBN9781135393557.
^Kauz, Ralph (2010)."A Kāzarūnī Network?".Aspects of the Maritime Silk Road: From the Persian Gulf to the East China Sea. East Asian Maritime History. Vol. 10. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 65.ISBN9783447061032.
.svg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
