Zhenjiang

Zhenjiang, alternately romanized as Chinkiang, is a prefecture-level city in Jiangsu Province, China. It lies on the southern bank of the Yangtze River near its intersection with the Grand Canal. It is opposite Yangzhou (to its north) and between Nanjing (to its west) and Changzhou (to its east). Zhenjiang was formerly the provincial capital of Jiangsu and remains as an important transportation hub. As of the 2020 census, its total population was 3,210,418 inhabitants¹ whom 1,266,790 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of the 3 urban districts. The town is best known both in China and abroad for Chinkiang vinegar, a fragrant black vinegar that is a staple of Chinese cooking.

Zhenjiang, alternately romanized as Chinkiang, is a prefecture-level city in Jiangsu Province, China. It lies on the southern bank of the Yangtze River near its intersection with the Grand Canal. It is opposite Yangzhou (to its north) and between Nanjing (to its west) and Changzhou (to its east). Zhenjiang was formerly the provincial capital of Jiangsu and remains as an important transportation hub. As of the 2020 census, its total population was 3,210,418 inhabitants whom 1,266,790 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of the 3 urban districts. The town is best known both in China and abroad for Chinkiang vinegar, a fragrant black vinegar that is a staple of Chinese cooking.

Names

Prior to the adoption of Hanyu Pinyin, the city's name was typically romanized as or

History

Geography

Climate

Zhenjiang has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cfa), featuring hot and uncomfortably humid summers, cold though not severe winters, a noticeable rise in rainfall during the East Asian monsoon. Extremes since 1951 have ranged from (unofficial record of was set on 27 January 1933) to .

Administration

The prefecture-level city of Zhenjiang administers 6 county-level divisions, including three districts and three county-level cities. These are further divided into 77 township-level divisions, including 66 towns, 1 township and 10 subdistricts.

Demographics

As in Nanjing, Zhenjiang's old Wu dialects have been entirely supplanted by a dialect of Lower Yangtze Mandarin. It is incomprehensible to the residents of neighboring Changzhou, whose dialect remains a form of Taihu Wu. The population was 3,210,418 as of 2020, reflecting a 0.31% annual change from the 2010 census, which recorded a population of 3,114,105.

Culture

Zhenjiang is most famous for its fragrant black vinegar, called Zhenjiang vinegar. Chinese legend traces it to Heita, the son of Dukang, the supposed inventor of alcoholic beverages. Having forgotten about a vat of wine for 21 days, he found it had spoiled but now possessed a pleasant sour taste that could be used to complement foods. The present recipe is said to date back 1400 years, with its major modern manufacturer—the Jiangsu Hengshun Vinegar Industry Co.—dating to 1840. Other local specialties include crab cream bun, Chinkiang pork ( , akin to head cheese), and pickled vegetables. Formerly, households in Zhenjiang would prepare for the new year by eating a red-bean dish and avoiding rice. One bowl of beans was left on the table to feed the home's flies, from the belief that they would then avoid disturbing the family during the new year festivities. A natural spring in a park on the edge of Zhenjiang has been famed since the Tang (7th–9th century) as the best in Jiangsu for making tea. It is now marketed as the "First Spring under Heaven". The 15th-century Japanese ink-wash master Sesshū Tōyō studied in Zhenjiang. The local Jinshan temple appears in the tale of Madame White Snake and inspired a replica in the Kangxi Emperor's garden at Chengde.

Transport

Zhenjiang is located in the convenient Yangtze River Delta transport corridor, at the crossroads of the Grand Canal and the Yangtze, and between the Shanghai and Nanjing economic regions. The Port of Zhenjiang is the third largest port on the Yangtze. The city has two Yangtze River crossings. The Runyang Yangtze River Bridge complex, which has one of the longest suspension bridge spans in the world, connects to Yangzhou. The Taizhou Yangtze River Bridge, one of the longest cable-stayed bridges in the world, connects Yongzhong with Taizhou.

Rail

Zhenjiang has been connected by rail since 1906, at the completion of the Nanjing-Shanghai Railway. The railway was extended to Beijing after the completion of the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge in 1968, connecting Zhenjiang to China's political and commercial hubs. The primary railway station was Zhenjiang West Railway Station, which was demolished in 2004 due to congestion it caused in the city center. Since then Zhenjiang Railway Station has served as the city's principal railway station.

Air

Zhenjiang does not have a commercial airport within its city limits, although there is a military airfield, Zhenjiang Dalu Airport ( ), which may open to regional flights in the future. Zhenjiang city center is away from Changzhou Benniu International Airport, about a one-hour drive ( ) away from Nanjing Lukou International Airport via Nanjing Provincial Highway 243, and approximately a two-hour ( ) drive away from Sunan Shuofang International Airport. Check-in facilities are available for Lukou Airport in the New Zhenjiang Bus Station ( ).

Roadways

Zhenjiang is on the route of Beijing-Shanghai Expressway, and China National Highway 312.

Public transport

, Zhenjiang had an extensive number of bus routes – numbering nearly one hundred. Since 2012 the city's entire fleet of city buses are equipped with GPS and are managed centrally through a "smart transport network system."

Industry

Zhenjiang Export Processing Zone was approved by the State Council on March 10, 2003, with a total planned area of . The first-phrase project completed in December 2003 covers and was certified by the Customs General Administration and other seven ministries for operation on December 24, 2003. Zhenjiang Export Processing Zone is located close to Changzhou Airport and Zhenjiang Port.

Education

As of 2025, Zhenjiang is a major city for scientific research, appearing among the world's top 100 cities as tracked by the Nature Index. Public institutions having full-time Bachelor's degree programs include Jiangsu University ( ) and the Jiangsu University of Science and Technology ( ). Zhenjiang is home to the Silkworm Raising Research Institute of the Academy of Agricultural Science of China. The Shaozong Library includes a 100-volume collection of sayings and proverbs dating from the 7th to 11th centuries. Senior high schools are Jiangsu Provincial Zhenjiang No. 1 High School ( ), the Zhenjiang High School of Jiangsu Province ( ) and the Jiangsu Provincial Dagang High School ( ).

Twin towns – sister cities

Fairfield, Australia Mannheim, Germany Kiskőrös, Hungary Tsu, Mie, Japan Kuching, Malaysia Stavropol, Russia Tempe, Arizona, United States

Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1373864962 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.