Origin of Chinese Place Names

Author: Jia Wenyu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-09-01
Features: This dictionary includes 11,477 Chinese place names, including:
1. Names of countries;
2. Provinces, municipalities directly under the Central Government, autonomous regions, autonomous prefectures, leagues, cities, counties, banners, autonomous counties, important county-level towns, and residential areas below the town level (administrative division data as of the end of 1990);
3. Mountains, peaks, river gorges, lakes, seas, springs, waterfalls, sea islands, archipelagos, shoals, plains, plateaus, basins, deserts, etc.;
4. Canals, reservoirs, bridges, railways, highways, historical sites;
5. Abbreviated place names;
6. Names of some former provinces, cities, counties, banners, and leagues.
The explanations of entries follow the geographical location of the place names, with an emphasis on etymology. For provinces, cities, counties, banners, autonomous regions, and leagues, brief historical changes related to etymology are also provided. For peaks, their elevation is explained; for rivers, their sources, mouths, and lengths are described; for seas, plains, plateaus, basins, and deserts, their areas are specified; for railways and highways, their start and end points and lengths are noted; for bridges and historical sites, their construction years are mentioned, etc.
Etymological explanations of place names include multiple interpretations when there are differing opinions.