Luoyang

Luoyang
洛阳
—  Prefecture-level city  —
洛阳市
Luoyang in Henan
Luoyang is located in China
Luoyang
Location in China
Coordinates:
Country China
Province Henan
Government
 - Mayor Guo Hongchang
Area
 - Prefecture-level city 15,208 km2 (5,871.8 sq mi)
 - Urban 4,304 km2 (1,661.8 sq mi)
Population (2008)
 - Prefecture-level city 6,544,000
 - Density 430.3/km2 (1,114.5/sq mi)
 - Urban 1,500,000
 - Urban density 348.5/km2 (902.6/sq mi)
Time zone China Standard (UTC+8)
Area code(s) 379
GDP ¥30,080 per capita (2008)
Ethnicities Han, Hui, Manchu, Mongolian
County-level divisions 15
Township-level divisions unknown
License plate prefixes 豫C
Website http://www.ly.gov.cn

Luoyang (simplified Chinese: 洛阳; traditional Chinese: 洛陽; pinyin: Luòyáng; Postal map spelling: Loyang; IPA: [lwɔ̂jɑ̌ŋ]) is a prefecture-level city in western Henan province, People's Republic of China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang to the south, Sanmenxia to the west, Jiyuan to the north, and Jiaozuo to the northeast.

Situated on the central plain of China, one of the cradles of the Chinese civilization, Luoyang was one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China.

Contents

Names

The origin of the name "Luoyang" is the city's location to the north side ("yang") of the Luo River. The river flows from west to east and the sun is on south of the river, so that the sun shine is always on north side of the river. Luoyang has had several names over the centuries, including "Luoyi" (洛邑) and "Luozhou (洛州)", though Luoyang has been its primary name. It has been called, during various periods, "Dongdu" (东都, meaning the Eastern Capital, during the Tang Dynasty), "Xijing" (西京, meaning the West Capital, during the Song Dynasty), or "Jingluo" (京洛, meaning the general capital for China).

History

The old temple gate

The greater Luoyang area has been sacred ground since the late Neolithic period. This area at the intersection of the Luo and Yi rivers, called The Waste of Xia, was considered to be the geographical center of China. Because of this sacred aspect several cites, all of which are generally referred to as "Luoyang", have been built there. In 2070 BCE, the Xia Dynasty king Tai Kang moved the Xia capital to the intersection of Luo river and Yi River and named the city Zhenxun (Chinese:斟鄩: Pinyin:Zhēnxún). In c 1600 BCE, King Tang of Shang defeated Jie, the final Xia Dynasty king, and built Western Bo (Chinese: 西亳; Pinyin: Xībó), a new capital on the Luo River. The ruins of Western Bo are located in Luoyang Prefecture.

In the 1136 BCE a settlement named Chengzhou (Chinese: 成周) was constructed by the Duke of Zhou for the remnants of the captured Shang nobility. The Duke also moved the Nine Tripod Cauldrons to Chengzhou from the Zhou Dynasty capital at Haojing. A second Western Zhou capital, Wangcheng (also: Luoyi) was built 15 km west of Chengzhou. It became the capital of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty in 771 BCE. The Eastern Zhou Dynasty capital was moved to Chengzhou in 510 BCE. Later, the Han dynasty capital of Luoyang would be built over Chengzhou. The ruins of Chengzhou are still visible today 2 km east of the White Horse Temple area.[1] Modern Luoyang is built over the ruins of Wangcheng, which are still visible today at Wangcheng Park.[2]

In AD 25, Luoyang became the capital of Eastern Han Dynasty. For several centuries, Luoyang was the focal point of China. In AD 68, the White Horse Temple, the first Buddhist temple in China, was founded in Luoyang. The temple still exists, though the architecture is of later origin, mainly from the 16th century. An Shigao was one of the first monks to popularize Buddhism in Luoyang.

In 166 the first Roman envoy(s) sent by "the king of Da Qin [the Roman Empire], Andun (Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, r. 161-180)", reached Luoyang after arriving by sea in Rinan Commandery in what is now central Vietnam.[3]

The late second century saw China decline into anarchy.

"The decline was accelerated by the rebellion by the Yellow Turbans, who, although defeated by the Imperial troops in 184, weakened the state to the point where there was a continuing series of rebellions degenerating into civil war, culminating in the burning of the Han capital of Luoyang on 24 September 189 CE. This was followed by a state of continual unrest and wars in China until a modicum of stability returned in the 220s, but with the establishment of three separate kingdoms, rather than a unified empire.[4]

In AD 190, Chancellor Dong Zhuo ordered his soldiers to ransack, pillage and raze the city as he retreated from the coalition set up against him by regional lords from across China. The court was subsequently moved to the more defensible western city of Chang'an. Following a period of disorder, Luoyang was restored to prominence when Emperor Wen of the Wei Dynasty declared it his capital in AD 220. The Jin Dynasty, successor to Wei, was also established in Luoyang. When Jin was overrun by invaders and forced to move its capital to Jiankang (modern day Nanjing), Luoyang was nearly totally destroyed.

In AD 493 the Northern Wei Dynasty moved its capital from Datong to Luoyang and started the construction of the rock-cut Longmen Grottoes. More than 30,000 Buddhist statues from the time of this dynasty have been found in the caves. Many of these sculptures were two-faced. The Empress Dowager Wenming tomb and Yongning Temple (永宁寺), which had a pagoda nine stories high, were also built here.

During the Tang Dynasty, Luoyang was the 'Eastern Capital' and at its height had a population of around one million, second only to Chang'an, the 'Western Capital', and the largest city in the world.[5] During the short-lived Five Dynasties, Luoyang was the capital of the Later Tang. After that period, Luoyang no longer served as capital of any subsequent dynasties.

Administrative divisions

Luoyang groty z rzezbami wotywnymi Longmen Shiku - Smoczych Wrot i okolice 07.JPG
Luoyang.miasto.6.JPG

The prefecture-level city of Luoyang administers 6 districts, 1 county-level city and 8 counties.

Culture

The Longmen Grottoes were listed by UNESCO in the list of World Heritage Sites in November 2000. White Horse Temple is located 12 km east of the modern town. Guanlin is a series of temples that were built in honor of Guan Yu, a hero of the Three Kingdoms period, close to the grottoes to the south of the city. China's only tombs museum, the Luoyang Ancient Tombs Museum opened to the public in 1987 and is situated north of the modern town. Founded in 1958, the Luoyang Museum features ancient relics dating back to the Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties. The total number of exhibits on display is 1700.[6]

Guanlin Temple, May 2007

Luoyang is also famous for the Water Banquet Shui Xi, which consists of 8 cold and 16 warm dishes cooked in various broths, gravies or juices, hence its name.

Luoyang has a reputation as a cultivation centre for the peony, the city flower of Luoyang.

An ancient Chinese musical piece, Spring in Luoyang, was adopted by Korea during the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392), and is still performed in its Koreanized (Dangak) version, called Nakyangchun (hangul: 낙양춘; hanja: 洛阳春). The American composer Lou Harrison also created an arrangement of this work.

80 km south-east of Luoyang stands the Dengfeng Observatory (also known as "The Tower of Chou Kong"). It is a tower constructed during the Yuan Dynasty in 1276 by Guo Shou-Ching as a giant gnomon for the 'Measurement of the Sun's Shadow'. Used for establishing the Summer and Winter Solstices, this astronomical instrument is described in detail by Joseph Needham in his seminal work Science and Civilisation in China.

see also Roman Catholic Diocese of Luoyang

Colleges and universities

Famous residents

Sister cities

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Luoyang, 2009
  2. ↑ China.org.cn, 2009
  3. ↑ Hill (2009), p. 27.
  4. ↑ Hill (2009), p. xvi,
  5. ↑ Abramson (2008), p. viii.
  6. ↑ Luoyang Museum at chinaculture.org

References

Further reading

External links

Preceded by
Yinxu		 Capital of China
1136 BC-221 BC		 Succeeded by
Xianyang