Zhoushan Island (original) (raw)

Island off the coast of China

Zhoushan

Native name: 舟山岛
Zhoushan is located in ZhejiangZhoushanZhoushanZhoushan Island (China)Show map of ZhejiangZhoushan is located in Eastern ChinaZhoushanZhoushanZhoushan (Eastern China)Show map of Eastern ChinaZhoushan is located in ChinaZhoushanZhoushanZhoushan (China)Show map of China
Geography
Location East China Sea
Coordinates 30°03′28″N 122°08′17″E / 30.05778°N 122.13806°E / 30.05778; 122.13806
Archipelago Zhoushan Islands
Area 502.65 km2 (194.07 sq mi)
Length 44 km (27.3 mi)
Width 18 km (11.2 mi)
Highest elevation 503.6 m (1652.2 ft)
Administration
China
Province Zhejiang Province
Demographics
Population 502,667
Pop. density 875.36/km2 (2267.17/sq mi)
Zhoushan Island
Simplified Chinese 舟山岛
Postal Chusan Island
TranscriptionsStandard MandarinHanyu PinyinZhōushān DǎoWade–GilesChou1-shan1 Tao3WuRomanizationTseu平se平 toh去

Zhoushan Island is the principal and namesake island in the Zhoushan Islands, formerly romanized as the Chusan Islands, an archipelago administered by Zhoushan Prefecture in Zhejiang Province in the People's Republic of China. It is the province's largest island and 3rd-largest in mainland China after Hainan and Chongming. The island is the district seat of both Dinghai and Putuo. The island was the site of the first and second capture of Chusan during the First Opium War.

When referred to as a port, the Port of Zhoushan (舟山市) refers to the prefecture-level "city" consisting of Zhoushan island as well as the other nearby outlying islands, in Zhejiang. The former name of Zhoushan was Dinghai (Chinese: 定海). The Port of Zhoushan is a popular port for bulk carriers.[1]

The name Zhoushan means "Boat" and refers to the shape of the island on a map.[_citation needed_]

The Changhai Channel is a channel dividing Changbai Island and Zhoushan Main Island

At 30° N. 122° E.,[2] it lies northwest to southeast, and has a 170.16 km (105.73 mi) coastline, 44 km (27 mi) at its longest point 18 km (11 mi) at its narrowest. Its area is 502.65 km2 (including tidal zone). At its closest point, it is 9.1 kilometers (5.7 mi) from the Chinese mainland. It rises to an altitude of 503.6 meters (1,652 ft).

The island has a varied range of landscape, with hill and dale, as well as watered with numerous small streams, of which the most considerable is the Dongjiang (East River), passing into the harbour of Dinghai. There are several hundred ports around the islands, separated into three areas: Dinghai Port Zone, Shen-jia-men Port Zone (沈家门港区), and Laotangshan Port Zone (老塘山港区). The tourism regions include the regions of Shen-jia-men and Dinghai.

History and attractions

[edit]

British ships attacking the island as the troops prepare to land in 1840

The island was the site of the first and second capture of Chusan during the First Opium War.[3] A number of historical sites and monuments on the island are popular tourist attractions.[1]

On the peak of Qinglong Mountain, there is a memorial tablet dedicated to those killed during wars. Dinghai has a number of sites related to the Opium War:

There also those about the Ming-Qing contention:

Other sites include:

440 000 people, mostly Han, in 150 000 households live in the following 17 subdivisions of Dinghai and Putuo Districts on Zhoushan Island:

10+ sub-districts:

3 towns:

1 township:

  1. ^ a b Admiralty Sailing Directions - China Sea and Yellow Sea. Taunton, United Kingdom: UK Hydrographic Office. 2011.
  2. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Chusan" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 6 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 350.
  3. ^ The Annual Register, or a View of the History, and Politics, of the Year 1840. London: J. G. F. & J. Rivington. 1841.

30°03′28″N 122°08′17″E / 30.05778°N 122.13806°E / 30.05778; 122.13806