Jiangsu Tour Guide

Nantong, Jiangsu Province, China

Meaning of the name "Nantong"
"Southern Opening", perhaps from its position near the mouth of the Chang Jiang (Yangzi River).

Location
Near the north shore of the Chang Jiang (Yangzi River), 100 km northwest of Shanghai. The Chang Jiang is 18 km wide at Nantong.

History
Because the coast of the East China Sea is constantly moving eastward as the Yangzi River adds silt to its delta, Nantong was much closer to the seashore in ancient times. From the time of the Han dynasty through to the Tang dynasty, what is now called Nantong was a minor county subordinate to Yangzhou. By 958 AD a city of sufficient importance had developed for a new, independent prefecture called Tongzhou to be created. The increasing wealth of Yangzhou caused it to once again eclipse Tongzhou as an administrative center in 1368. When Tongzhou finally regained prefecture status in 1724, it was renamed "Southern Tong" to avoid confusion with another Tongzhou, located near Beijing.

The prosperity of Nantong has traditionally depended on salt production on the nearby seacoast, rice and cotton agriculture, and especially the production of cotton textiles. A local statesman and industrialist named Zhang Jian (Chang Chien) founded Nantong's first modern cotton mills in 1899, then developed an industrial complex that included flour, oil, and silk reeling mills, a distillery, and a machine shop. He also founded a shipping line and reclaimed saline agricultural land to the east of Nantong for cotton production. By 1911, Nantong was commonly called "Zhang Jian's Kingdom".

Although suffering from the economic depression of the 1930s and the Japanese occupation of the 1930s and 40s, Nantong has remained an important center for the textile industry. Because of its deep-water harbour and connections to inland navigational canals, it was one of 14 port cities opened to foreign investment in the recent economic reforms.

Language
Nantong is at the northern limit of the region of Wu dialects , which means the natives speak a dialect similar to that of nearby Shanghai.

Culture
The Cao Gong Zhu Memorial Temple commemorates a local hero who defended the city against Japanese pirates in 1557.

The "King of Nantong", Zhang Jian, founded the first teacher-training schools in China at Nantong. These eventually merged with his agricultural, industrial, and medical schools to become Nantong University. Zhang also founded museums, libraries, and theatres, making Nantong into an important cultural center.

Folklore
East of Nantong is Lang Shan (Wolf Hill), believed to be haunted by the spirit of a white wolf. On top of the hill is a Buddhist temple dedicated to a Song-dynasty monk. Because of the monk's legendary powers over water demons, sailors pray to him for protection on their voyages.