兴安 (Xīng'ān): Xing'an (place name used across China)

Meanings

1 Xing'an (place name used across China)
2 refers most commonly to Xing'an League (兴安盟) in Inner Mongolia, Xing'an County (兴安县) in Guangxi, or the Greater Khingan Range (大兴安岭)

Characters

兴

Examples

大兴安岭位于中国东北。

Dà Xīng'ān lǐng wèiyú Zhōngguó dōngběi.

The Greater Khingan Range is in northeastern China.

兴安盟是内蒙古的一个地级行政区。

Xīng'ān méng shì Nèiménggǔ de yī gè dìjí xíngzhèngqū.

Xing'an League is a prefecture-level administrative region in Inner Mongolia.

Tips

history

兴安 literally means 'prosperous and peaceful' — a celebratory place name. The Greater Khingan Range (大兴安岭) is where the historical Ling Qu Canal (灵渠) in Xing'an County, Guangxi, was built in 214 BCE under Qin Shi Huang, one of the oldest surviving canals in the world.

usage

Pinyin requires the apostrophe: Xīng'ān, not Xīngān, because 安 begins with a vowel.