襄阳 (Xiāngyáng): Xiangyang

Meanings

1 Xiangyang
2 prefecture-level city in northwestern Hubei Province

Characters

襄

xiāng

to assist (place name element)

阳

yáng

north of a river / sunny side

Examples

襄阳是湖北省的历史名城。

Xiāngyáng shì Húběi Shěng de lìshǐ míngchéng.

Xiangyang is a historic city in Hubei Province.

诸葛亮年轻时隐居在襄阳的隆中。

Zhūgě Liàng niánqīng shí yǐnjū zài Xiāngyáng de Lóngzhōng.

Zhuge Liang lived in seclusion at Longzhong near Xiangyang in his youth.

Tips

history

The Siege of Xiangyang (襄阳之战, 1267-1273) was the six-year showdown that broke the Southern Song. Held by the Lü brothers against Kublai Khan's Mongol forces — including newly-imported Persian counterweight trebuchets — its fall opened the road to Hangzhou.

In Pop Culture

射雕英雄传 Shè Diāo Yīngxióng Zhuàn

The Legend of the Condor Heroes

Jin Yong's wuxia trilogy makes Xiangyang the symbolic last bastion of Han China; in the sequel 神雕侠侣 (The Return of the Condor Heroes), Guo Jing dies defending its walls.