Zhao County
Encyclopedia
Zhao County , a historic town called Zhaozhou (赵州) in the past, is located in Hebei
40 km southeast of the provincial capital Shijiazhuang
, and 280 km south of Beijing
. Its total land area is 675 km² and total population is around 550,000. There are many historical sites in Zhao County, including the Zhaozhou (Anji) bridge
(赵州桥), Yongtong Bridge (永通桥), Tuoluonijing Tower (陀罗尼经幢), and Bailin (Cypress Grove) Temple (柏林寺). The county is also famous for its agricultural products: snowflake pear
s (xuehua pear), asparagus
，and high-quality wheat
.
Zhao meaning "most beautiful violet flower"
; its elevation is fairly low and topography fairly flat.
Townships:
Hebei
' is a province of the People's Republic of China in the North China region. Its one-character abbreviation is "" , named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included what is now southern Hebei...
40 km southeast of the provincial capital Shijiazhuang
Shijiazhuang
Shijiazhuang is the capital and largest city of North China's Hebei province. Administratively a prefecture-level city, it is about south of Beijing...
, and 280 km south of Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
. Its total land area is 675 km² and total population is around 550,000. There are many historical sites in Zhao County, including the Zhaozhou (Anji) bridge
Zhaozhou Bridge
The Anji Bridge is the world's oldest open-spandrel stone segmental arch bridge. Credited to the design of a craftsman named Li Chun, the bridge was constructed in the years 595-605 during the Sui Dynasty...
(赵州桥), Yongtong Bridge (永通桥), Tuoluonijing Tower (陀罗尼经幢), and Bailin (Cypress Grove) Temple (柏林寺). The county is also famous for its agricultural products: snowflake pear
Pear
The pear is any of several tree species of genus Pyrus and also the name of the pomaceous fruit of these trees. Several species of pear are valued by humans for their edible fruit, but the fruit of other species is small, hard, and astringent....
s (xuehua pear), asparagus
Asparagus
Asparagus officinalis is a spring vegetable, a flowering perennialplant species in the genus Asparagus. It was once classified in the lily family, like its Allium cousins, onions and garlic, but the Liliaceae have been split and the onion-like plants are now in the family Amaryllidaceae and...
，and high-quality wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
.
History
Known for its long history, the earliest written record of Zhao Zhou dates back 2500 years ago. During the Shang Dynasty, Zhao Zhou was a center of horse breeding in Kingdom Fang (方国). Various names were used for where Zhao Xian is located nowadays, including Jipu (棘蒲)，Pingji (平棘），Zhaojun （赵郡）, Qingyuan (庆源) and others.Zhao meaning "most beautiful violet flower"
Geography
Zhao Xian is located in the middle of North China PlainNorth China Plain
The North China Plain is based on the deposits of the Yellow River and is the largest alluvial plain of eastern Asia. The plain is bordered on the north by the Yanshan Mountains and on the west by the Taihang Mountains edge of the Shanxi plateau. To the south, it merges into the Yangtze Plain...
; its elevation is fairly low and topography fairly flat.
Administrative Divisions
Towns:- ZhaozhouZhaozhou, Zhao CountyZhaozhou, Zhao County is a township-level division of Zhao County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China....
(赵州镇), FanzhuangFanzhuangFanzhuang is a township-level division of Zhao County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China....
(范庄镇), BeiwangliBeiwangliBeiwangli is a township-level division of Zhao County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China....
(北王里镇), XinzhaidianXinzhaidianXinzhaidian is a township-level division of Zhao County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China....
(新寨店镇), HancunHancunHancun is a township-level division situated in Huaibei, Anhui, China....
(韩村镇), NanbaisheNanbaisheNanbaishe is a township-level division of Zhao County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China....
(南柏舍镇), ShahedianShahedianShahedian is a township-level division of Zhao County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China....
(沙河店镇)
Townships:
- Qiandazhang TownshipQiandazhang TownshipQiandazhang Township is a township-level division of Zhao County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China....
(前大章乡), Xiezhuang Township (谢庄乡), Gaocun Township (高村乡), Wangxizhang TownshipWangxizhang TownshipWangxizhang Township is a township-level division of Zhao County, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, China....
(王西章乡)
Notable residents
- Li Qi (Tang Dynasty poet)Li Qi (Tang Dynasty poet)Li Qi was a Chinese poet of the Tang Dynasty, with seven of his poems being included in the famous anthology Three Hundred Tang Poems. As translated by Witter Bynner, these are:* "An Old Air"* "A Farewell to my Friend Chen Zhangfu"* "A Lute Song"...
- Li YangbingLi YangbingLi Yangbing , zi Shaowen, was a high-ranking Tang Dynasty Chinese government official , important literary figure, noted calligrapher, and relative of the famous Chinese poet Li Bo...
, Tang Dynasty man of letters - Tie NingTie NingTie Ning is a Chinese author born in 1957 in Peking, China, with her ancestral hometown in Hebei Province. Her works include short stories, "Ah, Xiangxue"《哦，香雪》, "The Red Shirt Without Buttons"《沒有紐扣的紅襯衫》, "June's Big Topic"《六月的話題》, "Wheat Straw Stack"《麥秸垛》, "Cotton Stack"《棉花垛》, "The Village Road...