Kaifeng () is a
prefecture-level city
A prefecture-level city () or prefectural city is an administrative division of the People's Republic of China (PRC), ranking below a province and above a county in China's administrative structure.
During the Republican era, many of China ...
in east-central
Henan province, China. It is one of the
Eight Ancient Capitals of China, having been the capital eight times in history, and is best known for having been the Chinese capital during the
Northern Song dynasty.
As of 31 December 2018, around 4,465,000 people lived in Kaifeng's Prefecture, of whom 1,652,000 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of Xiangfu, Longting, Shunhe Hui, Gulou and Yuwantai Districts. Located along the
Yellow River's southern bank, it borders the provincial capital of
Zhengzhou to the west,
Xinxiang to the northwest,
Shangqiu
Shangqiu (), alternately romanized as Shangkiu, is a city in eastern Henan province, Central China. It borders Kaifeng to the northwest, Zhoukou to the southwest, and the provinces of Shandong and Anhui to the northeast and southeast respectivel ...
to the east,
Zhoukou
Zhoukou (; Postal romanization, postal: Chowkow) is a prefecture-level city in eastern Henan province of China, province, China. It borders Zhumadian to the southwest, Xuchang and Luohe to the west, Kaifeng to the northwest, Shangqiu to the north ...
to the southeast,
Xuchang to the southwest, and
Heze of
Shandong to the northeast.
Kaifeng is also a major city in the world by scientific research outputs as tracked by the
Nature Index. The city is home to a campus of
Henan University
Henan University () is one of the oldest public and Double First Class Universities in China. It was founded in 1912. In the beginning, its name was the Preparatory School for Further Study in Europe and America. In 1942, its name was changed to ...
, one of the national key universities in the
Double First Class University Plan
The World First Class University and First Class Academic Discipline Construction (), together known as Double First Class (), is a tertiary education development initiative designed by the People's Republic of China central government in 2015 ...
.
Names
The
postal romanization for the city is "Kaifeng". Its official one-character abbreviation in Chinese is (''Biàn''). Historically it has also been known as:
*''Dàliáng'' ()
*''Biànliáng'' ()
*''Biànzhōu'' ()
*''Nánjīng'' () (This is Jurchen Jin's terminology only and not to be confused with
Nánjīng.)
*''Dōngjīng'' ()
*''Biànjīng'' ()
The area was named "Kaifeng" after the
Qin's conquest of China in the second century BC. The name literally means "opening the border" and figuratively "hidden" and "vengeance". Its name was originally Qifeng (), but the syllable ''qi'' (Baxter-Sagart: /*kʰˤijʔ/) was changed to the essentially synonymous ''kai'' (/*Nə-
�ˤəj/, /*
�ˤəj/) to avoid the
naming taboo of Liu Qi (
Emperor Jing of Han).
Administration
The
prefecture-level city
A prefecture-level city () or prefectural city is an administrative division of the People's Republic of China (PRC), ranking below a province and above a county in China's administrative structure.
During the Republican era, many of China ...
of Kaifeng administers five
districts and four
counties
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
:
*
Gulou District ()
*
Longting District
Longting District () is a district of the city of Kaifeng, Henan
Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which l ...
()
*
Yuwangtai District
Yuwangtai District () is a district of the city of Kaifeng, Henan province, China.
It is named after a shrine dedicated to Yu the Great, a legendary ruler in ancient China
The earliest known written records of the history of China date f ...
()
*
Xiangfu District
Xiangfu District (), formerly Kaifeng County, is a district of the city of Kaifeng, Henan
Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan ...
()
*
Shunhe Hui District ()
*
Weishi County
Weishi County () is a county in the central part of Henan province, China. It is under the administration of Kaifeng
Kaifeng () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, China. It is one of the Eight Ancient Capitals of China, ...
()
*
Qi County ()
*
Tongxu County
Tongxu County () is a county in the east-central part of Henan province, China. It is under the administration of Kaifeng
Kaifeng () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, China. It is one of the Eight Ancient Capitals of C ...
()
*
Lankao County ()
History
Kaifeng is one of the
Eight Ancient Capitals of China. As with Beijing, there have been many reconstructions during its history.
In 364 BC during the
Warring States period, the
State of Wei
Wei (; ; Old Chinese: *') was one of the seven major states during the Warring States period of ancient China. It was created from the three-way Partition of Jin, together with Han and Zhao. Its territory lay between the states of Qin and ...
founded a city called Daliang () as its capital in this area. During this period, the first of many canals in the area was constructed linking a local river to the
Yellow River. When the
State of Qin conquered the State of Wei, Kaifeng was destroyed and abandoned except for a mid-sized market town, which remained in place.
During the Han Dynasty, the city underwent some reconstruction. Kaifeng became the capital of Liu Wu (son of Han emperor
Wen) when he was given the title of ''Liang Xiao Wang''. Liu Wu restored and constructed many buildings and old city walls. Kaifeng became a center of music, art, a refuge for artists, and of splendid gardens despite the trivial political importance of the city at this period.
Early in the 7th century, Kaifeng was transformed into a major commercial hub when it was connected to the
Grand Canal as well as through the construction of a canal running to western
Shandong.
In 781 during the
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...
, a new city was reconstructed and named Bian (). Bian was the capital of the
Later Jin (936–946),
Later Han (947–950), and
Later Zhou
Zhou, known as the Later Zhou (; ) in historiography, was a short-lived Chinese imperial dynasty and the last of the Five Dynasties that controlled most of northern China during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Founded by Guo Wei ( ...
(951–960) of the
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period
The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen conc ...
. The
Song dynasty
The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...
made Bian its capital when it overthrew the Later Zhou in 960. Shortly afterwards, the city underwent further expansion.
During the Song, when it was known as Dongjing or Bianjing, Kaifeng, then the largest and most prosperous city in China, was the capital, with a population of over 400,000 living both inside and outside the city wall.
Typhus was an acute problem in the city. The historian
Jacques Gernet provides a lively picture of life in this period in his ''Daily Life in China on the Eve of the Mongol Invasion, 1250-1276,'' which often draws on ''
Dongjing Meng Hua Lu ''Dongjing Meng Hua Lu'' () or ''The Eastern Capital: A Dream of Splendor'', is a memoir written by Meng Yuanlao () (). In 1126, Meng was made a refugee from Kaifeng (Dongjing; "Eastern Capital"), the thriving capital of the Northern Song dynasty af ...
'', a nostalgic memoir of the city of Kaifeng.
In 1049, the Youguosi Pagoda () – or
Iron Pagoda
The Iron Pagoda () of Youguo Temple (), Kaifeng City, Henan province, is a Buddhist Chinese pagoda built in 1049 during the Song dynasty (960–1279) of China. The pagoda is so-named not because it is made of iron, but because its color resemble ...
as it is called today – was constructed measuring in height. It has survived the vicissitudes of war and floods to become the oldest landmark in this ancient city. Another Song-dynasty pagoda, , dating from 974, has been partially destroyed.
Another well-known sight was the
astronomical
Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, galaxi ...
clock tower of the engineer, scientist, and statesman
Su Song (1020–1101 AD). It was crowned with a rotating
armillary sphere that was
hydraulically-powered (i.e. by
water wheel and a
water clock), yet it incorporated an
escapement mechanism two hundred years before they were found in the clockworks of
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
and featured the first known endless power-transmitting
chain drive.
Kaifeng reached its peak importance in the 11th century as a commercial and industrial center at the intersection of four major canals. During this time, the city was surrounded by three rings of city walls and probably had a population of between 600,000 and 700,000. It is believed that Kaifeng was the largest city in the world from 1013 to 1127.
This period ended in 1127 when the city fell to
Jurchen invaders during the
Jingkang Incident. It subsequently came under the rule of the Jurchen
Jin dynasty, which had conquered most of
North China during the
Jin–Song Wars
The Jin–Song Wars were a series of conflicts between the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty (1115–1234) and the Han-led Song dynasty (960–1279). In 1115, Jurchen tribes rebelled against their overlords, the Khitan-led Liao dynasty (916–1125), ...
. While it remained an important administrative center, only the area inside the inner city wall of the early Song remained settled and the two outer rings were abandoned.
As the imperial capital of the Song, Kaifeng was conveniently situated along the
Grand Canal for logistics supply but militarily vulnerable due to its position on the
floodplains of the
Yellow River.
Kaifeng served as the Jurchen "southern capital" from 1157 (other sources say 1161) and was reconstructed during this time.