Zhoushan Island is the principal and namesake

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An isla ...

in the Zhoushan Islands, formerly

romanized Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...

as the ChusanIslands, an archipelago administered by Zhoushan Prefecture in

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Ji ...

Province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

in the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

. It is the province's largest island and 3rd-largest in

mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the China, People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming Island, Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territorie ...

after

Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...

and Chongming. The island is the district seats of both Dinghai and Putuo. The island was the site of the first and second capture of Chusan during the

First Opium War The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...

. When referred to as a port, the Port of Zhoushan (舟山市) refers to the prefecture-level "city" consisting of Zhoushan island as well as the other nearby outlying islands, in Zhejiang. The former name of Zhoushan was Dinghai ( Chinese: 定海). The Port of Zhoushan is a popular port for bulk carriers.

Name

The name ''Zhoushan'' means "Boat" and refers to the shape of the island on a map.

Geography

At 30° N. 122° E., it lies northwest to southeast, and has a coastline, at its longest point at its narrowest. Its area is 502.65 km² (including tidal zone). At its closest point, it is from the Chinese mainland. It rises to an altitude of . The island has a varied range of landscape, with hill and dale, as well as watered with numerous small streams, of which the most considerable is the

Dongjiang The Dong River is the eastern tributary of the Pearl River in Guangdong province, southern China. The other two main tributaries of Pearl River are Xi River and Bei River. The headwater is located in Mount Sanbai () in Anyuan County, Jiangxi ...

(East River), passing into the harbour of Dinghai. There are several hundred ports around the islands, separated into three areas: Dinghai Port Zone, Shen-jia-men Port Zone (沈家门港区), and Laotangshan Port Zone (老塘山港区). The tourism regions include the regions of Shen-jia-men and Dinghai.

History and attractions

The island was the site of the first and second capture of Chusan during the

. A number of historical sites and monuments on the island are popular tourist attractions. On the peak of Qinglong Mountain, there is a memorial tablet dedicated to those killed during wars. Dinghai has a number of sites related to the

Opium War The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of th ...

: * Opium War Memorial Park (鸦片战争纪念公园) * Shrine of the Three Loyalists (三忠祠): commemorates generals

Ge Yunfei Ge Yunfei (, 1789–1841) was a Chinese general of the Qing dynasty. He served in the First Opium War and died during the British capture of Chusan. Born in a military family in the Shanyin county of Zhejiang, Ge Yunfei learned kung fu from hi ...

, Zheng Guohong (鄭國鴻) and Wang Ximing (王錫朋), who were killed in action. * The Tablet of the Martyring Site of Lord Yao (姚公殉难处碑) * The Tablet of the Martyring Site of Mr. Li (义士李先生殉难处碑) * The Cannon Platform from the Fortress of Zhengyuan (震远城炮台) * Remnants of the Town of Daotou (道头土城) There also those about the

Ming The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han pe ...

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

contention: * The Realm of Tonggui (同归域/同歸域, literally "The Realm where ll AreReunited in the Journey o the Hereafter), built in 1651 to bury the unidentified remains of anti-Qing resistant fighters and civilians who died during the battles. * The Well of Imperial Yuan Consort of the Prince of Lu (鲁王元妃宫井), where a

Southern Ming The Southern Ming (), also known as the Later Ming (), officially the Great Ming (), was an imperial dynasty of China and a series of rump states of the Ming dynasty that came into existence following the Jiashen Incident of 1644. Shun force ...

queen leapt to her death as the fall of the Ming was imminent. Other sites include: * Zuyin Temple (祖印寺), a

Chan Buddhist Chan (; of ), from Sanskrit '' dhyāna'' (meaning "meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming especially popular during the Tang and So ...

place of worship and meditation with a lineage dating back to 940, when a monastery on the nearby island of Qúshan (衢山) named the Haven of Penglai (蓬莱院) was founded. The monks moved to the current location in the 1230s. * Sanmao Memorial Museum (三毛祖居纪念馆), dedicated to a popular Taiwanese author of Mainlander origin.

Subdivisions

440 000 people, mostly Han, in 150 000 households live in the following 17 subdivisions of Dinghai and Putuo Districts on Zhoushan Island: 10+ sub-districts: * Jiefang (解放, local dialect: Kafaon), district seat of Dinghai * Changguo (昌国, Tshaonkoh), old municipal seat of Zhoushan * Huannan (环南, Guaenei) * Chengdong (城东, Jinton) * Yancang (盐仓, Yietshaon) * Lincheng (临城, Linjin), new municipal seat of Zhoushan * Shenjiamen (沈家门, Shinkomen), district seat of Putuo * Goushan (勾山, Keusae) * Donggang (东港, Tonkaon) * Zhanmao (展茅, Ciemau) * Ma'ao (马岙, Mo'au) * Cengang (岑港, Dzenkaon) * Xiaosha (小沙, Shioso) 3 towns: * Baiquan (白泉, Bahdzoe) * Shuangqiao (双桥, Saonjio) * Ganlan (干𬒗, Kielae) 1 township: * Beichan (北蝉, Pohzoe)

References

{{coord, 30, 03, 28, N, 122, 08, 17, E, source:GNS_scale:500000, display=title Zhoushan