Suizhou ( zh, s= , t= , p=Suízhōu), formerly Sui County ( zh, s=, t=, p=Suí Xian, Suixian, links=no), is a

prefecture-level city A prefecture-level city () or prefectural city is an administrative division of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC), ranking below a province of China, province and above a Counties of the People's Republic of China, county in China's ...

in northern

Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...

province, People's Republic of China, bordering

Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...

province to the north and east.

Etymology

The Sui in Suizhou is derived from the ancient 'Suishizu' ( zh, labels=no, s=随氏族).

Administration

The

of Suizhou administers 5 county-level divisions, including 1

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

, 1

county-level city A county-level city () is a County-level divisions of China, county-level administrative division of the China, People's Republic of China. County-level cities have judiciary, judicial but no legislature, legislative rights over their own local or ...

, 1

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

and 2 other areas. *

Zengdu District Zengdu () is a district of the city of Suizhou, Hubei province, China. Administrative divisions Zengdu District administers 4 subdistricts, 5 towns and 2 other township-level divisions: 4 subdistricts are: Xicheng Subdistrict, Suizhou, Xicheng Su ...

() *

Guangshui Guangshui () is a city located in northeastern Hubei province, People's Republic of China, near the border with Henan province. Administratively, it is a county-level city of Suizhou City. Guangshui was known as Yingshan County () before Dece ...

City () * Sui County () * Suizhou Economic Development Area () * Dahongshan Scenic Area () These are further divided into 54

township-level divisions The administrative divisions of China have consisted of several levels since 1412, due to mainland China's large population and geographical area. In the People's Republic of China, the constitution provides for three levels of government. Ho ...

, including 36

towns A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

, 11

townships A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

and 7

subdistrict A subdistrict or sub-district is an administrative division that is generally smaller than a district. Equivalents * Administrative posts of East Timor, formerly Portuguese-language * Kelurahan, in Indonesia * Mukim, a township in Brunei, Ind ...

History

Suizhou has a long history. During the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period (771−221 BCE), it was the territory of the State of Sui/Zeng and within the cultural sphere of the State of Chu. As a

Suizhou has a short history with its current status only granted by the

State Council State Council may refer to: Government * State Council of the People's Republic of China, the national cabinet and chief administrative authority of China, headed by the Premier * State Council of the Republic of Korea, the national cabinet of S ...

in June 2000.

Climate

Religion

The Catholic minority is pastorally served by its own (dormant?) pre-diocesan Apostolic Prefecture of Suixian () which is exempt, i.e. directly dependent on the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

(and its missionary

Dicastery for Evangelization The Dicastery for Evangelization is a department (dicastery) of the Roman Curia. It was created on 5 June 2022 through the merger of the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization and the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peop ...

), not part of any

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

. It was established on 1937.06.17 as Apostolic Prefecture of Suixian () / Suihsien / Suihsienen(sis) (Latin adjective), on territory split off from the Apostolic Vicariate of Hankou (). It is vacant since 1951, without apostolic administrator since 1981, having had only the following incumbents: * Father Patrick Maurice Connaughton ( zh, labels=no, t=龔成德),

Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (commonly called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. The order adheres to the t ...

(O.F.M.) (born Ireland) (1937.06.17 – retired 1951.03), died 1967 * ''

Apostolic Administrator An apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

Friar Dominic Chen Te-mien, O.F.M. (1951.04.05 – 1981), no ther Ordinariate.

Transport

Suizhou is served by the

Hankou–Danjiangkou Railway The Hankou–Danjiangkou railway or Handan railway (), is a railroad in central China between Wuhan and Danjiangkou in Hubei Province. The line is long and follows the Han River from Wuhan's Hankou District north to Danjiangkou near the border ...

References

Sources and external links

Government website of Suizhou

{{Authority control Cities in Hubei Prefecture-level divisions of Hubei National Famous Historical and Cultural City