Jining () 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 southwestern Shandong province. It borders

Heze Heze, formerly known as Caozhou, is the westernmost prefecture-level city in Shandong province, China, it borders Jining to the east and the provinces of Henan and Anhui to the west and south respectively. History Caozhou was at the cent ...

to the southwest, Zaozhuang to the southeast,

Tai'an Tai'an () is a prefecture-level city in Western Shandong Province of the People's Republic of China. Centered on Mount Tai, the city borders the provincial capital of Jinan to the north, Zibo to the east, Linyi to the southeast, Liaocheng to ...

to the northeast, and the provinces of

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 literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

and

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its c ...

to the northwest and south respectively. Jining, which is located directly to the north of

Lake Nanyang A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much lar ...

(), is today the northernmost city reachable by navigation on the Grand Canal of China making it an important

inland port An inland port is a port on an inland waterway, such as a river, lake, or canal, which may or may not be connected to the sea. The term "inland port" is also used to refer to a dry port. Examples The United States Army Corps of Engineers pub ...

. Its population was 8,081,905 at the 2010 census, of whom 1,518,000 lived in the built-up (''or metro'') area made up of Rencheng urban district on , Yanzhou district not being totally conurbated yet.

History

The name Jining was first given to the region in the year 1271 during the Song dynasty, although the exact area and type of administrative district it refers to have varied over the centuries. Jining has several distinctive associations in Chinese history and culture, as in antiquity it was the birthplace and home of

Confucius Confucius ( ; zh, s=, p=Kǒng Fūzǐ, "Master Kǒng"; or commonly zh, s=, p=Kǒngzǐ, labels=no; – ) was a Chinese philosopher and politician of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. C ...

, along with many of his more famous disciples, including Mencius. Temples to a number of these philosophers still exist in various parts of the prefecture. Liangshan, a county of Jining, is also famous as the principal setting of the Chinese literary classic, ''

Water Margin ''Water Margin'' (''Shuihu zhuan'') is one of the earliest Chinese novels written in vernacular Mandarin, and is attributed to Shi Nai'an. It is also translated as ''Outlaws of the Marsh'' and ''All Men Are Brothers''. The story, which is ...

''.

COVID-19 outbreak

In 2020, the Shandong government reported that a prison guard at Rencheng jail in Jining had shown COVID-19 symptoms in early February and that subsequently more than 2,000 inmates and staff were tested, with 200 prisoners and seven officers coming back positive. The provincial government said Xie Weijun, party secretary for Shandong's department of justice, and seven prison officials had been fired for mismanagement of the outbreak.

Administration

The

of Jining administers 11 county-level divisions, including two districts, two county-level cities and seven counties. *

Rencheng District Rencheng () is one of two districts and the seat of the city of Jining in Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong ...

() * Yanzhou District () * Qufu City () * Zoucheng City () * Weishan County () * Yutai County () - originally in Huxi prefecture * Jinxiang County () - originally in Huxi *

Jiaxiang County Jiaxiang County () is a county in the southwest of Shandong province, People's Republic of China. It is under the administration of Jining City. The population was in 2011. The cultural heritage site of the Carved Stones in the Tombs of the ...

() - originally in Huxi *

Wenshang County Wenshang County () is a county of southwestern Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in ...

() * Sishui County () * Liangshan County ()

Climate

Economy

Jining is situated in a

coal mining Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

area in the southwest of Shandong. An industrial city, Jining has a coal-fired power station, the Jining Power Plant. The city is served by

Jining Qufu Airport Jining Qufu Airport is an airport serving the cities of Jining and Qufu, the hometown of Confucius, in Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part ...

Notable people

(551 – 479 BC), central Chinese thinker, founder of

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

(main

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called church (building), churches), Hindui ...

and tomb in Qufu) * Zengzi (505 BC - 436 BC), Chinese philosopher and author, principal lineage protector and promoter of Confucianism * Mencius (372 – 289 BC), Chinese thinker, a principal interpreter of Confucianism (main temple in Zoucheng) *

Yan Hui Yan Hui (–481 BC) was a Chinese philosopher. He was the favorite disciple of Confucius and one of the most revered figures of Confucianism. He is venerated in Confucian temples as one of the Four Sages. Names Yan Hui is also known by his ...

(521 BC - 490 BC), one of the famous disciples of Confucius (

in Qufu) * Lu Ban (507–440 BC), Chinese engineer, philosopher, inventor, military thinker * Zuo Qiuming (5th century BC), Chinese court writer of the State of Lu, and contemporary of Confucius during the Spring and Autumn period. * Kong Shangren (1648–1718), a Chinese Qing Dynasty dramatist and poet best known for his ''chuanqi'' play The Peach-Blossom Fan *

Qiao Yu Qiao may refer to: * Qiao (surname), a common pronunciation for some Chinese surnames, such as 喬 and 橋. * Qiao (橋), Chinese character for "bridge". * Qiao (譙), a location in ancient China which corresponds to present-day Bozhou Bozhou ( ...

(1927–), a famous Chinese modern songwriter and play writer. *

Pan Xiaoting Pan Xiaoting (; born 25 February 1982) is a Chinese professional pool player. Professional biography She is the first Chinese woman to play full-time on the WPBA Tour, and has been nicknamed the "Queen of Nine-Ball". WPBA Rookie o ...

(1982–), the first professional pool player from China to play full-time on the WPBA Tour. *

Xiong Jingnan Xiong Jingnan (; born January 12, 1988) is a Chinese mixed martial artist. She is the inaugural and reigning ONE Women's Strawweight World Champion. She is also the first ever Chinese World Champion in mixed martial arts history. Background ...

(1988–), the first ever Chinese World Champion in mixed martial arts history.

Sister cities

* Ashikaga, Tochigi, Japan ''(1984)'' *

Lawton, Oklahoma Lawton is a city in and the county seat of Comanche County, in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Located in southwestern Oklahoma, approximately southwest of Oklahoma City, it is the principal city of the Lawton, Oklahoma, metropolitan statistical ...

, United States ''(1995)'' *

Mulhouse Mulhouse (; Alsatian: or , ; ; meaning ''mill house'') is a city of the Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region, eastern France, close to the Swiss and German borders. It is the largest city in Haut-Rhin and second largest in Alsace af ...

Haut-Rhin Haut-Rhin (, ; Alsatian: ''Owerelsàss'' or '; german: Oberelsass, ) is a department in the Grand Est region of France, bordering both Germany and Switzerland. It is named after the river Rhine. Its name means ''Upper Rhine''. Haut-Rhin is th ...

, France ''(1996)'' *

Komatsu, Ishikawa is a city located in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 108,509 in 42,664 households, and a population density of 290 persons per km². The total area of the city was . Geography Komatsu is located in southwe ...

, Japan ''(2008)'' *

Taganrog Taganrog ( rus, Таганрог, p=təɡɐnˈrok) is a port city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, on the north shore of the Taganrog Bay in the Sea of Azov, several kilometers west of the mouth of the Don River. Population: History of Taganrog ...

, Rostov Oblast, Russia ''(2009)'' * Osasco,

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...

, Brazil ''(2010)'' *

Fort Smith, Arkansas Fort Smith is the third-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 89,142. It is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas–Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area ...

, United States ''(2012)'' * Angra do Heroísmo, Açores, Portugal (2015) *

Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the capital of the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat and largest city of Sangamon County. The city's population was 114,394 at the 2020 census, which makes it the state's seventh most-populous city, the second largest ...

, United States ''(2019)''

References

External links

Government website of Jining
(available in Chinese and English) * {{Authority control Cities in Shandong Prefecture-level divisions of Shandong Port cities and towns in China sr:Jining