Clockwise from top right: Zumiao of Foshan, Qingyun Tower in Shunfengshan Park, Foshan New Town in Shunde, Guanyin atop Mount Xiqiao, & Downtown Foshan in Chancheng
Foshan (UK: /foʊˈʃæn/, US: /-ʃɑːn/; Chinese: 佛山) alternatelyromanized as Fatshan is a prefecture-level city in central GuangdongProvince, China. The entire prefecture covers 3,848 km2 (1,486 sq mi) and had a population of 9,498,863 as of the 2020 census. The city is part of the western side of the Pearl River Delta megalopolis, a conurbation housing 86,100,000 inhabitants, making it the biggest urban area of the world.
Fóshān is the pinyinromanization of the city's Chinese name 佛山, based on its Mandarin pronunciation. The Postal Map spelling "Fatshan" derives from the same name's local Cantonese pronunciation. Other romanizations include Fat-shan[3][4] and Fat-shun.[5] Foshan means "BuddhaMountain" and, despite the more famous present-day statue of Guanyin (or Kwanyin) on Mount Xiqiao, who isn't a Buddha, it refers to a smaller hill near the centre of town where three bronzesculptures of Buddha were discovered in AD 628. The town grew up around a monastery founded nearby that was destroyed in 1391.[6]
By the early Ming, Foshan had grown into one of the four great markets in China, primarily on the strength of its local ceramics but also on account of its metalwork.[7] Under the Qing, its harbor on the Fen River was limited to ships of a thousand tons' burden but it remained well connected with Guangdong's other ports.[7] By the 19th century, Foshan was considered the "Birmingham of China", with its steel industry responsible for the consumption of the majority of the province's iron production.[5]
Foshan remained primarily focused on ceramic and steel production until the 1950s, when it became an urbanizing political center. On 26 June 1951, it left Nanhai County to become a separate county-level city and, in 1954, it was made the seat of the prefectural government.[7] Its economy stagnated as a result of the Cultural Revolution—traditional ceramic ware was forbidden and its workshops were turned to producing Maoist and Revolutionaryfolderol—but it continued to grow, reaching 300,000 people by the 1970s, making it the province's second city after Guangzhou.[7]
As early as 1973, however, its agriculture and consumer industries were permitted to become an export production base and a modern highway linked it to Guangzhou soon after. This permitted its party secretary Tong Mengqing and mayor Yu Fei to take full advantage when Deng Xiaoping introduced his Opening Up policies after the fall of the Gang of Four.[7]
Since 2020, a Japanese-themed street in Foshan has become a hit with young people unable to travel abroad due to the coronavirus pandemic.[8] The 100m-long road called Ichiban Street has been outfitted by a local property developer to resemble famous commercial streets in Japan, complete with a sakura tree, an icon of Japan.[8] The "exotic" street is attracting young people from nearby cities like Guangzhou, Zhongshan and Zhuhai as the younger Chinese generation likes many things about Japanese culture and design.[8] After negative responses and anti-Japanese sentiment, all Japanese signage was removed and the street has been mostly abandoned.
Foshan had a ¥0.8 trillion gross domestic product in 2015, raising its per capita GDP past $10,000.[citation needed]Shunde District in particular has a high manufacturing output, with its 3,000+ electronical appliance factories responsible for more than half of the world's air conditioners and refrigerators.[13] Foshan now has more than 30 towns specialized in particular industries, including furniture, machinery, and beverages.[13]
The Foshan Hi-Tech Development Zone was founded in 1992. Its total planned area is 7.55 km2 (2.92 sq mi). The zone is very close to the national highway G325 as well as Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport. The major industries in the zone including automobile assembly, biotechnology and chemicals processing.[14]
Administration
Foshan administers five county-level divisions, all of which are districts, including Chancheng, Nanhai, Sanshui, Gaoming and Shunde.
A dialect from the Samyap branch of Cantonese is used by the city natives. Besides that, Mandarin is also used, mainly in business and education, although natives do not use much of it in their daily lives.[citation needed]
Transportation
Foshan railway station
In 2013 to 2014, Foshan planned to improve public transportation by putting forward six measures:[18]
Two professional football teams have played in Foshan. From 1989 to 1997 Foshan Fosti (now disbanded) played at the New Plaza Stadium in Chancheng (now demolished). Foshan Fosti mainly played in the second tier, but did play in the eight team top tier in 1993. In 2007, newly created Guangdong Sunray Cave played at Nanhai District Stadium (now demolished), before moving to the Century Lotus Stadium in 2008. Sunray Cave then moved to Guangzhou, although did play the final games of the 2013 China League One back at Century Lotus Stadium. They returned to Guangzhou in 2014 and then disbanded.[22]
^Theodore Shabad (1956). China's Changing Map: A Political and Economic Geography of the Chinese People's Republic. New York: Frederick A. Praeger. p. 166. LCCN55-11530. OCLC916993074. With the exception of Shiukwan on the Canton-Hankow railroad, Kwangtung's regional centers are situated along the coast, notably in the Canton delta. There, in addition to Canton, are the cities of Fatshan, Kongmoon and Shekki. The metropolis of western Kwangtung is Tsamkong, and Pakhoi is the chief town of the western panhandle.
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