Chang'an listen (help·info) (traditional Chinese: 長安; simplified Chinese: 长安; pinyin: Cháng'ān; Wade-Giles: Ch'ang-an) is an ancient capital of more than ten dynasties in Chinese history. Pinyin, more formally Hanyu pinyin, is the most common Standard Mandarin Romanization system in use Wade-Giles (ˌweɪdˈʤaɪlz) sometimes abbreviated Wade, is a Romanization system (phonetic notation and Transcription) for the Mandarin The following is a Chronology of the dynasties in Chinese history. Chinese civilization originated in various city-states along the Yellow River ( valley in the Neolithic era Chang'an literally means "Perpetual Peace" in Classical Chinese. Classical Chinese or Literary Chinese is a traditional style of Written Chinese based on the Grammar and Vocabulary of ancient Chinese During the short-lived Xin Dynasty, the city was renamed "Constant Peace" (常安, pronounced the same way in Mandarin Chinese); yet after its fall in the year 23 AD, the old name was restored. The Xin Dynasty ( was a Chinese Dynasty (although strictly speaking it had only one Emperor) which lasted from 9 - 23 AD By the time of the Ming Dynasty, the name was again changed to Xi'an, meaning "Western Peace", which has remained its name to the present day. The Ming Dynasty ( or Empire of the Great Ming ( was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol -led UserEl_C --> Xi'an ( Postal map spelling: Sian is the Capital of the Shaanxi province in the

Chang'an had been settled since the Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao Culture established in Banpo in the city's suburb. The Neolithic (from Greek νεολιθικός — neolithikos from νέος neos, "new" + λίθος lithos The Yangshao culture ( was a Neolithic culture that existed extensively along the central Yellow River in China. Banpo (半坡 is an archaeological site first discovered in 1953 and located in the Yellow River Valley just east of Xi'an, China. Also in the northern vicinity of the modern Xi'an, the tumulus ruler Qin Shi Huang of Qin Dynasty held his imperial court, and constructed his massive mausoleum that is guarded by the famed Terracotta Army. A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a Mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves Qin Shi Huang ( (259 BC – September 10 210 BC personal name Yíng Zhèng, was king of the Chinese State of Qin from 247 BCE to 221 BCE (during the Not to be confused with the Qing Dynasty, the last dynasty of China The Terracotta Army ( are the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Qin Shi Huang the First Emperor of China.

From its capital at Xianyang, the Qin dynasty ruled a larger area than either of the preceding dynasties. This article is related to a city for the airport located in the city see Xi'an Xianyang International Airport Xianyang ( Sienyang Hsienyang The imperial city of Chang'an during the Han Dynasty was located in northwest of today's Xi'an. The Han Dynasty ( 206 BC–220 AD followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. During the Tang Dynasty, the area to be known as Chang'an included the area inside the Ming Xi'an fortification, plus some small areas to its east and west, and a major part of its southern suburbs. The Tang Dynasty ( Middle Chinese: dhɑng (June 18 618&ndashJune 4 907 was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by The Tang Chang'an hence, was 8 times the size of the Ming Xi'an, which was reconstructed upon the premise of the former imperial quarter of the Sui and Tang city. The Sui Dynasty ( 581 - 618 AD and in the undertaking of other construction projects including the reconstruction of the Great Wall. During its heyday, Chang'an was one of the largest and most populous cities in the world. A city is an Urban area with a large Population and a particular Administrative, Legal, or Historical status Around 750 A. D. Chang'an was called a "million people's city" in Chinese records, while modern estimates put it at around 800,000–1,000,000 within city walls. ^[1] According to the census in the year 742 recorded in the New Book of Tang, 362,921 families with 1,960,188 persons were counted in Jingzhao Fu (京兆府), the metropolitan area including small cities in the vicinity. The New Book of Tang ( is a classic work of history about the Tang Dynasty edited by Ouyang Xiu and Song Qi (宋祁 and other official scholars of the A metropolitan area is a large population center consisting of a large Metropolis and its adjacent zone of influence or of more than one closely adjoining neighboring central ^[2]

Contents 1 Han period 2 Sui and Tang periods 2.1 Layout of the city 2.2 Pools, streams, and canals 2.3 Locations and events during the Tang Dynasty 2.3.1 Southwestern Chang'an 2.3.2 South Central Chang'an 2.3.3 Southeastern Chang'an 2.3.4 West Central Chang'an 2.3.5 Central Chang'an 2.3.6 East Central Chang'an 2.3.7 Northwestern Chang'an 2.3.8 North Central Chang'an 2.3.9 Northeastern Chang'an 2.3.10 The West Palace 2.3.11 The West Park 2.3.12 The Daming Palace 2.3.13 The East Park 2.3.14 Tallies 2.3.15 Citywide events 3 See also 4 Notes 5 References 6 Further reading 7 External links

Han period

The site of the Han capital was located 3 km northwest of modern Xi'an. UserEl_C --> Xi'an ( Postal map spelling: Sian is the Capital of the Shaanxi province in the As the capital of the Western Han, it was the political, economic and cultural center of China. It was also the eastern terminus of the Silk Road, and a cosmopolitan metropolis comparable with the greatest cities of the contemporaneous Roman Empire. The Silk Road, or Silk Routes, are an extensive interconnected network of Trade routes across the Asian continent connecting East South and Western Asia with the The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial

It was a consumer city, a city whose existence was not primarily predicated upon manufacturing and trade, but rather boasted such a large population because of its role as the political and militaristic center of China. Manufacturing (from Latin manu factura, "making by hand" is the use of tools and labor to make things for use or sale Trade is the willing exchange of goods, services, or both Trade is also called Commerce.

There were 3 construction periods over more than 90 years. The Emperor Gao-zu of Han, Liu Bang, decided to build the palaces before the city walls. Early life Liú Bāng was born into a lower class farming family in Pei (present Pei County in Jiangsu Province) In 202 BC, he repaired the Xingle Palace (興樂宮) of the Qin Dynasty and renamed it Changle Palace (長樂宮). Not to be confused with the Qing Dynasty, the last dynasty of China Two years later, a new palace called Weiyang Palace (未央宮) was constructed. Weiyang Palace (未央宫 was a palace complex located near the city of Chang'an (modern day Xi'an) In 195 BC, his son, Emperor Hui of Han began the construction of the walls of Chang'an and finished them in September of 191 BC. Early life and years as crown prince How Liu Ying's childhood was like is not completely clear Emperor Hui, Emperor Wu of Han then built several palaces in the city. Background birth and years as crown prince Emperor Wu was the tenth child of Emperor Jing, and was born to one of Emperor Jing's favorite Concubines, At that time, Zhang Qian journeyed west into central Asia as a diplomat. Zhang Qian ( 張[[wikt 騫|騫]] Wade-Giles Chang Ch'ien was an imperial envoy to the outside world in the 2nd century BC during the time of the Han Dynasty Since then, Chang'an city became the Asian gateway to Europe as the point of departure of the famous Silk Road. The Silk Road, or Silk Routes, are an extensive interconnected network of Trade routes across the Asian continent connecting East South and Western Asia with the After the Western Han period, the Eastern Han government settled in Luoyang as the new capital and renamed Chang'an to Xijing (Western Capital). Luoyang ( is a Prefecture-level city in western Henan province, People's Republic of China. In 190 during late Eastern Han, the court was seized and relocated back to Chang'an by the notorious Prime Minister Dong Zhuo, as it was a strategically superior site against the mounting insurgency formed against him. Dong Zhuo (died May 22, 192) was a powerful warlord during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of China. By this time, many dynasties came to regard Chang'an as the symbolic site of supreme power and governance.

Sui and Tang periods

Both Sui and Tang empires occupied the same location. In 582, Emperor Wen of Sui Dynasty sited a new region southeast of the much ruined Han Dynasty Chang'an to build his new capital, which he called Daxing (Great Prosperity). Background Yang Jian's clan was from Hongnong Commandery (弘農 roughly modern Sanmenxia, Henan) The Sui Dynasty ( 581 - 618 AD and in the undertaking of other construction projects including the reconstruction of the Great Wall. Daxing was renamed Chang'an in year 618 when the Duke of Tang -Li Yuan- proclaimed himself the Emperor Gaozu of Tang empire. Background and early career Li Yuan's seventh-generation ancestor was Li Gao, the founder of the Sixteen Kingdoms state Western Liang. Chang'an in the Tang Dynasty (618—907) was, with Constantinople (Istanbul) and Baghdad, one of the largest cities in the world. The Tang Dynasty ( Middle Chinese: dhɑng (June 18 618&ndashJune 4 907 was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by Constantinople (Κωνσταντινούπολις Konstantinoúpolis, or gr ἡ Πόλις hē Polis, Latin: la CONSTANTINOPOLIS Istanbul (historically Byzantium and later Constantinople; see the other Names of Istanbul) is the largest city of Turkey Baghdad (بغداد) is the Capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate, with which it is also coterminous It was a cosmopolitan urban center with considerable foreign populations from other parts of Asia and beyond. This new Chang'an was laid out on a north-south axis in a grid pattern, dividing the enclosure into 108 wards and featuring two large marketplaces, in the east and west respectively. A marketplace is the space actual or metaphorical in which a Market operates Chang'an's layout influenced city planning of several other Asian capitals for many years to come. Chang'an's walled and gated wards were much larger than conventional city blocks seen in modern cities, as the smallest ward had a surface area of 68 acres and the largest ward had a surface area of 233 acres (0. The acre is a unit of Area in a number of different systems including the imperial and U 94 km²). ^[3] The height of the walls enclosing each ward were on average 9 to 10 ft (3. 0 m) in height. ^[3] The Japanese built their ancient capitals, Heijokyo (today's Nara) and later Heian-Kyo or Kyoto, modelled after Chang'an in a more modest scale yet was never fortified. Heijō-kyō (平城京 also Heizei-kyō, sometimes Nara no miyako) was the Capital city of Japan during most of the time (710-740 and is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. (IPA /kʲoːto / is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. (IPA /kʲoːto / is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. ^[4] The modern Kyoto still retains some characteristics of Sui-Tang Chang'an. Similarly, the Korean Silla dynasty modeled their capital of Gyeongju after the Chinese capital. Silla (57 BC – 935 AD was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. Gyeongju is an administrative division of South Korea and one of the most popular tourist destinations in South Korea Unfortunately, much of Chang'an was ruthlessly destroyed during the fall of the Tang empire and in the subsequent centuries. It never recovered, but there are still some monuments from the Tang era that are still standing.

Layout of the city

During Tang, the main exterior walls of Chang'an rose 18 ft (5. 5 m) high, were 5 miles (8. 0 km) by six miles in length, and formed a city in the shape of a large square, with an inner surface area of 30 squared miles. ^[5] The areas to the north that jutted out like appendages from the main wall were the West Park, the smaller East Park, and the Daming Palace, while the southeasternmost extremity of the main wall was built around the Serpentine River Park that jutted out as well. The West Park walled off and connected to the West Palace (guarded behind the main exterior wall) by three gates in the north, the walled off enclusure of the Daming Palace connected by three gates in the northeast, the walled off East Park led in by one gate in the northeast, and the Serpentine River Park in the southeast was simply walled off by the main exterior wall, and open without gated enclosures facing the southeasternmost city blocks. There was a Forbidden Park to the northwest outside of the city, where there was a cherry orchard, pear grove, a vineyard, and fields for playing popular sports such as horse polo and cuju (ancient Chinese football). This article is about the Cherry berry also classified as fruit for the ornamental tree See Cherry Blossom. An orchard is an intentional planting of Trees or Shrubs maintained for Food production. A pear is a pomaceous Fruit produced by a tree of Genus Pyrus. A vineyard is a Plantation of Grape -bearing Vines grown mainly for Winemaking, but also Raisins Table grapes and non-alcoholic Polo is a team sport played outdoors on Horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team Cuju ( tsʰuː˥˩ tɕy˧˥ is an ancient code of football with similarities to Association football. Football is the word given to a number of similar Team sports all of which involve (to varying degrees kicking a Ball with the foot in an attempt to score a ^[6] On the northwest section of the main outer wall there were three gates leading out to the Forbidden Park, three gates along the western section of the main outer wall, three gates along the southern section of the main outer wall, and three gates along the eastern section of the main outer wall. ^[7] Although the city had many different streets and roads passing between the wards, city blocks, and buildings, there were distinct major roads (lined up with the nine gates of the western, southern, and eastern walls of the city) that were much wider avenues than the others. A street is a Public thoroughfare in the built environment It is a Public parcel of land adjoining Buildings in an urban context A road is an identifiable route, way or path between two or more places. ^[8] There were six of these major roads that divided the city into 9 distinct gridded sectors (listed below by cardinal direction). Chang'an ( is an ancient Capital of more than ten dynasties in Chinese history. The narrowest of these streets were 82 ft (25 m) wide, those terminating at the gates of the outer walls being 328 ft (100 m) wide, and the largest of all, the Imperial Way that stretched from the central southern gate all the way to the Administrative City and West Palace in the north, was a whopping 492 ft (150 m) wide. ^[9] Streets and roads of these widths allowed for efficient fire breaks in the city of Chang'an. For example, in the year 843, a large fire consumed 4,000 homes, warehouses, and other buildings in the East Market, yet the rest of the city was at a safe distance from the blaze (which was largely quarantined in East Central Chang'an). A warehouse is a commercial Building for Storage of Goods. Warehouses are used by Manufacturers Importers Exporters For other uses see Quarantine (disambiguation Quarantine is voluntary or compulsory isolation typically to contain the spread of something ^[9] The citizens of Chang'an were also pleased with the government once the imperial court ordered the planting of fruit trees along all of the avenues of the city in the year 740. A fruit tree is a Tree bearing Fruit &mdash the structures formed by the ripened ovary of a Flower containing one or more Seeds. ^[10]

Pools, streams, and canals

Within the West Park there was a running stream, and within the walled enclosure of the West Palace there were two running streams, one connecting three ponds and another connecting two ponds. A stream is a body of Water with a current, confined within a bed and stream-banks A pond is a body of water smaller than a Lake, both being examples of Terrain features Although the term pond is universally used to describe waterbodies that A pond is a body of water smaller than a Lake, both being examples of Terrain features Although the term pond is universally used to describe waterbodies that The small East Park had a pond the size of those in the West Palace. The Daming Palace and the Xingqing Palace (located along the eastern wall of the city) both had a small lake to boast, yet the Serpentine River Park had a large lake within its bounds that was bigger than the latter two lakes combined, connected at the southern end by a river that ran under the main walls and out of the city. A lake (from Latin lacus) is a Terrain feature (or Physical feature) a body of Liquid on the surface of a world that is localized to the ^[7] There were 5 transport and sanitation canals running throughout the city, which had several different water sources, and delivered water to city parks, gardens of the rich, and the grounds of the imperial palaces. Canals are artificial channels for water There are two types of canals water conveyance canals which are used for the conveyance and delivery of water and Waterways ^[10] The sources of water came from a stream running through the Forbidden Park and under the northern city wall, two different running streams from outside the city in the south, a stream that fed into the pond of the walled East Park, which in turn fed into a canal that led to the inner city. These canal waterways in turn streamed water into the ponds of the West Palace while the lake in the Xingqing Palace connected two different canals running through the city. The canals were also used to transport crucial goods throughout the city, such as charcoal and fire wood in the winter. Charcoal' is the blackish residue consisting of impure Carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from Animal and Vegetation ^[10]

Locations and events during the Tang Dynasty

Southwestern Chang'an

Locations and events in the southwest sector of the city included:^[7][8][11]

• 15 walled and gated wards
• 9 Buddhist monasteries
• 2 Daoist abbeys
• 14 Family shrines
• 1 Inn
• 1 Graveyard
• A mansion where the owner carefully exhumed and reburied the remains of a long-dead military general because the grave was too close to the home's outhouse. Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices This article concerns the buildings occupied by monastics. For the life inside monasteries and its historical roots see Monasticism. Taoism (pronounced /ˈdaʊɪzəm/ or /ˈtaʊɪzəm/ also spelled '''Daoism''') refers to a variety of related Philosophical and Religious traditions An abbey (from Latin abbatia derived from Syriac abba "father" is a Christian Monastery or Inns are establishments where travellers can procure Food, Drink, and Lodging. A graveyard is any place set aside for long-term burial of the dead with or without monuments such as Headstones It is usually located near and administered by a A mansion is a large dwelling House. The word itself derives (through Old French) from the Latin word mansus (the perfect passive participle Burial, also called interment and inhumation, is the act of placing a person or object into the ground An outhouse, usually refers to a type of Toilet in a small structure separate from the main building which does not have a flush or sewer attached
• A large wooden Chinese pagoda tower that once stood at a monastery in this sector of the city, which held the supposed 'Buddha's teeth' brought by a pilgrim monk who traveled from India. The Chinese Pagoda is a Landmark in Birmingham, England. It is a stone carving of a Chinese pagoda, carved in Fujian, China Siddhārtha Gautama ( Sanskrit; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual Teacher from Ancient India and the founder A pilgrim is one who undertakes a Pilgrimage, literally 'far afield' MONK is a Monte Carlo software package for simulating nuclear processes particularly for the purpose of determining the neutron multiplication factor or k-effective India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country After it was built in the year 611 by Emperor Yang of Sui, the tower stood at a height of 330 ft (100 m) tall (90 ft. Background Yang Guang was born in 569 during the reign of Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou. taller than the brick-constructed Giant Wild Goose Pagoda) and 120 paces in circumference; unfortunately it no longer stands. ^[12]

South Central Chang'an

Locations and events in the south central sector of the city included:^[7][8][11]

• 20 walled and gated wards
• 3 Buddhist monasteries
• 7 Daoist abbeys
• 11 Family shrines
• 1 Inn
• An event in the year 815 where assassins murdered Chancellor Wu as he was leaving the eastern gate of the northeasternmost ward in south central Chang'an; the event took place just before dawn. AssassiNation is the sixth album by Krisiun, released in 2006 on Century Media. The chancellor of the Tang Dynasty (唐朝宰相 was an office that was semi-formally designated for a number of high level officials at one time during the Chinese
• An event in the year 849 where an imperial prince was impeached from his position by officials at court for erecting a building that obstructed a street in the northwesternmost ward in south central Chang'an.
• The infamous rebel An Lushan's garden
• A garden with a pavilion where graduate students of the Advanced Scholar's Exam could hold 'peony parties'. Background and Name An Lushan's mother was of Tujue ethnicity from the Ashide clan and served as a sorceress In Architecture a pavilion (from French, "pavillon" from Latin "papilio" has two main significations See also Postgraduate Training in Education Postgraduate education (synonymous in North America with graduate education, and sometimes described The Imperial examinations ( in Imperial China determined who among the population would be permitted to enter the state's Bureaucracy. For the ancient Balkan region and tribe see Paionia. The peony or paeony ( Paeonia) is the only genus in the
• A walled ward with an empty field; in the 7th century it was originally a place where slaves, horses, cattle, and donkeys could be sold, but the entire ward was eventually transformed into a military training ground for crossbowmen to practice. As a social-economic system slavery is a legal institution under which a Person (called "a slave" is compelled to work for another The horse ( Equus caballus) is a hoofed ( Ungulate) Mammal, one of eight living species of the family Equidae. Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domesticated Ungulates a member of the Subfamily Bovinae of the family The donkey or ass, Equus asinus, is a member of the Equidae or horse family and an odd-toed ungulate. Military education and training is a process which intends to establish and improve the capabilities of military personnel in their respective roles A crossbow is a Weapon consisting of a bow mounted on a stock that shoots projectiles often called bolts
• A special garden that provided food for the imperial crown prince's household. Crown Princess redirects here for the ship see Crown Princess (ship.
• A government garden that supplied pear-blossom honey, amongst other natural goods. Honey is a sweet and Viscous fluid produced by Honey bees (and some other species and derived from the nectar of Flowers According to the

Southeastern Chang'an

Locations and events in the southeast sector of the city included:^[7][8][11]

• 13 walled and gated wards
• 9 Buddhist monasteries
• 3 Daoist abbeys
• 5 Family shrines
• 2 Inns
• 1 Graveyard
• The Serpentine River Park, which had one of the Buddhist monasteries and one of the family shrines of the southeastern sector of the city within its grounds.
• A medicinal garden for the heir apparent was located in a northern walled ward of this southeast sector of the city. Medicine is the art and science of healing It encompasses a range of Health care practices evolved to maintain and restore Human Health by the An heir apparent is an Heir who (short of a fundamental change in the situation cannot be displaced from inheriting the term is used in contrast to Heir presumptive A pastry shop stood by the north gate of the same ward, along with the site of an ancient shrine where citizens came every third day of the third moon and ninth day of the ninth month. This article describes Pastry in food For the Distributed Hash Table system see Pastry_(DHT.
• A ward to the north of this southeast city sector had half of its area designated as a graveyard.
• A purportedly haunted house
• A large monastery with ten courtyards and 1897 bays; this monastery was home to the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda (built in 652), which still stands today at a height of 64 m tall. A haunted house is defined as a house that is believed to be a center for Supernatural occurrences or Paranormal phenomena For alternative meanings of the word "court" see Court (disambiguation. A bay is a module in classical or Gothic architecture the distance between two supports of a vault or the unit of an opening and its framing on a façade Giant Wild Goose Pagoda or Big Wild Goose Pagoda ( is a Buddhist pagoda located in southern Xi'an, Shaanxi province China. Graduate students of the Advanced Scholars Exam would come here to this monastery in order to inscribe their names. This same city ward also had a large bathhouse, an entertainment plaza, an additional monastery which had its own pond, and a mansion that had its own bathhouse. Public baths originated from a communal need for cleanliness Often the term public is misleading to some people as they will have restrictions based upon who can use the facility Plaza ( / latin america) is a Spanish word related to "field" which describes an open urban Public space, such as a City square.
• A ward with another garden pavilion for graduate students to hold their 'peony parties'.
• An inn that was attached to the rapid relay post office. A post office is a facility authorized by a Postal system for the posting receipt sorting handling transmission or delivery of Mail.
• An apricot grove where graduate students could celebrate their success with feasts. The Apricot ( Prunus armeniaca, "Armenian plum" in Latin syn For the coarsely ground flour see Flour. A meal is an instance of Eating, specifically one that takes place at a specific time and includes

West Central Chang'an

Locations and events in the west central sector of the city included:^{[7][13][14][15]}

• 11 walled and gated wards (including the large marketplace ward)
• 22 Buddhist monasteries
• 2 Daoist abbeys
• 2 Family shrines
• 3 Large water ponds
• The West Market (西市); its surface area covered the size of two regular city wards, and was divided into 9 different city blocks. A city block, urban block or simply block is a central element of Urban planning and Urban design. It sported a Persian bazaar that catered to tastes and styles popular then in medieval Iran. layout and formatting it should ensure no clashes with the top of the infobox A bazaar ( بازار) (pazar is a permanent merchandising area Marketplace, or street of shops where goods and services are exchanged or sold For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. It had numerous wineshops, taverns, and vendors of beverages (tea being the most popular), gruel, pastries, and cooked cereals. Wine is an Alcoholic beverage made from the fermentation of Grape juice A tavern or pot-house is loosely a place of Business where people gather to drink Alcoholic beverages and more than likely also be served Food A vendor or a supplier is a Supply chain management term meaning anyone who provides goods or services to a company A drink, or beverage, is a Liquid specifically prepared for Human consumption Tea refers to the cured agricultural product of the leaves leaf buds and internodes of Camellia sinensis, which have been prepared and cured for the market There was a safety deposit firm located here as well, along with government offices in the central city block that monitored commercial actions. Explicit deposit insurance is a measure introduced by Policy makers in many Countries to protect deposits in full or in part in the event of a "run" Commerce is a division of trade or production which deals with the exchange of goods and services from producer to final consumer
• The offices for Chang'an County, the western half of the city. A county is a Land area of Regional Government within a larger State.
• The mansion of a Turkic prince. The Turkic peoples are Eurasian peoples residing in northern central and western Eurasia who speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family Prince, from the Latin root Princeps, is a general term for a Monarch, for a member of a monarch's or former monarch's family and is a
• The main office of Chang'an City's mayor. A mayor (from the Latin māior, meaning "greater" is a modern title used in many countries for the highest ranking officer in a municipal government
• A bureau for managing the households of princes.
• An event in the year 613 where a family threw their gold into the well of their mansion because they feared the city government would confiscate it.
• A firm that rented hearses and other equipment for funerals, along with hiring exorcists. For the extreme metal band see Hearse (band A hearse is a Funeral Vehicle, a conveyance for the Coffin A funeral is a Ceremony marking a person's Death. Funerary customs comprise the complex of Beliefs and practices used by a Culture to remember In some religions an exorcist (also called a witchman) is a person who is believed to be able to cast out the Devil or other Demon.
• An event in the year 813 where a sow in a pig sty gave birth to a deformed piglet that had one head, three ears, two connected bodies, and eight different legs. ^[16]
• An event every day where the West Market (and East Market) would open at noon, announced by the 300 strikes on a loud drum, while the markets would close one hour and three quarters before dusk, the curfew signaled by the sound of 300 beats to a loud gong. ^[17] After the official markets were closed for the night, small night markets in residential areas would then thrive with plenty of customers, despite government efforts in the year 841 to shut them down. ^[17]

Central Chang'an

Locations and events in the central sector of the city included:^[7][14][15]

• 16 walled and gated wards
• 17 Buddhist monasteries
• 6 Daoist abbeys
• 1 Official temple
• 3 Family shrines
• 3 Locations for Provincial Transmission Offices
• 3 Inns
• 2 Graveyards
• A court for imperial musicians
• A minister's mansion that had a 'pavilion of automatic rain', that is, air conditioning by the old Han Dynasty invention of technician Ding Huan's (fl. The Music of China dates back to the dawn of Chinese civilization with documents and artefacts providing evidence of a well-developed musical culture as The term air conditioning refers to the cooling and dehumidification of indoor air for Thermal comfort. 180 AD) rotary fan. A mechanical fan is an electrically powered device used to produce an airflow for the purpose of creature comfort (particularly in the heat ventilation, exhaust ^[18]
• An event where a scholar was once injured on the head here by a cuju football, and out of pity for his plight, the emperor gave him a personal gift of twenty-five pints of drinking ale. The pint is an English unit of Volume or capacity in the imperial system and United States customary units. Ale is a type of Beer brewed from Malted Barley using a top-fermenting Brewers' yeast.
• An event in the year 720 where the walls of one ward partially collapsed during a heavy storm.
• A mansion belonging to Princess Taiping (died 713). Princess Taiping ( personal name unknown (d August 2, 713) was a princess of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty and her mother Wu Zetian
• An event where a dwarf lady magician was said to provide the illusion of changing herself into a bamboo stalk and a skull. DWARF is a widely used standardized Debugging data format. DWARF was originally designed along with ELF, although it is independent of Object file An illusion is a distortion of the senses revealing how the Brain normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation
• The main Capital Schools, which were the Sons of State Academy, the Grand Learning Academy, and Four Gates Academy.
• An assortment of other colleges for law, mathematics, and calligraphy. Law is a system of rules enforced through a set of Institutions used as an instrument to underpin civil obedience politics economics and society Mathematics is the body of Knowledge and Academic discipline that studies such concepts as Quantity, Structure, Space and Calligraphy (from Greek kallos "beauty" + graphẽ "writing" is the art of writing (Mediavilla 1996 17
• A ward that had the largest number of entertainment plazas in the city.
• A mansion home that was valued at 3 million Tang-era copper coins in the 9th century.
• Another mansion that had a pavilion of plastered walls covered with an aromatic herb from Central Asia
• The Small Wild Goose Pagoda, which still stands today. A(n herb (ˈhɝb or /ˈɝb/ see pronunciation differences) is a plant that is valued for qualities such as medicinal properties flavor scent or the like Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south The Small Wild Goose Pagoda, sometimes Little Wild Goose Pagoda ( is one of two significant pagodas in the city of Xi'an, China, the site of
• A shop that sold fancy pastry
• The Pavilion of Buddha's Tooth, located in a monastery where graduate students of the Advanced Scholars Exam could enjoy their 'cherry feasts' in honor of their academic success. This article is about the Cherry berry also classified as fruit for the ornamental tree See Cherry Blossom.
• A government-run mint for casting copper-coin currency
• A small field for playing horse polo

East Central Chang'an

Locations and events in the east central sector of the city included:^{[7][14][15][8]}

• 11 walled and gated wards
• 11 Buddhist monasteries
• 7 Daoist abbeys
• 1 Family shrine
• 1 Foreign place of worship (church, synagogue, mosque, etc. A synagogue (from Greek: grc συναγωγή transliterated synagogē, "assembly" he בית כנסת beit knesset, "house of A "mosque" in English refers to all types of buildings dedicated for Islamic worship although there is a distinction in Arabic between the smaller privately owned mosque and the larger )
• 4 Locations for Provincial Transmission Offices
• 3 Inns
• 1 Graveyard
• 1 Large water pond
• The East Market (东市); like the West Market, this walled and gated marketplace had nine city blocks and a central block reserved for government offices that regulated trade and monitored the transactions of goods and services. There was a street with the name "Ironmongers' Lane", plenty of pastry shops, taverns, and a seller of foreign musical instruments. A street name or odonym is an identifying name given to a Street. Today the term Ironmonger refers to a retailer (or wholesaler of iron goods A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making Music.
• The North Hamlet (the Gay Quarters); the homosexual community of Chang'an was concentrated here in a ward to the northwesternmost area of the city sector. Homosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the same sex or to a Homosexual orientation. The situation of Homosexuality in Chinese culture is relatively ambiguous in the contemporary context although many instances have been recorded in the dynastic Homosexuality in China was often called 'pleasures of the bitten peach', the 'cut sleeve', or the 'southern custom'. Along with the concentration of Chang'an's gay community here, the North Hamlet was also heavily concentrated with many of the city's entertaining courtesans, as well as its notorious brothel houses for prostitution. A courtesan in mid-16th century usage referred to a mistress or trained artisan of dance and singing especially one associated with wealthy powerful or upper-class For the 2008 film of this name see The Brothel. For the television series of this name see Cathouse The Series. Prostitution is the act of performing Sexual activity in exchange for Money. ^[19] Aside from the prostitutes, the Chinese courtesans were more or less similar to the Japanese geisha, and unlike the bar and tavern maids they had excellent table manners, polite mode of speech and behavior, and were reserved for entertaining the elite of society. or are traditional female Japanese Entertainers whose skills include performing various Japanese arts such as classical music and dance ^[20]
• The Offices of Wannian County, the eastern half of the city
• The main office of the City Archives
• The government bureau of the Directorate for Astronomy
• An event in 775 where an Uyghur Turk stabbed a man to death in broad daylight in the East Market before being arrested in the marketplace shortly after. An archive refers to a collection of historical records and also refers to the location in which these records are kept Astronomy (from the Greek words astron (ἄστρον "star" and nomos (νόμος "law" is the scientific study However, his Uyghur chieftan named Chixin (赤心) or Red Heart broke into the county prison and freed the murderous culprit, wounding several wardens in the process. A prison, penitentiary, or correctional facility is a place in which individuals are physically confined or interned and usually deprived of a range of
• A mansion of a princess with a large polo playing field in the backyard
• An event where Emperor Gaozong of Tang (r. Princess is the feminine form of Prince (from Latin Princeps, meaning principal citizen Background and life as Prince of Jin Li Zhi was born in 628 He was the ninth son of his father Emperor Taizong, and the third son of his mother Emperor Taizong's wife 649-683) once held the wedding feast here for the marriage ceremony of his daughter Princess Taiping. A wedding is the Ceremony in which two people are united in Marriage. NOTICE TO WOULD-BE ROMEOS ************** Princess Taiping ( personal name unknown (d August 2, 713) was a princess of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty and her mother Wu Zetian
• The beer brewery of Toad Tumulus Ale. Beer is the world's oldest and most widely consumed Alcoholic beverage and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of Beer, though beer can be made in the home and has been for much of beer's history
• An event in the year 788 where a gang of four thieves killed their arresting officer and fled the city. In Criminal law, theft (also known as stealing or filching) is the illegal taking of another person's Property without that person's freely-given
• An event where the assassins of Chancellor Wu hid in the bamboo groves of a mansion in this sector of the city after the murder.
• A Buddhist monastery with an entertainment plaza
• A home of a 'face reader' (physiognomist) where daily flocks of people came to have their fortunes told. Physiognomy ( Gk physis, nature and gnomon, judge interpreter is the assessment of a person's character or personality from their outer appearance especially
• A mansion bestowed by the emperor to An Lushan (who became the most infamous rebel during the Tang era) in 750 that was converted into a Buddhist abbey after his demise. Background and Name An Lushan's mother was of Tujue ethnicity from the Ashide clan and served as a sorceress There was also a garden in a separate ward designated for An Lushan.
• A mansion of a high-ranking general in the mid 8th century that was recorded to have 3000 inhabitants of the extended family living on the premesis.
• A Zoroastrian church of worship from Iran
• An event where the imperial court demoted an official because it was discovered that he had assembled a large number of female entertainers here in a dwelling that was not his home. Zoroastrianism (ˌzɔroʊˈæstriəˌnɪzəm is the religion and philosophy based on the teachings
• An event in the 9th century where three maidservants committed suicide by leaping into a well and drowning once they heard the rebel Huang Chao was ransacking their mistress's mansion. Maid is also a shortened form of " Maiden " an archaic word for an unmarried woman or a Virgin. Huang Chao ( d 884 was the leader of infamous Huang Chao Rebellion (874–884 in China that seriously weakened the once mighty Tang Dynasty of China Ransack is the name of several Fictional characters in the universe of the Transformers toyline.

Northwestern Chang'an

Locations and events in the northwest sector of the city included:^[7][6][13]

• 12 walled and gated city wards
• 27 Buddhist monasteries
• 10 Daoist abbeys
• 1 Official Temple
• 1 Family shrine
• 6 Foreign places of worship (Church, synagogue, mosque, etc. )
• 1 Inn
• 1 Graveyard
• The military barracks for the Divine Strategy Army. Barracks are living quarters for personnel on a Military post
• A shrine for Laozi's father
• Three Zoroastrian churches of worship
• Three Persian Nestorian-Christian churches of worship
• The office of the Inexhaustible Treasury
• An event in the year 828 where a eunuch commanded fifty wrestlers to arrest 300 commoners over a land dispute, whereupon a riot broke out in the streets. Laozi ( also Lao Tse, Lao-Tzu, Laotze, Lao Zi, Laocius, and other variations was a philosopher of ancient Nestorius Nestorius (c  386 &ndashc  451) was a pupil of Theodore of Mopsuestia in Antioch in Syria (modern A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth For the US government securities see Treasury security. Also see Treasury management. Wrestling is the act of physical engagement between two people in which each wrestler strives to get an advantage over or control of the opponent Riots are a form of Civil disorders characterized by disorganized groups lashing out in a sudden and intense rash of Violence, Vandalism or other
• The home of An Jinzang, who cut his belly open with a knife in order to defend Emperor Ruizong of Tang against charges of treason. Background Li Xulun was born in 662 as the youngest son of Emperor Gaozong and his second wife Empress Wu (later known as Wu Zetian In Law, treason is the Crime that covers some of the more serious acts of disloyalty to one's sovereign or Nation.
• A mansion of Princess Anle
• The Inexhaustible Treasury; in the year 713, Emperor Xuanzong liquidated the highly lucrative Inexhaustible Treasury, which was run by a prominent Buddhist monastery in Chang'an. Emperor Xuanzong of Tang ( ( September 8, 685 Background Li Longji was born at the Tang Dynasty eastern capital Luoyang This monastery collected vast amounts of money, silk, and treasures through multitudes of synonymous rich people's repentances, leaving the donations on the premesis without providing their name. Although the monastery was generous in donations, Emperor Xuanzong issued a decree abolishing their treasury on grounds that their banking practices were fraudulent, collected their riches, and distributed the wealth to various other Buddhist monasteries, Daoist abbeys, and to repair statues, halls, and bridges in the city.

North Central Chang'an

Locations and events in the north central sector of the city included:^[7][6][13]

• Large gated walls connected to the West Palace and the main outer walls of the city
• 24 walled and gated wards
• 14 Different armed guard units in 6 different wards
• The August Enceintes; this large walled compound of 24 wards was the Administrative City, where the various offices and main bureaus of the central government were located (in front of the southern walls of the lavish West Palace). A security guard or security officer is usually a privately and formally employed person who is paid to protect Property, assets or people
• The headquarters for the Service for Supreme Justice (Supreme court). A supreme court, also called a court of last resort or high court, is in some Jurisdictions the highest judicial body within that jurisdiction's
• The Imperial factories
• An event in the year 713 where a large carnival was held along the main avenue lined against the southern wall of the West Palace
• The Imperial stables and hay fields for horses
• The government halls for civil and military examinations
• The Imperial ancestral shrine

Northeastern Chang'an

Locations and events in the northeast sector of the city included:^[7][6][13]

• 14 walled and gated wards
• 13 Buddhist monasteries
• 4 Daoist abbeys
• 1 Family shrine
• 3 Locations for Provincial Transmission Offices
• 1 Inn
• The Xingqing Palace; once a Buddhist monastery, it was converted to an Imperial palace in the early 8th century. A factory (previously manufactory) or manufacturing plant is an industrial Building where workers manufacture goods Carnival is a festival season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February and March A stable is a Building in which Livestock, especially Horses are kept Hay is a generic term for grass or Legumes that have been cut dried and stored for use as animal feed, particularly for grazing animals like Within the walled and gated grounds there was a large lake, two streams, an aloeswood pavilion, and an archery hall. Agarwood (or just Agar) is the Resinous Heartwood from Aquilaria trees large evergreens native to Southeast Asia.
• A large carriage park where officials visiting the Daming Palace could safely leave their horse-drawn vehicles for the day. A carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people usually horse-drawn
• An entertainment ward in this sector that was considered to have the finest singers in the city, and another with the finest dancers. Dance (from French danser, perhaps from Frankish) is an Art form that generally refers to movement of the body usually rhythmic
• An event where Empress Wu once donated one of her dressing rooms to a monastery here
• An event where a eunuch who converted his mansion into a monastery held a feast where he demanded each guest to celebrate by striking the cloister's bell and donating 100,000 strings of cash. Wu Zetian ( (625 – December 16, 705 In 705 she was overthrown in a coup and Emperor Zhongzong was returned to the throne A cloister (from Latin claustrum) is a part of Cathedral, Monastic and Abbey architecture
• An event in the year 730 where Emperor Xuanzong of Tang had four palace halls dismantled and reassembled as halls and gates for a Daoist abbey, the grounds of which was formally a large garden for the Bureau of Agriculture. Emperor Xuanzong of Tang ( ( September 8, 685 Background Li Longji was born at the Tang Dynasty eastern capital Luoyang Agriculture is the most important economic sector of China, employing over 300 million farmers
• A residence for princes in the ward forming the northeast corner of the city
• An event in the year 835 where palace troops captured rebel leaders in a tea shop that were planning a palace coup de tat against the chief court eunuchs.
• An event in the early 9th century where the emperor spent 2 million strings of cash to purchase the former mansion of a venerated minister so that the dwelling could be returned to the minister's pious grandson.
• A mansion of Princess Tongchang that had a water well lined with a railing made of pure gold and silver. Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 Silver (ˈsɪlvɚ is a Chemical element with the symbol " Ag " (argentum from the Ancient Greek: ἀργήντος - argēntos gen
• A court for imperial musicians
• A large playing ground as a horse polo field
• An event in 756 where the occupying rebel An Lushan ordered Sun Xiaozhe to have eighty three princesses, their husbands, and parties of Yang Guozhong and Gao Lishi murdered at Zongren Fang in reprisal for his already executed son An Qingzong. A musician is a person who plays or writes Music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music An instrumentalist plays a The An Shi Rebellion ( took place in China during the Tang Dynasty, from December 16 755 to February 17 763. Yang Guozhong ( d July 15 756 né Yang Zhao (楊釗 was an official of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty, serving as a chancellor late Gao Lishi ( (684-762 formally the Duke of Qi (齊公 was a Eunuch official of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty and Wu Zetian 's
• A workshop for a maker of musical instruments
• An event where a renowned but drunken artist painted an entire mural in one night at the north gate of a Buddhist monastery in the southwesternmost ward of this city sector.
• A spot in the south central ward of this city sector where girls often played cuju football under a tree beside the road.
• A street where the emperor would organize public entertainments to celebrate his birthday

The West Palace

The West Palace to the north included:^[7][6]

• An archery hall
• Polo grounds
• Elaborate Gardens
• Five large water ponds and three different streams
• A cuju football field
• A drum tower
• A bell tower
• The residence of the Crown Prince, dubbed the 'East Palace'
• The Flank Court, where women were incarcerated for the crimes of their husbands and other menfolk of the family they remained loyal to. The drum is a member of the percussion group technically classified as a Membranophone. A Tower which contains one or more bells or which is obviously designed to hold bells (even if it has none is a bell tower. A prison, penitentiary, or correctional facility is a place in which individuals are physically confined or interned and usually deprived of a range of
• The school for palace ladies
• The Seat of the Eunuch Agency

The West Park

The West Park grounds included:^[7][6]

• A river stream
• Three gates leading into the West Palace
• Ice pits for refrigerating foods during the spring and summer

The Daming Palace

The Daming Palace grounds included:^[7][6]

• Double walled gates at the north end leading out of the city, and one walled gate at the south end leading into the city
• A large lake
• An archery hall
• A bathhouse
• A storehouse for musical instruments
• A drum tower
• A bell tower
• A cuju football field
• A cockfighting arena
• Academy of music for the actors and performers in the Pear Garden Troupe
• A separate entertainment ward

The East Park

The East Park grounds included:^[7][6]

• A large pond
• Two streams (one leading into the park from under the wall, one feeding water into a city canal)
• A cuju football field

Tallies

For different buildings and locations in the entire city, the total numbers for each were:^[7]

• 111 Buddhist monasteries
• 41 Daoist abbeys
• 38 Family shrines
• 2 Official temples
• 10 City wards having one or multiple Provincial Transmission Offices
• 12 Inns
• 6 Graveyards
• 7 Official foreign-religion churches

Citywide events

Citywide events of Chang'an include:^{[21][22][23][24][25]}

• Festivals of traditional Chinese holidays celebrated throughout the city (and empire) included:
  • New Years; the grandest of all festivals, and a seven-day holiday period for government officials. Ice is a Solid phase, usually crystalline, of a Non-metalic substance that is liquid or gas at Room temperature, such as Ammonia Refrigeration is the process of removing Heat from an enclosed space or from a substance and moving it to a place where it is unobjectionable A cockfight is a Blood sport between two Roosters held in a ring called a cockpit An arena is an enclosed area often circular or oval-shaped designed to showcase Theater, musical performances or sporting events An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works The Pear Garden or Liyuan ( Chinese: 梨园 the first known royal acting and musical academy in China. The Traditional Chinese holidays have been part of Chinese tradition for thousands of years they are an essential part of Chinese culture. Chinese New Year is the most important of the Traditional Chinese holidays. Civil officials, military officers, and foreign emissaries gathered first in the early hours of the morning to attend a levee, an occasion where omens, disasters, and blessings of the previous year would be reviewed, along with tribute of regional prefectures and foreign countries presented. The Levée is a New Year's Day social event hosted by the Governor General of Canada, the Lieutenant-Governors, military establishments municipalities It was also an opportunity for provincial governors to present their recommended candidates for the imperial examination. The Imperial examinations ( in Imperial China determined who among the population would be permitted to enter the state's Bureaucracy. Although festival ceremonies in Chang'an were lavish, rural people in the countryside celebrated privately at home with their families in age old traditions, such as drinking a special wine, Killing Ghosts and Reviving Souls wine, that was believed to cure illnesses in the following year.
  • Lantern Festival; a three-day festival held on the 14th, 15th, and 16th days of the first full moon. The Lantern Festival a Chinese festival celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first month in the Lunar year in the Chinese calendar. Full moon is a Lunar phase that occurs when the Moon is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun. This was the only holiday where the government lifted its nightly curfew all across the city so that people could freely exit their wards and stroll about the main city streets to celebrate. Citizens attempted to outdo one another each year in the amount of lamps and the size of lamps they could erect in a grand display. By far the most prominent was the one in the year 713 erected at a gate in Chang'an by the recently-abdicated Emperor Ruizong of Tang. Background Li Xulun was born in 662 as the youngest son of Emperor Gaozong and his second wife Empress Wu (later known as Wu Zetian His lantern wheel had a recorded height of 200 ft (61 m), the frame of which was draped in brocades and silk gauze, adorned with gold and jade jewelry, and when it had its total of some 50,000 oil cups lit the radiance of it could be seen for miles. Brocade is a class of richly decorative shuttle-woven Fabrics often made in colored Silks and with or without Gold and Silver threads Silk is a natural Protein Fiber, some forms of which can be woven into Textiles The best-known type of silk is obtained from cocoons Gauze is a thin Translucent fabric with a loose open Weave. Its name may derive etymologically from the Persian word for Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 Jade is an Ornamental stone. The term jade is applied to two different rocks that are made up of different Silicate minerals.
  • Lustration; this one day festival took place on the third day of the third moon (dubbed the "double-three"), and traditionally was meant to dispel evil and wash away defilement in a river with scented aromatic orchis plants. Lustration has two meanings historical and modern Historically- It was the term for various ancient Greek and Roman purification rituals Orchis is a genus in the orchid family ( Orchidaceae) This genus gets its name from the Greek όρχις orchis, meaning "testicle" from By the Tang era it had become a time of baudy celebration, feasting, wine drinking, and writing poetry. The Tang court annually served up a special batch of deep fried pastries as desert for the occasion, most likely served in the Serpentine River Park. Deep frying is a Cooking method in which food is submerged in hot oil or Fat.
  • Cold Food Festival; this solar-based holiday on April 5th (concurrent with the Qingming Festival) was named so because no fires were allowed to be lit for three days, hence no warmed or hot food. The Cold Food Festival is a Traditional Chinese holiday celebrated for three consecutive days starting the day before the Qingming Festival in the Chinese Calendar The Qingming Festival ( Vietnamese language: Tết Thanh Minh meaning Clear and Bright Festival, is a traditional Chinese festival on the 104th day after It was a time to respect one's ancestors by maintaining their tombs and offering sacrifices, while a picnic would be held later in the day. In contemporary usage picnic can be defined simply as a pleasure excursion at which a Meal is eaten outdoors ( Al fresco or En plein air It was also a time for fun in outdoor activities, with amusement on swing sets, playing cuju football, horse polo, and tug of war. A swing is a hanging seat usually found in a Playground for children a Circus for Acrobats or on a Porch for relaxing Tug of war, tug o' war, or tug war, also known as rope pulling, is a Sport that directly puts two teams against each other in a test of strength In the year 710, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang had his chief ministers, sons-in-law, and military officers engage in a game of tug of war, and purportedly laughed when the oldest ministers fell over. Background Li Xiǎn was born in 656 as the seventh son of his father Emperor Gaozong and the third son of his mother Emperor Gaozong's second wife Empress Wu The imperial throne also presented porridge to officials, and even dyed chicken and duck eggs, similar to the practice on Easter in the Western world. Easter ( Greek: Πάσχα Pascha or Pasxa) is the most important religious feast in the Christian Liturgical year. The term Western world, the West or the Occident ( Latin: occidens -sunset -west as distinct from the Orient) can have multiple meanings
  • Fifth Day of the Fifth Moon; this one-day holiday dubbed the Dragon Boat Festival was held in honor of an ancient Chinese statesman Qu Yuan (c. Biography Qu Yuan born in the Xiling Gorge area of what is today western Hubei province was a minister in the government of the state of Chu descended from nobility 340 BC-278 BC) from the State of Chu. Chǔ ( 楚) was a kingdom in what is now central and southern China during the Spring and Autumn period ( 722 - 481 BC) and Ashamed that he could not save the dire affairs of his state or his king by offering good council, Qu Yuan leaped into a river and committed suicide; it was said that soon after many went out on the river in boats in a desperate attempt to rescue him if still alive. This act turned into a festive tradition of boarding a dragon boat to race against other oarsmen, and also to call out Qu's name, still in search of him. A dragon boat or "dragonboat" is a very long and narrow human-powered Boat now used in the team Paddling sport of dragon boat An oar is an implement used for water-borne propulsion. Oars have a flat blade at one end The type of food commonly eaten during the Tang period for this festival was either glutinous millet or rice wrapped in leaves and boiled.
  • Seventh Night of the Seventh Moon; this was a one-day festival that was held in honor of the celestial love affair with deities associated with the star Altair (the male cow-herd deity) in the constellation Aquila and the star Vega (the female weaver maid deity) in the constellation Lyra. For other uses see Love Affair or Scandal An affair may refer to a form of nonmonogamy, to Infidelity or to Adultery. Altair (α Aql / α Aquilae / Alpha Aquilae / Atair is the brightest Star in the Constellation Aquila and the twelfth brightest star In common usage a constellation is a group of celestial bodies that are connected together in some arrangement typically stars to form a visible figure or picture Aquila ( or, Eagle; sometimes named the Vulture) is one of the 48 Constellations listed by Ptolemy, also mentioned by Eudoxus (4th Vega (α Lyr / α Lyrae / Alpha Lyrae ( or) is the brightest Star in the Constellation Lyra, the fifth brightest star in the night Lyra (ˈlaɪrə Lyre) is one of the 48 Constellations listed by Ptolemy, and is one of the 88 modern constellations recognized by the International For this holiday, women prayed for the enhancement of their skills at sewing and weaving. In the early 8th century Tang servitors had erected a 100 ft (30 m) tall hall by knotting brocades to a bamboo frame and laid out fruits, ale, and roasts as offerings to the two stellar lovers. Brocade is a class of richly decorative shuttle-woven Fabrics often made in colored Silks and with or without Gold and Silver threads It was during this holiday that the emperor's concubines threaded polychrome thread into needles with nine eyes, while facing the moon themselves (in a ritual called "praying for skill [in sewing and weaving]"). Concubinage is the state of a woman or youth in an ongoing quasi-matrimonial relationship with a man of higher social status For the character from the Oz series see Polychrome (fictional character.
  • Fifteenth Day of the Seventh Moon; this holiday was called All Saints' Feast, developing from the legend of the bodhisattva savior Mulian who had discovered his mother paying for her sinful ways while in purgatory filled with hungry ghosts. In the Buddhist context a bodhisattva (बोधिसत्त्व bodhisattva;; Vietnamese Bồ Tát; बोधिसत्त bodhisatta See also Intermediate state Limbo|Heaven|Sheol|Hades in Christianity|Hell in Christianity Purgatory, in the original sense is the condition or process of purification According to the tale, she starved there because any food that she put into her mouth would turn into charcoal. Then it was said that she told the Buddha to make an offering with his clergy on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, a virtuous act that would free seven generations of people from being hungry ghosts in Hell as well as people reborn as lower animals. After Mulian was able to save his own mother by offerings, Mulian convinced the Buddha to make the day into a permanent holiday. This holiday was an opportunity of Buddhist monasteries to flaunt their collected wealth and attract donors, especially by methods of drawing crowds with dramatic spectacles and performances.
  • Fifteenth Day of the Eighth Moon; this festival (today simply called the Moon Festival or Mid-Autumn Festival), took place in mid autumn, and was designated as a three day vacation for government officials. The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival, or in Chinese Zhongqiu Jie ( is a popular harvest festival celebrated by Chinese Lists of holidays The words holiday or vacation have related meanings in different English-speaking countries and continents but will usually refer to one of Unlike the previous holiday's association with Buddhism, this holiday was associated with Taoism, specifically Taoist alchemy. Alchemy a part of the Occult Tradition is both a philosophy and a practice with an ultimately unknown aim involving the improvement of the alchemist as well as the making of There was a tale about a hare on the moon who worked hard grinding ingredients for an elixir by using a mortar and pestle. Hares and jackrabbits are Leporids belonging to the Genus Lepus. This article is about ingredients in general There is also an American soul and R&B group called The Main Ingredient. A pestle and mortar is a Tool used to crush grind and mix substances In folklore, a magician escorted Emperor Illustrious August to the palace of the moon goddess across a silver bridge that was conjured up by him tossing his staff into the air. History The concept of folklore developed as part of the 19th century ideology of Romantic nationalism, leading to the reshaping of oral traditions to serve modern ideological In the tale, on the fifteenth day of the eighth moon, the emperor viewed the performance of "Air of the Rainbow Robe and Feathered Skirt" by immortal maids. He memorized the music, and on his return to earth taught it to his performers. For people in Chang'an (and elsewhere), this holiday was a means for many to simply feast and drink for the night.
  • Ninth Day of the Ninth Moon; this was a three-day holiday associated with the promotion of longevity (with chrysanthemum as the main symbol). Chrysanthemums, often called 'mums' are a genus ( Chrysanthemum) of about 30 species of perennial Flowering plants in the family Asteraceae It was a holiday where many sought to have picnics out in the country, especially in higher elevated areas such as mountain sides. Without the ability to travel away to far off mountains, inhabitants of Chang'an simply held their feasts at the tops of pagodas or in the Serpentine River Park. Stems and leaves of chrysanthemum were added to fermented grains and were brewed for a year straight. Fermentation in Food processing typically refers to the conversion of Sugar to Alcohol using Yeast under Anaerobic conditions On the same festival the following year, it was believed that drinking this ale would prolong one's life.
  • The Last Day of the Twelfth Moon; on this holiday ale and fruit were provided as offerings to the god of the stove, after having Buddhist or Taoist priests recite scripture at one's own home (if one had the wealth and means). Offerings were made to the stove god because it was his responsibility to make annual reports to heaven on the good deeds or sins committed by the family in question. A family would do everything to charm the god, including hanging a newly painted portrait of the god on a piece of paper above their stove on New Years, which hung in the same position for an entire year. It was a common practice to rub in some alcoholic beverage across the picture of the deities mouth, so that he would become drunk and far too inebriated to make any sort of reasonably bad or negative report about the family to heaven. Drunkenness or inebriation is the state of being intoxicated by consumption of Alcoholic beverages to a degree that mental and physical faculties are noticeably
• Grand Carnivals; carnivals during the Tang period were lively events, with tons of eating, drinking, street parades, and sideshow acts in tents. Carnival is a festival season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February and March A parade (also called march or marchpast) is a procession of people usually organized along a street often in Costume, and often accompanied by Fire Carnivals had no fixed dates or customs, but were merely celebrations bestowed by the emperor in the case of his generosity or special circumstances such as great military victories, abundant harvests after a long drought or famine, sacrifices to gods, or the granting of grand amnesties. In Agriculture, the harvest is the process of Gathering mature crops from the fields Reaping is the cutting of Grain Amnesty (from the Greek amnestia, oblivion is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to ^[26] This type of carnival as a nationwide tradition was established long before the Tang by Qin Shihuang in the 3rd century BC, upon his unification of China in 221. Qin Shi Huang ( (259 BC – September 10 210 BC personal name Yíng Zhèng, was king of the Chinese State of Qin from 247 BCE to 221 BCE (during the ^[27] Between the years 628 and 758, the imperial throne bestowed a total of sixty nine different carnivals, seventeen of which were held under Empress Wu. Wu Zetian ( (625 – December 16, 705 In 705 she was overthrown in a coup and Emperor Zhongzong was returned to the throne ^[26] These carnivals generally lasted 3 days, and sometimes five, seven, or nine days (using odd numbers due so that the number of days could correspond with beliefs in the cosmos). The carnival grounds were usually staged in the wide avenues of the city, and smaller parties in attendance in the open plazas of Buddhist monasteries. However, in the year 713, a carnival was held in the large avenue running east to west between the West Palace walls and the government compounds of the administrative city, an open space that was 0. 75 miles (1. 21 km) long and 1,447 ft (441 m) wide, and was more secure since the guard units of the city were placed nearby and could handle crowd control of trouble arose. ^[28] Carnivals of the Tang Dynasty featured large passing wagons with high poles were acrobats would climb and perform stunts for crowds. Large floats during the Tang, on great four-wheeled wagons, rose as high as five stories, called 'mountain carts' or 'drought boats'. ^[29] These superstructure vehicles were draped in silken flags and cloths, with bamboo and other wooden type frames, foreign musicians dressed in rich fabrics sitting on the top playing music, and the whole cart drawn by oxen that were covered in tiger skins and outfitted to look like rhinoceroses and elephants. Oxen (singular ox) are Cattle trained as draft animals. Often they are adult castrated males The tiger ( Panthera tigris) is a member of the Felidae family the largest and the most powerful of the four " Big cats quot in the Genus Rhinoceros (raɪˈnɒsərəs often colloquially abbreviated rhino, is a name used to group five extant species of Odd-toed ungulates in the family Elephants ( family: Elephantidae) are large land Mammals of the order Proboscidea. An official in charge of the music bureau in the early seventh century set to the task of composing the official music that was to be played in the grand carnival of the year. On some occasions the emperor granted prizes to those carnival performers he deemed to outshine the rest with their talents.
• In the year 682, a culmination of major droughts, floods, locust plagues, and epidemics, a widespread famine broke out in the dual Chinese capital cities of Chang'an and Luoyang. A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land a deluge Locust is the Swarming phase of short-horned Grasshoppers of the family Acrididae. In Epidemiology, an epidemic (from Greek epi- upon + demos people is a classification of a disease that appears as new cases in a A famine is a widespread shortage of food that may apply to any Faunal species which phenomenon is usually accompanied by regional Malnutrition, Starvation The scarcity of food drove the price of grain to unprecedented heights of inflation, while a once prosperous era under emperors Taizong and Gaozong ended on a sad note. In economics inflation or price inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services over a period of time ^[30]

See also

• List of historical capitals of China
• List of cities in China
• Municipality of China
• Xi Ming Temple

Notes

References

Further reading

• Schafer, Edward H. “The Last Years of Ch’ang’an”. Oriens Extremus X (1963):133-179.
• Sirén, O. “Tch’angngan au temps des Souei et des T’ang”. Revue des Arts Asiatiques 4 (1927):46-104.
• Steinhardt, Nancy Shatzman (1999). Chinese Imperial City Planning. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.
• Xiong, Victor Cunrui (2000). Sui-Tang Chang’an: A Study in the Urban History of Medieval China. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Center for Chinese Studies.

External links

• Introduction of Xi'an/Chang'an by the University of Washington

Coordinates: 34°16′N 108°54′E / 34.267, 108.9

See Washington (disambiguation for other uses The University of Washington, founded in 1861, is a public research University A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system.

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