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The history of Jinhua goes back to the 2nd century BC, when it was a county
subordinate to Shaoxing. It was given the name Jinhua under the Sui Dynasty
in 598, and later became the seat of a prefecture. The present city and its
walls date to the time of the time of the Mongol emperors in 1352. The most
famous native of Jinhua is the Immortal Huang, a Daoist holy man of the 4th
century AD, whose descendants still live in the area. Economically Jinhua has always prospered from its position as the collecting
and processing center for agricultural and forestry products (chiefly rice and
bamboo). It is currently the second most important grain producing area in Zhejiang
Province. In 1985 Jinhua was promoted to City status, and now is responsible
for administering four cities, four counties and a district. Animals raised
there include dairy cattle, lean-meat hogs (for the production of Jinhua Ham),
and honey bees. Jinhua"s industrial sector has developed more recently, producing
machinery, metallurgy, pharmaceuticals, building supplies and electrical and
electronic equipment. Jinhua, along with almost all of Zhejiang Province, lies within the area of
Wu dialects, which are similar to the Shanghai dialect. The Tang Dynasty painter
Guanxiu (Kuan-hsiu) was born in Jinhua. He is known for his paintings of Buddhist
holy men. There are numerous scenic and historical sites in the Jinhua region,
including many places associated with the Immortal Huang, and a palace of the
Dukes of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. |
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