Xiamen is an island city with beautiful sea views, fresh air and pleasant environment. It is rated as one of the "most livable cities" every year. Not only that, Xiamen people have the warm and hospitable characteristics of southern Fujian people, making this tourist city one of the popular tourist cities that must be visited all year round. So, where did the name "Xiamen" come from? Just follow me to learn about Xiamen culture!
There are different opinions on the origin of Xiamen. According to the records and legends in the history books, there are five theories:
The theory of city building: - According to the records in the chronicles According to records, "The city of Xiamen was located on Jiahe Island, and Zhou Dexing, the 27th Jiangxia Hou of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty" has a "city building theory".
The name of the village: - It means that there is a "Xiamen Village" on the southwest coast of Jiahe Island, and the city was built near the village, so it got its name. It is based on the eleventh volume of "Quanzhou Fu Zhi" written by Wanli of the Ming Dynasty: "There are four out of ten villages in Tong'an County, and the southwest is called Xiamen." Volume 5 of "Quanzhou Prefecture Chronicles" written by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty states: "The twenty-three capitals are located in Lianban, Haozao, Wucang, and Xiamen." Based on this, the "Village Name Theory" is deduced. After the Zhongzuo Institute was abolished in the early Qing Dynasty, "Xiamen" was collectively referred to as the whole island, and it was called Xiamen Island.
There are two theories: One is according to the "Xiamen Gazetteer", "Xiamen is located on the outside of the Jiulong River Estuary, and relative to Haimen on the inside, it is at the bottom of the river. Haikou is commonly known as "Xiamen", and "Xiamen" seems to be derived from the "Shang Xia Shuo", which is a refined homophony of "Xiamen". Another theory is that "men" is the name of the island, such as Shenjiamen in Zhejiang. Xiamen Island is located at the lower end of the mainland. "Xiamen" means the island below, which was refined and became "Xiamen".
Gate theory: - derived from its geographical location on the southeastern coast of my country. Xue Qifeng, the author of "Lujiang Zhi" written by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, said in the "General Introduction" that "Ludao is the southeast island of the spring. It is the gateway to the spring, so it is called the gate." "Ludao is surrounded by the sea. It is the throat of Zhangquan and the gateway to Taiwan and Pengfeng." Zhou Kai, the author of "Xiamen Chronicles" written by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, said in the preface: "Xiamen is located at the junction of Zhangzhou, the key point of Taiwan, and the gateway to the southeast. "From the perspective of historical facts, when the city was built, it served as a gate to defend the sea from enemies. Later, it served as a gate for Zheng Chenggong to "open up the ocean and make the country prosperous." Then it became a gate for import and export and for overseas Chinese to enter and exit. Now it is also said to be "the gate to the building of the motherland." .
Territorial theory: - The city was built and named Xiamen, which means "Chinese people" and cannot be invaded by Japanese pirates. Yang Yanzhi of the Eastern Jin Dynasty wrote in "Luoyang Jialan Ji": "After the 17th year of Taihe, Emperor Gaozu of the Wei Dynasty built a palace. Luoyang was based on the old city gates of the Wei and Jin Dynasties. There were three gates in the east and west and two gates in the north. The west end was called Daxia, and in the Han Dynasty, it was called Xiamen. , in the Wei and Jin Dynasties, it was called Mansion Gate.
"Xia" and "Xia" are the same ancient characters. The so-called "Mansion Gate" and "Xiamen" were symbolic city names at that time. Because, China was called "Xia" in ancient times. Zhang Xingfu said in "Shuowen Fayi" according to "Shuowen": "Xia is a person from China. The so-called China refers to the world, then the Central Plains is China, and to all countries, the capital is China." Qu Yuan's "Nine Bian of the Songs of Chu" contains the phrase "nine gates of a gentleman", which means that the emperor has nine gates, which means the emperor's majesty in China. Therefore, "Mansion Gate" and "Xiamen" mean that the land they are guarding is a Chinese area or Chinese territory. Judging from the construction of the "Great Wall on the Sea", Kinmen's original name was Wuzhou, also known as Wujiang. When Zhou Dexing built the city on the island, he borrowed the meaning of "Jincheng Tangchi" and changed Wuzhou to Kinmen to show the connotation of the island as "solid as gold". . Xiamen's original name was Jiahe Island, also known as Ludao, also known as Lujiang. Jiaheyu was renamed Xiamen after "Chinese scholars" to show that Xiamen is a "Chinese island".