The origin of locks and keys
When primitive people lived in caves, they would sometimes push boulders to block the entrance of the cave for safety. What they were guarding against were not thieves but wild beasts. . After the emergence of private ownership, thieves appeared, and the lock was born.
Locks existed in China more than 3,000 years ago. However, the earliest locks had no mechanism and were just made in the shape of tigers and other ferocious animals. They were intended to scare away thieves, so they could only be said to be symbolic locks.
It is said that Lu Ban was the first person to install a mechanism on a lock. Judging from the situation reflected in unearthed cultural relics and written records, ancient locks relied on the elastic force of two leaf springs. This spring is still used today.
Abroad, although the ancient Greeks discovered an extremely reliable lock, it was difficult to popularize it in ordinary households because the key was large and had to be carried on the shoulders. Ancient Indians made another bird-shaped "mystery lock" with the keyhole hidden in the wings that can shake. The rise of modern locks? First, the "welded fishing lock" was invented by the British in the 18th century. The tumbler lock we are currently using widely was invented by American Neilus Yale Jr. in 1860.
The key was invented later than the lock? The ancient Egyptians were the first to use keys in the world. Their lock is a wooden bolt inserted into a groove with a wooden bolt at the top of the groove. Once the deadbolt is inserted into the groove, the wooden deadbolt is inserted into the deadbolt hole. This makes the deadbolt so strong that it must be opened with a key.
Since the Egyptian locks can only be used on the side with the bolt, which is not conducive to flexible opening and closing, the Greeks developed a lock that can be opened from the other side. lock. The key made by the Greeks was a curved stick, similar in shape and size to a small sickle used by a farmer. However, some keys are up to 3 feet long and must be carried on the shoulders, which is quite heavy.
The Romans can be said to be the most sophisticated locksmiths in ancient times. They have a good understanding of the standards for making keys, and they already know how to cut the nails at the end of the keys into various shapes.
/Print.asp?ThreadID=10790
Hutongs
The origin of Hutongs
Hutongs are a major feature of Beijing. As Beijing becomes increasingly modernized, people are worried: Will hutongs disappear? Probably because of this, someone picked up a seemingly old topic: How did Hutong become the name of the street? How was this word coined?
Looking at its origin, the original word "Hutong" was surrounded by the word "行", indicating that the sound was "Hutong", which means a place to walk. So where does the sound of "hutong" come from? There is no explanation of the sounds of these two characters in Chinese! Checking the classics, we found that the term "Hutong" was first seen in Yuan operas, such as "Zhang Sheng Cooks the Sea". The girl Mei Xiang has the line "I live in Zhuanta Hutong", which shows that the word "Hutong" came into being. In the Yuan Dynasty. Therefore, "Wanshu Miscellaneous Notes" textual research says: "'Hutong' is originally a Yuan language, and the word "Hutong" comes from "Hu" and "Tong", which means the Hu people are unified." This statement is not necessarily correct, because the Yuan people are Mongolians , if you don’t call yourself a “Hu people”, how can you take the meaning of “Hu people’s great unity”? Another theory has some truth to it. Today, "Haote" in Inner Mongolian is pronounced as "Hutong" in Chinese. The Mongolian word "Hot" means town. The capital of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region today is called "Hohhot" (meaning blue city). So, it is not surprising that the Yuan Dynasty, ruled by the Mongols, introduced the Mongolian language.
1. "Hutong" was not originally Chinese
The word "Hutong" was first seen in Yuan Zaqu. In Guan Hanqing's "Single Sword Club", there is a saying of "killing a bloody alley". In the Yuan opera "Zhang Sheng Cooks the Sea on Shamen Island", Zhang Yu asked Mei Xiang: "Where do you live?" Mei Xiang said: "My family lives in Zhuantaer Hutong." Zhuanta Hutong is on Xisi South Street, and the place name has not changed to this day. Xiong Mengxiang, a native of the Yuan Dynasty, said it clearly in "Analysis of Jin Zhi": "The two-character Hu Tong dialect is the original dialect." Which dialect is it, it is from Dadu in the Yuan Dynasty. Ming Dynasty scholar Shen Bang further said in "Wanshu Miscellaneous Notes": Hutongs are native to human language. Since it is Yuanren language, it cannot be Chinese. In the Yuan Dynasty, people were divided into four classes: Mongols, Semu people, Han people, and Southerners.
The so-called Han people refer to the Han people, Jurchens, Khitans, and Koreans in the north. These four kinds of people are not of the same ethnic group, nor do they speak the same language. Then "Yuanren language" is definitely not "Southern language". As for the Semu people, it includes more ethnic groups. Therefore, "Yuanren language" can only be Mongolian.
2. Hutongs are closely related to wells
Some scholars believe that hutongs were transformed from the "Hutong grid" - wells. The author agrees with this view. Because from the actual point of view in most cities, the relationship between hutongs and wells is closer.
Let’s start with the formation of hutongs. The Yuan Dynasty was built from a wilderness. Its central axis is drawn along the water, and most of the imperial palaces were built along the "sea". Then when designing and planning other streets, squares and residential areas, the location of the well must be taken into consideration. Either dig the well first and then build the house, or reserve the location of the well in advance and then plan the layout of the courtyard. No matter what the situation is, it is "a well makes an alley". Until the Ming and Qing Dynasties, there was no doubt that there was a well in every alley.
Look at the name of the alley. There are only a few reasons for the names of Beijing's hutongs: those named after temples, those named after government offices and government agencies, those named after construction sites and factories, those named after mansions and people, those named after markets, and so on. However, the largest number are named after wells. There were once ten in "Jing'er Hutong" alone; plus large wells, small wells, east-west, north-south, front and back wells, dry wells, wet wells, sweet water wells, bitter water wells... no less than four Fifty. This shows that alleys and wells are closely related.
3. Strange names are originally transliterated
Some alleys in Beijing have strange names because they cannot be explained in Chinese. However, it would be easier to explain if the names of these alleys were changed into Mongolian. To give a few examples: Dung Beetle Alley, what an unpleasant and ugly name! Why did the residents of this place give it such a name? In fact, the name translated into Mongolian is "Sweet Water Well"! There is "Mohe Hutong" in the inner court, which means "smelly well" in Mongolian. It must have been polluted. In addition, such as Gushao Hutong (or Kushao Hutong), Kushuijing; Juer Hutong or Juer Hutong, Shuangjing; Nianer Hutong or Nianer Hutong, Xijing; Baer Hutong, Xiaojing; Maliang Hutong or Maliang Hutong Mantis Hutong, a well designed for drinking water for livestock...
Beijing also has many "Hao Hutongs". "Mao Hutong" means broken well or broken well in Mongolian. Adding a surname in front of it indicates that the broken well is privately owned by a certain family. This is not far-fetched. Next to Bai Mao Hutong, there was once a "Bai Hui Hui Hutong", indicating that this was once the residence of Muslims with the surname Bai. There was once a "Zhujia Hutong" near "Zhumao Hutong", which shows that a family surnamed Zhu did live here. Near Yangmao Hutong is Yangmeizhu Street.
As time goes by, some pronunciations have been distorted. This is not surprising: are there so few Chinese place names that are pronounced incorrectly? However, some Mongolian place names are difficult to verify to be true.
There should be no doubt that Hutong is the transliteration of Well. But there are a few points that must be emphasized. Hutong and well both had the meaning of "city" in the Yuan Dynasty. Shaluo City can also be called Shaluo Hutong, which means Coral City. In ancient Chinese, there was the word "market", which means "a market is formed by a well". In the Dadu era of the Yuan Dynasty, alleys and wells also had the meaning of "street". The bell tower in "Analysis of Jinzhi": "The tower has the names of eight corners and four wells, and it covers the widest streets in the east, west, north and south." The meaning is very clear, "well" equals street.
Jingwozi in old Beijing. In the era before running water, Beijing residents mainly relied on wells for drinking water. If ordinary residents do not have private wells, they must draw water from public wells. The wheelbarrow in the picture is designed to deliver water to people.
4. Hutongs and alleys
"Alleys, alleys - xiangqusheng, crimson rhyme, ancient pronunciation of Hugongfan, originally derived from ***, pronounced like ' "Nong'" was pronounced in the later Han Dynasty, and the word "Chu Cixiang" was written as "street". "The Book of Songs·Zheng Feng·Feng" says: "I regret not seeing you when I come to the alley!" Hedieyeyun, pronounced as Nong, comes from the Songs of Chu, which is the place of Chu in the Spring and Autumn Period, which is today's Lianghu, Jiangsu, Anhui and other places. Therefore, in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it is recorded in "The Book of Southern Qi": "Xiao Luan killed his king in Xinong." 'Note: 'Nong, lane'. 'Xi Nong, that is, West Alley, is pronounced as Nong urgently, and is wandering when pronounced slowly, that is, Hutong.
Today the streets in Beijing are called Hutongs, and Shanghainese people call ‘alleys’ ‘Nongs’, that’s why. Cheng Shude, a recent scholar, said that Hutong was the northern Mongolian dialect of the Yuan Dynasty and was introduced to China from the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty. (See Volume 2 of "Guo Gu Tan Yuan") This is actually a misunderstanding. " (Quoted from Huang Xianfan's "A Preliminary Study on the Interpretation of Ancient Books - Selected Academic Papers of Huang Xianfan", page 472, Guangxi Normal University Press, July 2004)
Introduction to Hutong Attractions
Shichahai
In the early years of the Yuan Dynasty, this body of water was called Jishuitan. It was the end point of most water transportation, and countless fleets from the south docked here. Mr. Sa Zhaowei said in "Jingye Searching" that at that time. On both sides of the Taiwan Strait, “cake shops and restaurants gathered together, and wine flags stretched for miles.” “The spring rain cleared the dust, peaches and plums were in bloom, and the wine flags hung in restaurants fluttered in the east wind. The wine flag with red characters on a green background stretches for several miles." It can be seen that it was already a prosperous scene at that time.
In the Ming Dynasty, because there was a Shicha Temple beside the lake, this area of ????water was subsequently It was called Shichahai. The Caohe River in the Yuan Dynasty was gradually abandoned, and the pools of water gradually shrank inward, slowly forming three small lakes connected to each other. The water and land wharfs that used to be crowded with ships and cargoes turned into a quiet water town with sparkling waves. Li Dongyang lingered by the lake and was so excited that he praised it as "the best water in the city". Three policemen and Yuan also came together to form a group by the lake, drink, admire the moon, and recite poems, leaving a good story.
In the Qing Dynasty, the three small lakes were colloquially called Qianhai, Houhai and Xihai as we know them today. The three seas were connected to the North Sea, Zhonghai and South China Sea in the south, and the east sides of Zhonghai and South China Sea were. It's the Forbidden City. Whether it's pride or sadness, the last two emperors in the Forbidden City came from Prince Chun's Mansion on the east coast of Houhai. The last tragic dramas of the Qing Empire actually started on the shores of Shichahai.
Prince Gong’s Mansion is open from 8:30 to 17:00. Prince Gong’s Mansion is located at No. 17 Qianhai West Street. It is the largest palace in the Qing Dynasty. It is said that the total area of ??Prince Gong’s Mansion is more than 100 acres. Zhongshan Park is the best-preserved royal palace to date. It was once the residence of He Shen.
Prince Gong’s Mansion is divided into three sections, the east and the west, each consisting of more than 160 meters of courtyards. There is a building behind the floor.
The rockery of Prince Gong's Mansion is made of glutinous rice paste and is very strong. There are two tanks on the mountain. There are pipes at the bottom of the tank leading to the rockery. Water is poured into the tank. In order to increase the humidity in the courtyard, the entire rockery used to be covered with moss.
In the middle of the rockery, there is a tablet with the word "福" written by Emperor Kangxi to celebrate his mother's birthday. This is one of the "three unique features of Prince Gong's Mansion". "One of the monuments is 7.9 meters long and runs through the renovated rockery.
On the third day of the first lunar month of the fourth year of Jiaqing (February 7, 1799), the Supreme Emperor Hongli passed away. The next day, Jiaqing deprived He Shen, Minister of Military and Aircraft, and Jiu Jiaqing. He held the post of admiral and ransacked his home. It is estimated that the total wealth is worth about 800 million taels of silver, which is equivalent to the total income of the treasury for more than ten years. Therefore, there is a saying that "Heshen fell, and Jiaqing was full." On February 22, Heshen Was "ordered to commit suicide"
Hutong (Yandai Xiejie)
Yandaixie Street starts from Di'anmenwai Street in the east and connects to Xiaoshibei Hutong and Ya'er Hutong in the west. , running from northeast to southwest, with a total length of 232 meters. According to the book "Rixia Jiuwen Kao" published during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, this street was originally called "Gulou Xiejie" and was renamed "Yantai Xiejie" in the late Qing Dynasty.
It is said that most of the banner people living in Beicheng were fond of smoking dry tobacco or hookah, and the tobacco leaves were packed in tobacco bags. Due to the increasing demand for tobacco bags, tobacco bag shops were opened one after another on Xiejie Street. Most of the shops have high steps, and a large wooden pipe is erected in front of the door. The black pipe pole and the golden pipe pot are really vivid signs. There is a shop on the north side of Dongkou Road on Yandai Xiejie. "Shuang Shengtai" Cigarette Pouch Shop has a large wood-carved tobacco pouch standing in front of the door, which is as tall as a person and as thick as a rice bowl. The golden pipe pot is also tied with a red silk tassel, which is very eye-catching. This "Shuang Shengtai" tobacco bag can truly be regarded as the number one tobacco bag in the same industry in Beijing.
In addition, Yandai Xiejie itself is like a cigarette pouch. The long and slender street looks like a cigarette pipe pole, the east entrance looks like a cigarette pipe spout, and the west entrance turns south and leads to Yinding Bridge, which looks like a cigarette pipe pot.
It is precisely for these two reasons that Xiejie is named after "cigarette bag", which is truly worthy of its name.
The name of Yandai Xiejie became more and more famous and has been passed down to this day.
Yinding Bridge
Yinding Bridge is located on the waterway between Qianhai and Houhai in Shichahai, Xicheng District. It is a single-hole stone arch bridge running from north to south. It is called Silver Ingot Bridge because it looks like a silver ingot. It is one of the scenery of Shichahai and one of the eight small scenic spots in Yanjing. In the past, standing on the Yinding Bridge, one could look at the Western Mountains in the distance. The scenery was called "Yinding Mountain Viewing". In 1984, the original bridge was demolished and rebuilt, still named after Silver Ingot.
Drum Tower
The Drum Tower is located on the central axis of Beijing, at the intersection of Gulou East Street and Di'anmenwai Street. Together with the bell tower, it served as the time telling center for the entire city of Beijing during the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. "Drums in the evening and bells in the morning" keep the whole city in order.
It stopped after 1924, and since 1990, the ringing of bells and drumming has resumed every New Year’s Eve.
The Drum Tower is a single ancient building with a wooden structure. The gray tube tiles are trimmed with green edges, and the double eaves rest on the mountain top. It is 46.7 meters high, 34 meters wide, and 22.4 meters deep. Under the eaves, there are five single-raised and single-warped five-step buckets, swirling in colorful paintings. There are eight arched coupon doors on the ground floor; three in the north and south, and one in the east and west. There is a side door on the east side of the north wall, with stone stairs inside that are inclined 45° from north to south. , ***Level 60, then turn west and tilt 45 from east to west. , there are also 9 levels, that is, you have to climb 69 stone steps to reach the second floor.
There are six square doors and windows on all sides of the second floor. There are corridors around it, about 1.3 meters wide, with wooden guardrails. The viewing post is 1.55 meters high, and the building area is 1925 square meters. The third layer is the dark layer. The entire building is located on a masonry platform about 4 meters high, with a width of 56 meters and a depth of 33 meters. There are brick steps to the north and south, and Yuanpo Road to the east and west. The total area of ??the Drum Tower is approximately 7,000 square meters. There are a pair of stone lions in front of the south door, about 1.25 meters high.
The Genggu, a time-telling instrument, is placed on the second floor of the Drum Tower. It originally had 25 sides, including 1 large drum and 24 small drums (to represent the 24 solar terms in a year). Now only one side of the drum remains. The diameter of this large drum is about 1.5 meters, and it is made of a whole cowhide. However, the drum surface is already covered with knife marks. This was done by the Japanese army when the Eight-Power Allied Forces invaded Beijing in the 26th year of Guangxu's reign in the Qing Dynasty (1900).
There are certain rules for beating drums in the Drum Tower to tell time. At 7 o'clock every night, during the "fixed watch", two drums are played, with a total of 108 sounds. From then on, each watch is played with two drums and 108 sounds until the final "bright watch" drum is played at 5 o'clock in the morning. . Drumming also has a certain rhythm. To this day, there is still a saying in Beijing that "18 is tight, 18 is slow, and 18 is not slow".
There was originally a copper kettle dripper on the Drum Tower, but it has been lost for a long time. Contains: "The bronze clepsydra on the Drum Tower is extremely exquisite. According to old legends, it is believed to be a relic from the Song Dynasty. It is made of four copper clepsydras: the upper one is called 'Tianchi', the second one is called 'Pingshui', the third one is called 'Wanfen', and the lower one is called 'Tianchi'. He said: "Collect the water. Set up a machine and hit the cymbal every moment. When the pot is full, add more water. In winter, use fire to warm it." The drums and bells on the second floor were all measured by this method. In the Qing Dynasty, when time incense was used to measure time, the clepsydra method was abolished.
The Qilin Monument was originally located in the Qilin Monument Hutong. Legend has it that the Qilin Monument was embossed on the stone screen wall in front of Qiu Luan Mansion in the Ming Dynasty, hence its name. Later, due to Qiu Luan's defeat, the monument was buried underground and was unearthed in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. was moved to the Drum Tower.
After 1949, it became the site of the "Dongcheng District Cultural Center". In 1984, the Drum Tower underwent large-scale renovations.
Interesting talk about the names of Beijing Hutongs:
1. Named after an image symbol
Because many hutongs are named after an obvious image symbol. This also shows the realism, straightforwardness and humor of Beijing people. For example, people call a wide alley "Kuanjie", a narrow alley "Jiadao", a slanted alley "Xiejie", and a winding alley "Xiejie". "Badaowan", the rectangular one is called "box", the short one is called "Yichidajie", the low-lying one is called "Xiawazi", the slender one is called "bamboo pole", the long and flat one is called "pole", one end is thin and the other end is The thick ones are called "small speakers" and so on.
There are also alleys named after special signs, such as Tangzi Hutong, Shihu Hutong, Cypress Hutong (today's Baishun Hutong), Tieshi Hutong, etc. In addition, there are also hutongs named after local characteristics or shapes, such as Er'eryan Hutong, Luoquan Hutong, Chair Circle Hutong, etc.
2. Named after places
In the early years, the most conspicuous and prominent symbols were city gates, temples, archways, fences, wells, rivers, bridges and factories, so There are Xizhimen inner and outer streets, front and back Yuanensi Hutong, Dongsi (archway), Xidan (archway), Dashilan (old Beijingers pronounce it as: Dashila), Shuijing Hutong and Sanlihe named after this. , Yindingqiao Hutong and other alley names.
3. Trees and plants
Some small alleys do not have these particularly conspicuous signs near them. There are many trees planted in the alleys, such as Liushu Hutong, Zaolin Hutong and Chunshu Hutong. Alleys named after trees.
4. Orientation
Many hutongs are named with the words east, west, south, north, front, back and middle in front of the name in order to make it easier to find. Such as Dongtangen Hutong, Xihongmen Hutong, Nanyueyaer Hutong, Beibanbi Hutong, Qianbaihu Hutong, Houniwa Hutong, Zhongmao Hutong, etc.
5. Beijing’s dialect
Because the name of the hutong was initiated by Beijingers living in the hutong, there are many Beijing dialects in it, such as the shady Hutong, Deng'er Hutong, Mengulu Guan'er Hutong, Dabhu Hutong, Yizi Hutong, Gaga Hutong, etc. There are also many hutongs with a rhyme that sounds like Beijing, such as Luo'er Hutong, Ya'er Hutong, Yu'er Hutong, Shang'er Hutong, Mao'er Hutong, Pen'er Hutong, Jing'er Hutong, etc.
6. Auspicious words
Some alley names can also express people’s good wishes. People are always willing to use some auspicious words to name alleys. Hutongs with the words "happy", "luck", "longevity", etc. include Xiqing Hutong, Xique Hutong, Fushun Hutong, Fusheng Hutong, Shouchang Hutong, Shouyuubai Hutong, etc. There are also Ping'an Hutong, Anfu Hutong, Jishikou Hutong, Yongxiang Hutong, etc. with the words "ping", "an", "ji", and "xiang".
There are also romantic alley names, such as Baihua Depeng, Xinghua Tian, ??etc., as well as ridiculous dog tail (old Beijingers pronounce it as "Gou Yiba"), sheep tail Yang Yiba ) alley, etc.
7. Alleys named after official government agencies
Such as Lumicang, Xixinsi, Xishiku, Jianyuan Hutong, Fuxue Hutong, Gongyuan Hutong, Bingma Hutong Si, etc., the alleys named after the official titles of relatives of the emperor and nobles, such as Yongkanghou Hutong, Wudinghou Hutong, Sanbao Dadi Hutong (the former residence of Sanbao eunuch Zheng He is now named Sanbulao Hutong), Master Wu Liang Hutong, etc.
8. Alleys named after market trade
For example, Xianyukou, Mule and Horse Market, Gangwa City, Sheep Market, Pig Market, Rice Market, Coal Market, Jewelry Market...
9. Those named after temples include Longfu Temple Street, Dafo Temple Street, Baochan Temple Street, Huguo Temple Street, Zhengjue Temple Alley, Guanyin Temple Alley, Fangju Temple Alley, etc.
10. Hutongs named after handicraft workers and ordinary residents include Casserole Liu Hutong (today’s Dashaguo Hutong), Wangzhima Hutong (today’s Wangzhima Hutong), and Gelma Zhang Hutong (today’s Shuanma Hutong) ), Mengduan Hutong, Liuhan Hutong (now Liuhai Hutong), Anchengjia Hutong (now Ancheng Hutong).
11. Hutongs and names
Beijing’s hutongs have very particular names and are a reference for us to study the society of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. After Zhu Di, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, made Beijing his capital, most of his heroes lived in Beijing, and many alleys were named after them.
For example, the hutong where the residence of Yongkang Hou Xuzhong is located is called Yongkang Hou Hutong, which is today's Yongkang Hutong in North City. The hutong where the residence of Wu'an Hou Zhengheng was located was called Wu'anhou Hutong, and later it was mistakenly called Wuwanghou Hutong, which is today's Xisibeibatiao.
In the early Ming Dynasty, General Xu Da lived in Beijing for a long time. His eldest daughter married Zhu Di, the then King of Yan. When Zhu Di attacked Nanjing, Xu Da's fourth son Zengshou informed Zhu Di and was killed by Emperor Jianwen.
After Zhu Di entered Nanjing, he caressed the corpse and cried bitterly. After he came to the throne, he posthumously named Xu Zengshou the Marquis of Wuyang, and soon after he was granted the title Duke of Ding. The street where Duke Ding Xu lived was called Dingfu Street, which is today's Dingfu Street in North City. .
As for today’s Sanbulao Hutong, it is the former residence of Zheng He, the Sanbao eunuch. Zheng He was known as Sanbao Dad, and the alley where he lived was called Sanbao Dad Hutong, which was later mistakenly called Sanbu Lao Hutong. Wuliang Lord Hutong in Dongcheng, today's Hongxing Hutong, is a misname of Wu Liang Lord Hutong. Wu Liang was a general under Ming Taizu.
The commercial economy developed after the middle of the Ming Dynasty. At that time, some individual workers also left names for the hutongs where they lived with their outstanding labor. For example, in the Ming Dynasty, there were workers named Tang who washed cloth in Nancheng. The alley where they lived was called Tang Xibai Street, which is today's Tang Xibo Street in Chongwen District.
There is a Fenfang Liuli Street in Xuanwu District, which is a misname of Fenfang Liujia Street. There was a handicraft worker surnamed Yao in Dongcheng who was good at casting pots. The hutong where his home was located was called Yao Zhuguo Hutong. Later it was mistakenly called Yao Zhiguo Hutong, which is today’s Zhiguo Hutong near Beijing Station West Street.
There is a Tofuchen Hutong in Beicheng, which was later called Doufuchi Hutong. Another characteristic of the Ming Dynasty was that there were many paper horse shops used for making sacrifices, which reflected the prevalence of religious activities in the Ming Dynasty. Among the names of the hutongs are Wangzhima Hutong and Hezhima Hutong. Today they are also called Wangzhima Hutong and Heizhima Hutong.
The names of hutongs in Beijing are actually people-centered, and some hutongs are named directly after people. There are also many alleys not named after people, but there are former residences of celebrities, such as Kang Youwei's former residence in Mishi Hutong, Tan Sitong's former residence in the northern half of the alley, Zhongshan Guild Hall where Dr. Sun Yat-sen visited, and Xiao Yang's Alley on Zhuchao Street. It is the birthplace of Mr. Lao She. There is Mei Lanfang’s former residence on Huguosi Street, Mao Dun’s former residence in Houyuanensi Hutong, Cheng Yanqiu’s former residence in Xisibeisanjiao, etc. Although the names of other types of alleys are not directly named after people, they are also directly related to people's daily lives.
The names of Hutongs such as Xiangwen Prime Minister Hutong, Zhangzizhong Road, and Zhao Dengyu Road were all named by people to commemorate the national heroes, thus clearly expressing people's admiration for the national heroes. This shows that the name of the hutong is not only a practical reference, but also has an aesthetic function and humanistic tendency.
Reference materials: /view/9930.html