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Place names are not only the identification of geographical locations, but also the carriers of historical culture and geographical features. Chinese characters can often serve as an independent unit to condense rich information. Through careful observation of place names, we can find that every place name is not "Bai Qi"!

Is a place where people gather together called a “village”?

Humans are social animals. From ancient times to the present, people often gather together to complete production activities.Places of group livingThere are many names for it, such as village, village, village, village, etc.

"Village" is formed by natural gathering.In ancient times, "村" was also written as "邨 (cūn)".It can be seen that "村" and "屯" are related.In fact, "村" is a later derivative of "屯". "屯" was already quite popular in the Han and Wei dynasties, and the derivative word "村" came into being. "The villages are neat and tidy" is recorded in "The Records of the Three Kingdoms: Wei Shu: Biography of Zheng Hun". Tao Yuanming's "Peach Blossom Spring" also said that "the villagers heard about this person and came to inquire about him".Tang Dynasty,The residential areas in the city are called "li" and the settlements in the countryside are called "cun".Therefore, "village" became a formal grassroots administrative organization in the Tang Dynasty.，Nowadays, "village" is also widely used as the name of a grassroots administrative unit. Most people living in a "village" have the same surname, soThere are many "villages" named after surnames.For example, "Cui Village" and "Qi Village";Some "villages" are named after natural geographical entities such as mountains, rivers, etc.For example, "Shengou Village" and "Mianshan Village".

The word "tun", which appeared earlier than "cun", also meant to gather.SoldiersGarrison is also called "tun". Since the Han Dynasty, the army began to cultivate land due to the tuntian system. Later, the army's reclamation of land developed into collective cultivation of official fields or wasteland by landless farmers, which is the so-called"Mintun"The places where the land was cultivated became places where people lived over time, and these settlements were named "tun". Nowadays, many place names contain the word "tun", such as Sanlitun in Beijing, etc., and the place names with the most "tun" are in the Northeast. Scholar Wang Yalin once said,Village names in the Northeast regionMost of them were formed during the period of large-scale immigration and land reclamation in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.Mostly named after the surname, given name or nickname of the pioneer, such as Howjiatun, Zhanglaohutun, etc.; there are alsoNamed after the earliest building or artificial landmark, such as Beiguanfangtun, Sancufangtun, etc.; andNamed after the type, topography, location, and number of households when the settlement was established., such as Dasijingzitun, Duduchutun, Erlongtun and so on.

In ancient Chinese, "Zhuang" refers to roads that extend in all directions, or to houses and villas in the suburbs, or to large tracts of land owned by the royal family, officials, etc.Later, farmers who cultivated the fields(Also known as "Zhuang Hu" or "Zhuang Jia")The villages that were formed also began to be named "Zhuang".

A place surrounded by a fence is called a "zhai"，The village is usually built near mountains and rivers, hidden among the mountains., coexist harmoniously with the natural environment."Zhai" was originally written as "chai". There is a famous poem by a Tang Dynasty poet called "Lu Chai (zhài)", in which "chai" is the same as "zhai", which refers to a fence made of trees. It is derived from the original meaning of "chai", which is "dead branches". In ancient times, "zhai" also referred to fortifications temporarily surrounded by materials such as firewood during marches and battles. Because the materials used are not as stable and strong as stones, they are often temporary and can be "pulled away" when necessary. The formation of "zhai" referring to a village is also related to the military - the site where the "army set up camp" generally has a high military value, and the army will be stationed there for a long time. On this basis, it will gradually develop into a village for ordinary people to live in. We are familiar withJiuzhaigou ValleyThe nine Tibetan villages are located in the high mountain lakes. According to research, the ancestors of the residents of these villages originally lived in a powerful tribe at the foot of the Amnye Machen Mountain. In the early Tang Dynasty, when Songtsen Gampo went east to Songzhou, they were left by the Baishui River, which was equivalent to setting up camp here, and gradually developed and multiplied.

Strong influencers in place names

Reading this, we seem to find that military activities have left an indelible mark in place names... Don't worry! There are also place names such as fort, camp, and building that are closely related to military activities.

A place with a wall is called a "fort". The character "bao" is derived from "bao", which means "protection". It is a military fortification built of earth.. The "fort" has the advantage of being convenient for population gathering in terms of architectural form, scale and geographical location, so many of the remaining border wall sites have the word "fort" in them.

A circular formation surrounded by trenches and low walls is called a "camp".According to archaeological excavations, in the primitive commune period, the layout of the settlements of the same clan was mostly circular, with trenches and short walls surrounding the outer circle, which is called "帀居". This kind of "帀居" is called "邑", and its form is called "营". Later, when the trenches are deep and the walls are high and the area is expanded, it is called "城". Therefore,“营” means to surround"Records of the Grand Historian: The Basic Annals of the Five Emperors" says "use troops as camp guards", and "camp guards" means sanitation.After the words "邑" and "城" appeared, the meaning of "营" was limited to the army.When the army was stationed, they dug trenches and built fortifications around the area for garrisoning. This was called "camping". The "Book of the Later Han Dynasty: Biography of Fan Hong" mentioned "building camps and trenches for self-defense".

"Lou" did not originally refer to a building like it does today.,andIt usually refers to a building of a certain height with observation and defense functions.For example, a "louche" is a car with a tower, used to observe the city or enemy camp besieged by the army. "Liu Tao's Military Strategy" has "looking at the city, there are ladders and flying towers", and "flying towers" are this kind of watchtower. This kind of "tower" is just a high platform without a roof on it, which is obviouslyFor reconnaissance purposes only, not for livingAlthough the watchtower is different from today's building, today's building obviously evolved from the watchtower. By the end of the Warring States period, "buildings" for living appeared. For example, the "buildings" in "Xunzi·Fu" "志爱公利,重楼疏堂" and "Moshangsang" "日太阳东南角,照我秦氏楼" are obviously used for living, similar to today's buildings.

There are also some "buildings" that have both defensive and residential functions., such as Kaiping Diaolou, Fujian Tulou, etc.Kaiping, a famous hometown of overseas Chinese, is often affected by typhoons and other floods. Its special geographical environment also brings the problem of rampant bandits. Therefore, local residents built watchtowers with flood and theft prevention functions - narrow doors and windows, thick walls, and loopholes on the walls. There are many observation towers on the top floors, and they are also equipped with gunpowder cannons, stones, bronze bells, alarms, generators, searchlights and other defense devices. Fujian Tulou also has the characteristics of "many windows, small windows", and observation towers are set up at commanding heights to observe the surrounding environment and enemy situations.

Identify traffic jams at a glance

Places called "dian" usually had post stations or markets in history.In the early days, "shops" included those that sold commercial goods, inns that provided food and accommodation, and hotels that both sold goods and accommodated travelers, which were called "shops" or "stores."

Since the Song Dynasty, commerce has flourished, and the phenomenon of opening stores in various places has become more common. Because "store" is often a prominent place in a certain place, the word "store" was used to name place names. For example, among the ancient place names preserved or used in various urban and rural areas of Sichuan, there are many containing the word "store". In the "Chengdu Suburb Map" printed in the 33rd year of the Republic of China (1944), there are more than 20 place names containing the word "store", such as "Zengjia Store", "Cuijia Store", "Huaishu Store", "Gao Restaurant", and "Chadianzi".Places called "stores" are often places with convenient transportation.，Personnel flowCollection is also convenientDoing BusinessThere is a city called Zhumadian in the south-central part of Henan Province, which is known as "the hinterland of Yuzhou and the center of the world". It got its name because of the royal post station in history. Zhumadian was originally named Zhumadian. In the Ming Dynasty, a post station was set up here, and it was renamed Zhumadian. Opening the map, we can find that it is indeed located almost in the middle of China from north to south. It was a transportation hub in ancient times and it is still an important transportation hub today. Railway lines, high-speed lines, provincial roads and county roads crisscross here, and it leads in all directions.

The post station for delivering official documents and letters was called a "pu"."Pu" as the name of a post station has existed since the Jin and Yuan dynasties and became popular in the Ming Dynasty. Gu Yanwu's "Rizhilu·Yichuan" records that "nowadays there is a post station every ten miles, with soldiers assigned to deliver official documents", which means that there is a post station every ten miles, with special personnel assigned to deliver official documents. "Pu" is usually a post station in the ancient post station system.Smaller sites, however, although small in scale, its status is very important.same"Pu" also refers to a smaller retail outlet or workshop.Today, the word "shop" has adopted this meaning.

Seeing words is like seeing faces

Some human body parts are also often used as place names., vividly recordedFor example,"Kou" is also often used in place names, usually referring to the place one must pass through to enter or leave a place; "Ding" usually refers to the highest point in a place; "Bei" means that the object being described is on the back of a certain geographical entity.

"Tou" is a word for a part of the human body, referring to the human head. It is extended to mean the "top" or "one end" of an object. When indicating direction, it also refers to the "inside".When "头" appears in place names, it is very vivid, often referring to one end or the front end of a place.There is aShatou Town"Shatou" was called "Shatou Fort" in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. As early as the first year of Jianlong in the Northern Song Dynasty (960) to the Jiayou period (1056-1063), fishermen had already lived here.Sand HeadLocated in the southern part of Nanhai District, it belongs to the alluvial plain of Beijiang River Basin. The land is formed by quicksand deposition. Xiqiao Mountain Matougang extends into the river to intercept it, and this place becomesThe first place to gather sand, hence the name "Shatou"。

Corresponding to "head" is "tail", which mostly refers to the end of a place.Shapowei in XiamenIt is the origin of Xiamen Port, and its history can be traced back to before the Ming Dynasty. It has been a safe haven for local fishermen since ancient times. It is located at the end of the southern beach of Xiamen Island. The place is called Yushapo because the sand is as white as jade. Later, it was cut into two sections, Shapotou and Shapowei, by a stream. Shapowei became the location of the old military port, and the beach of Shapotou has long disappeared.

Behind the place names that we are accustomed to may hide interesting stories that are rarely noticed: some place names are named after famous landmark buildings, when the buildings disappear, the traces of history are preserved in the place names; some place names simply integrate the appearance into the names, which makes people draw a vivid three-dimensional map in their minds as soon as they see them... Each Chinese character representing a place name can "stand on its own" and "perform its own duties" to record its unique historical and topographical information.

You won’t get confused now, right? What other interesting place names do you know? Come and share them in the comment section!

References

1. Zhou Qi and Jiang Weigong: “Historical Information Reflected by Place Names with the Character ‘Bao’”, Regional Cultural Studies, No. 1, 2023.

2.Xu Ping: Miscellaneous Notes on Bashu Customs, Bashu Publishing House, 2022.

3. Xiang Xiantao: The Years of Vicissitudes, Nanhai Publishing Company, 2021.

4.Xue Guoping, ed., Comparison Table of Ancient and Modern Chinese Place Names, Shanghai Dictionary Publishing House, 2020.

5.Li Zhiping: Explaining Characters and Words, Bashu Publishing House, 2020.

6. Gu Jiade: "History and Origin of Jiuzhaigou", Hebei Enterprise, No. 8, 2000,

7. Zhang Jinghua: Lake and Mountain, Tianjin University Press, 2019.

8. Chen Ning, Deng Junjie, and Zheng Kaiying, “Regional Characteristics of Place Names in South China Sea: A Case Study of Shatou”, Modern Chinese (Academic Comprehensive Edition), No. 1, 2014.

9. Wang Fengyang: On Ancient Poems, Zhonghua Book Company, 2011.