Fujian
(2002 est. pop. 36.2 million). Located on China's southeastern coast, Fujian Province covers an area of 121,400 square kilometers and is bordered by the Taiwan Strait to the east and the Wuyi Shan mountain range to the west. As of 1996, Fujian's capital, Fuzhou, had a population of 1.4 million. Xiamen is the second largest city of the province, with a population of 600,000.
Fujian has a long history and can trace its origins to the Warring States period (475–221 BCE), when it was a part of the kingdom of Yue. Yue was conquered by the kingdom of Chu, which was then conquered by China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi, who annexed Fujian during his reign (221–210 BCE). Following the overthrow of the Tang dynasty (618–907 CE), a shortlived Yue kingdom was reestablished but lasted only a few years, until 946. Fujian was also the last stronghold of the Ming dynasty (1368–1644 CE) before its downfall and the emergence of the Qing dynasty (1644–1912 CE).
Owing to its proximity to the sea, Fujian has long been a center of shipbuilding and trade. During the Song and Ming dynasties, shipbuilding and trade were the primary sources of income in Fujian Province, as ships laden with silk, porcelain, and tea sailed for Japan and Korea as well as Southeast Asia and the Middle East and brought back spices and herbal medicines. Foreign traders have also long plied the waters off of Fujian. As far back as the eleventh century, Muslim traders settled in the southern Fujian city of Quanzhou to trade ivory and spices for silk and tea. The sixteenth century saw the arrival of Dutch and Portuguese traders, who exported porcelain, silk, and tea from China.
Today, Fujian has a broad and varied economic base, producing bananas, fish, fruits, pears, rice, rubber, seafood, sugar, and tea. Fujian's nearness to Taiwan has also made it the center of the growing cross-strait trade between China and Taiwan as the two sides seek closer economic ties. Fujian Province is also tied linguistically to Taiwan, because about half of all current Taiwanese hail from Fujian and speak a dialect native to southern Fujian.
Further Reading
Clark, Hugh R. (1991) Community, Trade, and Networks: Southern Fujian Province from the Third to the Thirteenth Century. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Hook, Brian, ed. (1996) Fujian: Gateway to Taiwan. New York: Oxford University Press.
Lyons, Thomas P. (1995) The Economic Geography of Fujian: A Sourcebook. Ithaca. NY: East Asia Program, Cornell University.
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