Jingzhou
/ˈdʒɪŋˌdʒoʊ/; Mandarin: /tɕíŋ tʂóu/noun
Jingzhou is a historic city and administrative region in central China, now primarily associated with Jingzhou City in Hubei Province.
Did you know?Jingzhou was one of the Nine Provinces named in the ancient “Tribute of Yu,” a foundational Chinese geographical tradition later associated with the legendary Xia dynasty.
Etymological Timeline
Before the 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
荆 (Jīng)
“Thorny or brambly vegetation; also the name of a region and the ancient state of Chu.”
c. 4th–3rd century BCE
Classical Chinese
荆州 (Jīngzhōu)
“Jing Province, one of the traditional Nine Provinces of early Chinese geographical and political tradition.”
206 BCE–220 CE
Han Chinese
荆州 (Jīngzhōu)
“Jingzhou, a major provincial-level administrative area during the Han period.”
3rd century CE
Middle Chinese
荊州
“Jingzhou, a strategically important territory during the Three Kingdoms period.”
20th century
Mandarin Chinese
Jīngzhōu
“The modern Mandarin pronunciation and romanization of 荆州.”
Modern English
English
Jingzhou
“The established English romanization for the Chinese city and historic region in Hubei.”