Shanxi
/ʃænˈʃiː/noun
Shanxi is a province of northern China, west of the Taihang Mountains.
Did you know?Shanxi’s name forms a geographic pair with Shandong, meaning “east of the mountains,” with both names traditionally linked to the Taihang range.
Etymological Timeline
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
山
“Mountain; a raised natural landform”
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
西
“West; the direction of sunset”
Classical Chinese, before the 10th century
Classical Chinese
山西
“West of the mountains”
Yuan–Ming period, 13th–17th centuries
Chinese
Shanxi
“A regional name for the territory west of the Taihang Mountains”
Modern English
English
Shanxi
“A province of northern China”