Xiangyang
/ˌʃjɑːŋˈjɑːŋ/noun
A city in Hubei Province, China, historically known as an important military and cultural center.
Did you know?In traditional Chinese geographical naming, yang referred to the sunny, north-facing side of a river, while yin referred to the shaded southern side.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient China
Old Chinese
襄陽
“The name formed from Xiang, a river or regional name, plus yang, meaning the sunlit or northern side.”
Han Dynasty
Classical Chinese
襄陽
“Xiangyang became established as a county name in the imperial administrative system.”
Medieval China
Middle Chinese
Sjang-yang
“The place-name continued in historical Chinese pronunciation and writing.”
20th Century
Mandarin Chinese
襄阳 / Xiāngyáng
“The modern Mandarin form of the city’s name.”
Modern English
English
Xiangyang
“The standard English romanization for the Chinese city.”