Yinchuan
/ˌjɪnˈtʃwɑːn/noun
Yinchuan is the capital city of China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.
Did you know?The name is written 銀川 in traditional characters, combining 銀, “silver,” with 川, “river” or “river plain”; the symbolism is poetic, not evidence of occult silver deposits.
Etymological Timeline
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
銀
“The character for silver; reconstructed pronunciation differs from modern Mandarin.”
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
川
“River, stream, or valley/plain shaped by a river.”
Middle Chinese, 7th–10th centuries
Middle Chinese
ngin / tsyhwen
“Historical pronunciations represented by the characters 銀 and 川.”
Ming Dynasty, 14th–17th centuries
Chinese
銀川
“The compound “Silver River,” used in the region’s historical naming tradition.”
Modern Mandarin
Mandarin Chinese
Yínchuān
“The modern pronunciation of 銀川, now the standard English-transliterated name of the city.”
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