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Shaoguan

geography Maturity 11-13 Next article →

Shaoguan is a large city in South China. It sits at the northern edge of Guangdong Province. The city is near the Nan Mountains, which run east to west. It borders Hunan to the northwest and Jiangxi to the northeast. Many other places surround it, like Heyuan to the east and Qingyuan to the west. The city is part of a region with many valleys. These valleys were made by erosion over a long time.

Two rivers play a big part in the city. The Wu River comes from the northwest. The Zhen River comes from the northeast. These two rivers join together to make the North River. This river flows south toward Guangzhou. The main part of the city sits on a peninsula between the two rivers. A dam keeps the water at a steady level downstream. There are seven bridges that cross these three rivers.

Shaoguan has a long and interesting history. Many years ago, it was called Shaozhou. During the Tang and Song dynasties, it was a prefecture. In 1589, a man named Matteo Ricci moved his mission there. He used the north-south travel routes to meet important people. This helped him travel to places like Nanjing and Beijing. During World War II, the city was called Kukong. It even served as the temporary capital for Guangdong Province.

There are many special things to see in and around the city. You can visit Danxia Mountain in Renhua County. In the town of Pingshi, people go white-water rafting on the Nine Torrents and Eighteen Shoals. The Fengcai Tower stands in the center of the city. It was built during the Ming dynasty. You can also find the Dajian Monastery, which was founded in 660. Near Maba, there is a museum for the Maba Man. This is a type of ancient human called a Neanderthal.

The weather in Shaoguan changes with the seasons. It has a humid subtropical climate. Summers are long, hot, and very wet. The spring is the cloudiest and wettest time of the year. In the spring, the sun shines less than 30% of the time. Because the city is far inland, winters are cooler than other parts of the province. Sometimes, freezing rain can fall in the mountain passes. The city gets about 1,617 hours of bright sunshine every year.

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