Luoyang (;
Postal map spelling: Loyang) is a
prefecture-level city in western
Henan province,
People's Republic of China. It borders the provincial capital of
Zhengzhou to the east,
Pingdingshan to the southeast,
Nanyang to the south,
Sanmenxia to the west,
Jiyuan to the north, and
Jiaozuo to the northeast.
Situated on the
central plain of China, one of the cradles of the
Chinese civilization, Luoyang was one of the
Four Great Ancient Capitals of China.
Names
The origin of the name "Luoyang" is the city's location to the north side (
"yang") of the
Luo River. The river flows from west to east and the sun is on south of the river, so that the sun shine is always on north side of the river. Luoyang has had several names over the centuries, including "Luoyi" (洛邑) and "Luozhou (洛州)", though Luoyang has been its primary name. It has been called, during various periods, "Dongdu" (東都, meaning the Eastern Capital, during the
Tang Dynasty), "Xijing" (西京, meaning the West Capital, during the Song Dynasty), or "Jingluo" (京洛, meaning the general capital for China).
History
thumb|left|240px|The Dragon Gate Cave of LuoyangThe greater Luoyang area has been sacred ground since the late
Neolithic. This area at the intersection of the Luo and Yi rivers, called The Waste of Xia, was considered to be the geographical center of China. Because of this sacred aspect several cites, all of which are generally referred to as "Luoyang", have been built there. In 2070 BCE, the
Xia Dynasty king
Tai Kang moved the Xia capital to the intersection of
Luo river and Yi River and named the city
Zhenxun (Chinese:斟鄩: Pinyin:Zhēnxún). In c 1600 BCE,
King Tang of Shang defeated
Jie, the final Xia Dynasty king, and built Western Bo (Chinese: 西亳; Pinyin: Xībó), a new capital on the Luo River. The ruins of Western Bo are located in Luoyang Prefecture.
In the 1136 BCE a settlement named
Chengzhou (Chinese: 成周) was constructed by the
Duke of Zhou for the remnants of the captured
Shang nobility. A second Western Zhou capital,
Wangcheng (also: Luoyi) was built 15 km west of Chengzhou. It was the capital of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty in 771 BCE. The Eastern
Zhou Dynasty capital was moved to Chengzhou in 510 BCE. Later, the Han dynasty capital of Luoyang would be built over Chengzhou. The ruins of Chengzhou are still visible today 2 km east of the
White Horse Temple area. Modern Luoyang is built over the ruins of Wangcheng, which are still visible today at Wangcheng Park.
In
AD 25, Luoyang became the capital of Eastern
Han Dynasty. For several centuries, Luoyang was the focal point of China. In
AD 68, the
White Horse Temple, the first
Buddhist temple in China, was founded in Luoyang. The temple still exists, though the architecture is of later origin, mainly from the 16th century.
An Shihkao was one of the first monks to popularize Buddhism in Luoyang.
In AD 190, Chancellor
Dong Zhuo ordered his soldiers to ransack, pillage and raze the city as he retreated from
the coalition set up against him by regional lords from across China. The court was subsequently moved to the more defensible western city of
Chang'an. Following a period of disorder, Luoyang was restored to prominence when
Emperor Wen of the
Wei Dynasty declared it his capital in
AD 220. The
Jin Dynasty, successor to Wei, was also established in Luoyang. When Jin was overrun by invaders and forced to move its capital to
Jiankang (modern day
Nanjing), Luoyang was nearly totally destroyed.
In
AD 493 the
Northern Wei Dynasty moved its capital from
Datong to Luoyang and started the construction of the
rock-cut Longmen Grottoes. More than 30,000
Buddhist statues from the time of this dynasty have been found in the caves. Many of these sculptures were two-faced. The
Empress Dowager Wenming tomb was also built here.
During the
Tang Dynasty, Luoyang was the eastern capital and at its height had a population of around one million. During the short-lived Five Dynasties, Luoyang was the capital of the
Later Tang. After that period, Luoyang
no longer served as capital of any subsequent dynasties.
Administrative divisions
thumb|right|200pxthumb|right|200pxThe
prefecture-level city of Luoyang administers 6
districts, 1
county-level city and 8
counties.
Culture
The
Longmen Grottoes were listed by
UNESCO in the list of
World Heritage Sites in November 2000.
White Horse Temple is located 12 km east of the modern town.
Guanlin is a series of temples that have been built in honor of a hero of the
Three Kingdoms period,
Guan Yu, close to the grottoes to the south of the city. China's only tombs museum, the
Luoyang Ancient Tombs Museum is situated north of the modern town.
Luoyang Museum was founded in 1958. The exhibitions in the museum are the ancient relics handed down from Xia Dynasty, Shang Dynasty and Zhou Dynasty. The total number of the exhibitions is 1700.
thumb|200px|right|Guanlin Temple, May 2007Luoyang is also famous for the Water Banquet
Shui Xi, which consists of 8 cold and 16 warm dishes cooked in various broths, gravies or juices, hence its name.
Luoyang has a reputation as a cultivation centre for
peony (city flower of Luoyang).
An ancient Chinese musical piece,
Spring in Luoyang, was adopted in Korea during the
Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392), and is still performed in its Koreanized (
Dangak) version, called
Nakyangchun (hangul: 낙양춘; hanja:
洛陽春). The American composer
Lou Harrison created an arrangement of this work.
80 km south-east of Luoyang stands the Dengfeng Observatory (also known as "The Tower of Chou Kong"). It is a tower which was constructed during the
Yuan Dynasty in 1276 by Guo Shou-Ching, as a giant
gnomon for the 'Measurement of the Sun's Shadow'. It was used for establishing the Summer and Winter Solstices. This astronomic instrument is described in detail by Joseph Needham in "Science and Civilisation in China", Cambridge Univ. Press.
Roman Catholic Diocese of LuoyangColleges and universities
Famous residents
Sister cities
- Tolyatti, Russian Federation, since April, 2000
