Hongcun 宏村

About Hongcun

These two pools give the village its most recognisable open spaces, but the smaller channels beside the lanes are equally important to understanding its layout. Merchant residences such as Chengzhi Hall add carved interiors and enclosed courtyards to the waterside scenery. Move from the lake into the lanes to see how shared water spaces and private family buildings fit together.

Hongcun was founded in 1131, during the Shaoxing era of the Southern Song dynasty, by Wang Wen, a general whose clan settled there; the village was originally named Hongcun (弘村). In the Ming Yongle era the clan head had a fengshui master survey the site, redesigned its layout and channeled water into the village. Large-scale rebuilding in the mid-Qing dynasty led to its renaming, to avoid the personal name of the Qianlong Emperor, Hongli (弘历).

A channel (水圳) nearly one meter wide draws river water from the west and winds through the village, supplying households and moderating temperature; it widens into the crescent-shaped Moon Pond (月沼) at the center and the bow-shaped South Lake (南湖) to the south. The layout is likened to an ox: Leigang Hill (雷岗山) is the head, old trees are the horns, Moon Pond the heart, South Lake the belly, the channel the intestines, the houses the body, and four old bridges the legs.

Hongcun was inscribed, together with other ancient villages of southern Anhui, on the UNESCO World Heritage List as a cultural heritage site in 2000, and its historic building complex was listed as a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level (全国重点文物保护单位) in 2001. In 2003 it received the title of China Historical and Cultural Famous Village (中国历史文化名村).

What to look for

• Moon Pond and South Lake, linked by the village water system.
• The carved domestic architecture and courtyards of Chengzhi Hall.

Location & getting there

Getting to Hongcun

Use Hongcun’s village visitor entrance in Yi County. Huangshan North’s tourist passenger centre serves the village; Tangkou is another documented road-transfer base. Confirm the return connection and lodging location before entering the pedestrian lanes.