Nan'an 南安市

Setting and landscape

The land slopes down from northwest to southeast; hills and mountains cover 73 per cent of it. The Xixi (西溪), a headwater of the Jin River, crosses the middle of the city from west to east, and the Dongxi (东溪) cuts diagonally across the northeast; the two meet at Shuangxikou (双溪口) to form the Jin River proper. Anxi (安溪) lies to the west, Yongchun (永春) to the north and the Quanzhou city districts to the east, while the southern shore looks across the water to the Dadeng and Xiaodeng islands (大嶝岛、小嶝岛) of Xiamen and to Kinmen (金门).

History

Nan'an traces its origin to Dong'an County (东安县), set up in 260 with its seat at today's Fengzhou (丰州镇). A wall was built against pirates in 1559, and because willows were planted around its line the town was nicknamed Liucheng (柳城), "willow city"; the name moved with the seat to Ximei (溪美) in 1937. The city government lists Zheng Chenggong (郑成功), also known as Koxinga, and the thinker Li Zhi (李贽) among its people.

What to see

The city counts 11 national key protected sites. Two belong to the World Heritage property "Quanzhou: Emporium of the World in Song-Yuan China": the wind-praying inscriptions of Jiuri Shan (九日山), a national 5A scenic area, and the Wuli Bridge (五里桥), also called Anping Bridge (安平桥). The Jinji ancient port (金鸡古港) is described as having been called "the greatest port of the East" in Song and Yuan times, and the Cai Family Old Residences (蔡氏古民居) form a palace-style group of houses. The tomb of Zheng Chenggong is also a national site.

Culture, tea and produce

Quanzhou Nanyin (泉州南音) music, on UNESCO's intangible heritage list, is at home here alongside Liyuan opera (梨园戏), Gaojia opera (高甲戏) and puppet theatre, and Nan'an was named a Chinese home of quyi (曲艺) folk performing arts in 2019. The Yingdu babadeng (英都拔拔灯) custom is on the national intangible heritage list. The city says its tea growing began at Lianhua Peak (莲花峰) in Fengzhou in the Jin dynasty (晋代), and Shitinglü (石亭绿) is a historic Fujian tea. Longan, lychee, citrus, banana and yangmei (杨梅) earn it the name "home of fruit".

Getting oriented

Shijing port (石井港) lies only 6 nautical miles from Kinmen, and Nan'an North station (南安北站) is on the Xingquan railway (兴泉铁路).

Highlights

• Jiuri Shan 九日山: Hill with wind-praying inscriptions in the Quanzhou World Heritage listing; a national 5A scenic area.
• Wuli Bridge (Anping Bridge) 五里桥: Stone bridge included in the Quanzhou World Heritage listing.
• Cai Family Old Residences 蔡氏古民居: Palace-style group of old houses, a national key protected site.
• Shitinglü tea 石亭绿: Described by the city as a historic Fujian tea.