Youxi County 尤溪县

Setting and landscape

The county describes its land as eight parts mountain, one part water and one part field, and forest covers 78.48%. The Jiemian Reservoir (街面水库) lies on the southern border with Datian (大田) and Dehua (德化). The county lists the Lianhe terraces (联合梯田) as Globally Important Agricultural Heritage. Youxi sits where the Eastern, Central and Southern Min and Puxian dialect areas meet, and its local dialects are hard to understand even for each other's speakers.

History

The county was founded in 741 under the Tang and was the first in Fujian to be named a "thousand-year-old county" by the UN place-name experts group. Zhu Xi's father, Zhu Song (朱松), became county sheriff in 1123 and, after leaving office, lodged in the house of a local man, Zheng Yizhai (郑义斋), below Gong Hill (公山) south of the county town; Zhu Xi (朱熹) was born there in 1130. Shrines to father and son were built on the site in 1237, and in 1253 Emperor Lizong granted it the name Nanxi Academy (南溪书院). Zhu Xi returned to Youxi nine times.

What to see

The county's five national 4A scenic areas are Tangchuan Xiatianxia (汤川侠天下), the Zhuzi Cultural Park (朱子文化园), the Guifeng old houses (桂峰古民居), Jiufu Mountain (九阜山) and Guxi Xinghe (古溪星河). Guifeng village (桂峰村), in a mountain valley at 550 metres in the north-east of Yangzhong town (洋中镇), is a national historic and cultural village whose residents all bear the surname Cai.

Youxi's earth fortresses (土堡) are defensive rural buildings with earth walls, corner towers, a running gallery for defenders, bamboo gun ports and water holes above stone gateways for putting out fires. Maojing fortress (茂荆堡) at Gaizhu village (盖竹村), Taixi Township (台溪乡), mixes southern Fujian, Fuzhou and Hakka building traditions.

Food and local products

Youxi kumquats (尤溪金柑) and Youxi green bamboo shoots (尤溪绿竹笋) hold Chinese geographical indication status, and the county calls itself a home of kumquats, bamboo and tea-oil camellia. Local foods include Meixian meat guangbing (梅仙肉光饼), Shuidong pressed duck (水东板鸭) and Youxi thick noodles (尤溪大条面).

Getting oriented

Minqing (闽清) and Yongtai (永泰) lie to the east, Datian and Shaxian (沙县) to the west, Dehua to the south and Yanping District (延平区) of Nanping to the north. The Fuzhou–Yinchuan (福银), Shaxian–Xiamen (沙厦) and Puyan (莆炎) expressways and the Nanchang–Fuzhou railway (昌福铁路) pass through the county.

Highlights

• Nanxi Academy 南溪书院: Birthplace of Zhu Xi in 1130; named by Emperor Lizong in 1253.
• Guifeng village 桂峰村: National historic and cultural village at 550 metres in the north-east of Yangzhong town.
• Lianhe terraces 联合梯田: Terraced fields listed by the county as Globally Important Agricultural Heritage.
• Maojing fortress 茂荆堡: Earth fortress mixing southern Fujian, Fuzhou and Hakka building traditions.
• Youxi kumquat 尤溪金柑: Chinese geographical indication product.