Nanning 南宁

About Nanning

Qingxiu Mountain rises beside the Yongjiang, with wooded slopes and plant collections contrasting with the city beyond. The Anthropology Museum of Guangxi adds bronze drums, textiles, silver ornaments and other material culture to that landscape context. For a first visit, pair one substantial museum with a park rather than trying to cover every part of this spread-out city in one circuit.

Nanning was formerly part of the territory of the Baiyue peoples. Jinxing Commandery (晋兴郡) was separated from Yulin Commandery in 318, during the Eastern Jin dynasty, with its seat at Jinxing County (晋兴县) — the first recorded place name for present-day Nanning. In 632, during the Tang dynasty, the area was renamed Yongzhou (邕州), the source of Nanning's abbreviated name 'Yong' (邕); in 1324, during the Yuan dynasty, it was renamed Nanning Circuit (南宁路), the origin of the present name. It served as Guangxi's provincial capital from 1912, lost that role to Guilin in 1936, and regained it in 1949.

Nanning lies in south-central Guangxi, bordering Chongzuo to the west, Baise, Hechi and Laibin to the north, Guigang to the east, and Qinzhou and Fangchenggang to the south. It sits in a hilly basin, with hills predominating to the north and flatter terrain to the south, and the Yong River (邕江) runs through the city center.

Regional-level intangible cultural heritage items associated with the city include Zhuang three-part-harmony folk songs (壮族三声部民歌), Guangxi eight-tone music (广西八音) and the Binyang firecracker-dragon festival (宾阳炮龙节). Nanning has hosted the annual China-ASEAN Expo since 2004 and holds the Nanning International Folk Song Arts Festival each autumn.

What to look for

• Qingxiu Mountain provides wooded slopes and a subtropical plant landscape beside the Yongjiang.
• The Anthropology Museum of Guangxi holds bronze drums, textiles and silver ornaments associated with the region’s communities.

The surrounding area

Regional capital for laoyoufen, the Three Streets and Two Alleys quarter and Qingxiu Mountain.

Location & getting there

Getting to Nanning

Nanning and Nanning East are different railway stations; both connect with the city metro. For Qingxiu Mountain’s west gate, use Qingxiushan station. The Anthropology Museum of Guangxi is at 11 Qinghuan Road, requiring its own final approach.