Get to know Fengxian District
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- Administrative area
- District · 市辖区
- Part of
- Shanghai
- Chinese name
- 奉贤区
- Local areas
- District guide
Area & population
- Area in the source
- 704.68 km²
- Population · 2020 Census
- 1,140,872
Source: cited geographic source, as of the dates shown.
History
Fengxian County was created in 1726 under the Qing Yongzheng Emperor and became a district on 24 August 2001, ending 275 years as a county. One explanation of the name, read as "honouring the worthy", links it to Yan Yan (言偃), also known as Ziyou (子游), a disciple of Confucius said to have taught here.
The coast is lined by the Huating Seawall (华亭海塘), begun in 1725 and finished after ten years as a main part of the Qing Jiangnan seawalls (江南海塘). A 3.9-kilometre stretch in Fengxian was exposed in May 1996 when the Feng–Zhe road (奉柘公路) was widened.
What to see
The Fengxian stretch of the Huating Seawall, at Zhelin (柘林镇), is built of bluestone and granite blocks and carries more than 30 inscribed stones; it is known as "Shanghai's little Great Wall". It became a national key protected site in 2019.
In the new town, the "Shanghai Fish" (上海之鱼) is a landscape dug in the shape of a goldfish around Jinhai Lake (金海湖), which the district government lists as Shanghai's second-largest artificial lake. Beside it stands the Fengxian Museum (奉贤博物馆), opened in May 2019 in a building by the Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto made of three linked but separate blocks. Qingxi Old Street (青溪老街), in Qingcun (青村镇), is laid out around three history museums.
On the coast, Shanghai Bay National Forest Park (上海海湾国家森林公园), on land that was once part of the East China Sea, is a planted park with a large plum garden, lakes and more than 140 species of wild birds.
Getting oriented
Shanghai Metro Line 5 runs into the district, with seven stations from Xidu (西渡) to Jinhai Lake (金海湖) and Fengxian Xincheng (奉贤新城).
Highlights
- Huating Seawall, Fengxian section 华亭海塘奉贤段: Qing stone seawall begun in 1725; national key protected site since 2019.
- Shanghai Fish and Jinhai Lake 上海之鱼: Goldfish-shaped landscape around Shanghai's second-largest artificial lake.
- Fengxian Museum 奉贤博物馆: Opened in 2019 in a three-part building by Sou Fujimoto.
- Shanghai Bay National Forest Park 上海海湾国家森林公园: Planted park on former sea land, with a large plum garden and over 140 wild bird species.
Sources for this guide
上海之鱼 · Fengxian District People's Government, Shanghai
青溪老街 · Fengxian District People's Government, Shanghai
华亭东石塘 · Fengxian District People's Government, Shanghai
奉贤博物馆 · Fengxian District People's Government, Shanghai
海湾国家森林公园 · Fengxian District People's Government, Shanghai
奉贤区 - 维基百科 · Wikipedia (Chinese) · CC BY-SA 4.0
Original English written from the listed sources and checked sentence by sentence against quoted extracts by a separate reviewer. Updated 2026-09-25.
Explore Fengxian District
Core places to explore, with English and Chinese names.
Places to explore around Fengxian District
The exterior of Fengxian Museum, Shanghai · 奉贤博物馆 Photograph date recorded by the source: 12 June 2019.Fengxian Museum奉贤博物馆
Fengxian Museum occupies a modern lakeside building by Jinhai Lake. Designed by Sou Fujimoto, this is the museum’s newer home, separate from its former premises in the older town centre.
Read the place guide →
AI illustration · AI 示意图（仅供参考，非该地点实拍）Qingxi Old Street青溪老街
Qingxi Old Street follows the waterway through Qingcun in Fengxian. Its narrow street pattern and vernacular buildings preserve elements of a Jiangnan market-town setting, alongside later restoration.
Read the place guide →
Shanghai Fish · Jinhai Lake Landscape (上海之鱼), Fengxian District. Photograph: "金海湖".Shanghai Fish · Jinhai Lake Landscape上海之鱼
Shanghai Fish (上海之鱼) is a landscaped lake district in Fengxian New City, southern Shanghai.
Read the place guide →Plan your visit
Getting there
Fengxian District is about 40 km in a straight line from central Shanghai. Search for 奉贤区 in a map app to find stations and your accommodation.
Where to stay →Build your route
Fengxian Museum and Qingxi Old Street are about 3 km apart in a straight line. The linked place guides have entrance and visit details.
Continue with Shanghai →More in Shanghai
Sources & geographic information
Administrative names and parent areas: Official geographic directory · Reference date 2026-09-06.
Some facts checked against 奉贤区 — Wikipedia contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photo: Fengxian Museum · Stevenliuyi · CC BY-SA 4.0. Full frame retained; proportionally resized and converted to WebP. No retouching or changes to the photographed subject. Card displays may crop the view.
Photo: Shanghai Fish · Jinhai Lake Landscape · 中文維基百科20021024 · CC BY-SA 4.0. Full frame retained; EXIF orientation normalized, proportionally resized to at most 800 pixels and converted to WebP. No generated pixels or subject changes. Cards may crop the display.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Pins mark approximate centres, not entrances or boundaries.