Chaoshan
Chaoshan or Teoswa is a cultural-linguistic region in the east of Guangdong, China. It is the origin of the Teochew Min language. The region, also known as Chiushan in Cantonese, consists of the cities Chaozhou, Jieyang and Shantou. It differs linguistically from the rest of Guangdong province, which was historically dominated by Yue, Hakka, Haklau and Leizhou Min speakers.
Since the beginning of "the promotion of Standard Chinese" in China in late 1990s, many children cannot speak their native languages or dialects. Although many Teoswa scholars made an effort to keep the language, Mandarin has slowly become the dominant language in the region.
It is historically important as the ancestral homeland of many citizens of other countries of Chinese descent, including Viets, Thais, Cambodians, Singaporeans, Malaysians, and Indonesians.
The Teochew people are mainly spread over Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao; they have emigrated and established communities in Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Singapore, Taiwan, France, the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Indonesia, and other countries and coastal areas. The Teochew Letters, which have been admitted into the Asia/Pacific Regional Memory of the World Register, were family correspondence and remittance sent by Teochew immigrants in Southeast Asia to their families living in Chaoshan.
Etymology
The name "Chaoshan" is a contraction of two prefecture-level cities in the region: Chaozhou and Shantou. The name was first used in the 1904 construction of the Chao Chow and Swatow Railway, which connected the two major cities. Chaoshan then became the general name for three prefecture-level cities: Chaozhou, Shantou and Jieyang. Chaozhou and Shantou have agglomerated into a single, dense metropolitan area, which is among China's most densely populated. Chaozhou is a major cultural center of the Chaoshan region, and thus the descendants of overseas Chaoshan immigrants are often called "Chaozhou".Overview
The Chaoshan region encompasses the cities of Chaozhou, Jieyang, and Shantou. It is Guangdong's second largest metropolitan area, after the Guangzhou-centered Pearl River Delta. It had a permanent population of 13,937,897 at the end of 2010, and covered an area of when it was united under the Shantou district that stretched from Jieyang on the coast to the southern border of Fujian. In 2024, the area was estimated at.In March 2013, a proposal to merge Chaozhou, Jieyang, and Shantou into sub-provincial cities in Guangdong Province was submitted to the National People's Congress. Chen Jingwei, a member of the CPPCC National Committee and vice-chairman of the Federation of Chinese Industry and Commerce, submitted the proposal again in March 2014.
On 20 December 2023 the Guangdong Provincial People's Government released the "Shantou-Chaozhou-Jieyang Metropolitan Area Development Plan".
| City | Romanization | Population | Image | Information | City Map |
| Shantou 汕头 | Pinyin: Shàntóu Cantonese Yale: Saantàu Peng'im: Suan1-tao5 Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Sòaⁿ-thâu | 5,391,028 | Shantou is the main city of the Chaoshan region. It is a port on the South China Sea, and is one of China's Special Economic Zones. ---- Districts: Jinping, Longhu, Haojiang, Chaoyang, Chaonan, Chenghai County: Nan'ao New Area: Haiwan | ||
| Jieyang 揭阳 | Pinyin: Jiēyáng Cantonese Yale: Kityèung Peng'im: Gig4-ion5 Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Kiat-iông | 5,877,025 | Jieyang is the most populous city in the region. It is one of the fastest-growing cities in terms of population. ---- Districts: Rongcheng, Jiedong Counties: Jiexi, Huilai County-level City: Puning | ||
| Chaozhou 潮州 | Pinyin: Cháozhōu Cantonese Yale: Chìujāu Peng'im: Dio5-ziu1 Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tiô-chiu | 2,669,844 | Chaozhou is the smallest of the three cities in the Chaoshan region. It is an old town with a large historic and cultural value, which is now undergoing urbanisation. ---- Districts: Xiangqiao, Chao'an County: Raoping |
Geography
Chaoshan is located in the east of Guangdong; it is bordered by Zhangzhou to its northeast and Meizhou in the northwest. The region has varying elevations, with highlands in northwest Chaoshan and low-lying deltas in the south and southeast. Two of the most notable mountain ranges in the northwest are the and the . Another famous mountain is the Sangpu Mountain located at the junction of Shantou, Chaozhou and Jieyang 3 prefecture-level cities. The region's flat terrain is served by three rivers and their tributaries: the Hanjiang, the Rongjiang, and the Lianjiang.Chaoshan has a long coastline with many ports, reaching a total length of more than. Its coastline spreads southwest from Raoping County and is detailed by bays, inlets, and islands; the largest island being Nan'ao Island.
Economy
The Chaoshan region, despite having the second largest economy in Guangdong after the Pearl River Delta, is still considered quite economically small in comparison to the PRD's economy. Although the growth of the area's GDP stagnated in the late 1990s during the 1997 Asian financial crisis, it has experienced regional economic growth and a steady increase in GDP. Li Ka-shing has also invested heavily in the education and healthcare of the region, recognizing its potential for growth; in 2023, he donated RMB 100 million to support the construction of a new inpatient building of the Chaozhou People's Hospital.There have been proposals to the Chinese government to amalgamate the region into one Special Economic Zone, as the split of the region into three cities in 1991 greatly slowed the level of economic growth in the region; in 2012, the per capita GDP of Shantou reached only US$4,250, whereas the province's total GDP per capita was US$8,600. During the period 2007–2012, there was only a 10% growth in GDP, whereas the average economic growth in the whole province was around 15%. In 2007, the total GDP of the four cities in eastern Guangdong was 210.748 billion yuan, accounting for 6.56% of the total GDP of the Province.
In 2023, the total GDP of Guangdong province was 13.57 trillion yuan while the GDP of Shantou, one of the first four special economic zones opened to the outside world, was only 315.83 billion yuan, ranked 11th of the 21 cities in the Guangdong province; the GDP of Jieyang was 244.50 billion yuan, ranked 13th; and the GDP of Chaozhou was 135.66 billion yuan, ranked 19th.
Energy
The area contains two coal-fired power plants with 1000 megawatt or greater outputs: Shantou Power Station and Huilai Power Station.Chaoshan is home to many active wind farms, including the Nan'ao Wind Farm complex on Nan'ao Island in Shantou, which is the largest island wind farm in Asia; and the Shibeishan Wind Farm in Huilai County. There are also multiple planned wind farm complexes set to start construction in 2024–2025, the most notable being Chaozhou's planned offshore wind farm in the Taiwan Strait and the planned Guangdong Jieyang Huilai wind farm.
There are also plans to build a nuclear power plant in Jieyang, although the date by which construction will start has yet to be determined.
Culture and language
Chaoshan has a culture that is distinct from its neighbors in Guangdong and the rest of China. It does, however, share similarities to the Minnan areas just north of Chaoshan in Fujian province. One of the main reasons is its language, the Chaoshan or Swatow dialect. This variant of Chinese has eight tones compared to the six tones found in Cantonese and the four to five tones found in Mandarin, which makes it one of the most difficult variants to master. Music, opera and Chaozhou cuisine are further characteristics that distinguish Chaoshan people from the rest of Guangdong.The Chaoshan dialect of Min is considered one of the more conservative Chinese dialects, as it preserves features from ancient Chinese that have been lost in some of the other modern dialects of Chinese. Locals claim Chaoshan dialect is one of the oldest in China. It is spoken by about 15 million people in Chaoshan and approximately two to five million overseas.
Chaozhou opera is a traditional art form that has a history of more than 500 years, and it has been performed in over 20 countries and regions. Based on the local folk dances and ballads, Chaozhou opera has formed its own style under the influence of Nanxi opera. Nanxi is one of the oldest Chinese operas that originated in the Song dynasty. The old form of choral accompaniment still retains its special features. Clowns and females are the most distinctive characters in a Chaozhou opera, and fan-playing and acrobatic skills are more prominent than in other types of performances.
Gongfu tea, the "espresso" of Chinese teas with a formidable kick, which was first consumed back in the Song dynasty, is still flourishing and remains an important part of social etiquette in Chaozhou.
At the local teahouse, tea service is often accompanied by Chaozhou music. Chaozhou string music, the gong and drum music, flute music are the traditional musical forms of Chaozhou music. Chaozhou string music is made up of mostly plucked and bowed string instruments, and on some occasions, wind instruments are used. The most characteristic instruments are the erxian , tihu and yehu, the sanxian, pipa, ruan, guzheng, and yangqin. The number of instruments and performers in the ensemble is flexible and depends on the availability of instruments and musicians to play them - but for an even and balanced texture only one of each instrument is preferred. Chaozhou drum music includes the big drum and gong, the small drum and gong, the dizi set drum and dong and su drum and gong ensembles. The current Chaozhou drum music is said to be similar to the form of the Drum and Wind Music of the Han and Tang dynasties. Chaozhou guzheng is also a major genre of Southern style Chinese guzheng.