CHUNG-SHAN

Pinyin Zhongshan, formerly called Shih-ch'i or (Pinyin) Shiqi city in south-central Kwangtung sheng (province), China. Located in the central southern Pearl River delta, Chung-shan has a network of waterways connecting it with all parts of the delta and stands on a highway running north to Shun-te and Canton and south to Macau. Chung-shan is the marketing and commercial centre of one of the most prosperous and densely peopled areas in China. Great quantities of agricultural produce are collected for shipment to Canton, and it is the main distribution point for manufactured goods, also mostly from the Canton area. Chung-shan was first founded as a market town in the 11th century. It became the seat of a county, subordinate to Canton, in 1162. The area was one of the first to become subject to influence from Western contacts, and many of its inhabitants were prominent in overseas trade and in the first modernizing ventures in China during the 19th century. The county is famous for having been the birth place of Sun Yat-sen, also known as Sun Chung-shan, the leading figure in the Chinese revolution of 1911. Pop. (1990 est.) 278,829.