HENG-YANG

formerly (until 1912) Heng-chou, Pinyin Hengyang, city in south-central Hunan sheng (province), China. Heng-yang is situated on the west bank of the Hsiang River some 110 miles (180 km) south of Ch'ang-sha, just south of the confluence of the Hsiang River and its tributaries, the Lei River and the Cheng River. Heng-yang has been a communication centre since early times, being on the ancient post road from Ch'ang-sha into Kwangtung province established at the end of the 3rd century BC. In about AD 224 Lin-ch'eng county was established there, and in 257 it became the seat of Heng-yang commandery. In 589 the commandery became the prefecture of Heng-chou, and the county changed its name from Lin-ch'eng to Heng-yang. In Ming times (1368-1644) it became the superior prefecture of Heng-chou. The prefecture was abolished in 1912, and Heng-yang returned to county status. In 1949, however, it was made a municipality. Before World War II, Heng-chou was already a regional city of some importance, and its importance increased with the completion in 1936 of the Han-k'ou-Canton railway. With the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Heng-yang became the seat of the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party) military government in southern Hunan, and its population was swollen by many refugees from Ch'ang-sha and northern Hunan. Many small industries were set up, including some small ironworks, and by 1944 the city was said to have had a population of close to half a million. In that year the Japanese army captured Heng-yang. In the fighting the city was severely damaged. Heng-yang, which has always been a regional commercial centre, is today a major rail junction, with rail lines leading south to Canton and southwest to Kuei-lin and other places in Kwangsi Chuang Autonomous Region. Although the Hsiang River, along the city's eastern edge, still carries some traffic, most of the area's exports go by rail. The southern Hunan region of which Heng-yang is the centre, has, at least since the 8th century, been a mining district, producing coal, lead and zinc, tungsten, tin, and sulfur. Heng-yang has smelters for zinc and lead and large plants producing mining machinery and equipment, chemicals (including fertilizer), and farm and irrigation equipment. Heng-yang has traditionally been a centre of learning, having an academy that traces its origins to the 9th century. It also has ancient Buddhist temples and many ancient monuments. Pop. (1990) 487,148.