Zhongshan Municipality is the hometown of Dr.Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925),forerunner of the Chinese democratic revolution.Situated in the mid-south of the Pearl River Delta,and the west side of the estuary of the Pearl River,the municipality adjoins Guangzhou Municipality in the north,links with Zhuhai Municipality in the south,neighbors Jiangmen Municipality in the west and lies in the vicinity of Hong Kong and Macao.The municipality exercises jurisdiction over 19 towns,4 urban districts and a national high-tech industrial development zone.The municipal government is seated at No.1,Songyuan Road of Eastern District.Zhongshan is a famous native place to overseas Chinese.Over 800,000 Chinese nationals and ethnic Chinese living in 87 countries and compatriots in Hong Kong,Macao and Taiwan find their roots in Zhongshan.
Zhongshan was called Xiangshan in ancient times.It was part of Panyu County in the Han Dynasty (206 BC- 220),Dongguan Prefecture from Jin Dysnasty (265-420) onward and Donguan County in the Tang Dynasty (618-907).In the 22nd year of Shaoxing Period (1152) in the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279),Xiangshan County was established on the basis of the coastal portions allotted from Nanhai County,Panyu County and Xinhui County,joining the jurisdiction of Guangzhou Prefecture.It came directly under Guangdong Province after the founding of the Republic of China.Cuiheng Village of Xiangshan County is the hometown of Dr.Sun Yat-sen.In 1925,Xiangshan County was renamed as Zhongshan County.With approval by the State Council,Zhongshan County was changed to Zhongshan City (county-level) in December 1983 and elevated to a municipality in January 1988.
The geological structure of Zhongshan Municipality belongs to Central Guangdong Col of South China folding.The terrain mainly consists of plains,high in the center and flat around.The plain area slopes down from northwest to southeast.Wugui Mountain and Zhugao Mountain tower in the mid-south of the municipality.The leading peak of Mount Wugui 531 meters above sea level,is the highest in the municipality.Zhongshan lies in low latitude area,with the entire territory in the south of the Tropic of Cancer.It is subject to subtropical monsoon climate,which is characterized by abundant heat and light,plentiful rainfall and clear distinction of humidity and dryness.The annual average temperature is 21.8 centigrade.Water vaporization carried by summer monsoon is the major source of rainfall.One may encounter such bad weather like typhoon,frost,and rainfall in low temperature,wind of cold dew and rainstorm here.The typical vegetation is the evergreen tropical rain forest.Vegetation mainly consists of over 610 kinds of plants and forest coverage is 12.95%.
Major tourist attractions are former residence of Dr.Sun Yat-sen,Sunwen Memorial Park,Zhongshan Town,which is a TV program-making base of CCTV,Sunwen West Road,which is a pedestrian shopping street featuring local history and culture.There are Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall,Zhongshan Hot Springs,Spring & Forest Valley,Seaside Resort,a river-crisscrossing area with strong South China features,Zimaling Park,Wen Tower atop Bufeng Peak and Happy Valley.The former residence of Sun Yat-sen is a national AAAA attraction.
Folk culture is rich in Zhongshan.Among the art forms are Zhongshan folk song,dance of dragon,lion,crane and phoenix and Huangpu Parade (a parade where children with strong make-up imitate famous opera characters).Zhongshan is the land of folk songs.Xianshui Song,Gaotang Song,Dazeng Song,Hakka Song,Crane Song,Song of sisters-in-law,Fishing Drumbeat,Dragon Boat and children's song enjoy popularity among the folks.Xianshui Song and Gaotang Song,which have a history of over 300 years,are the most distinctive.They are popular in Dashatian District such as Tanzhou Town.
Since implementing the policy of reform and opening up,Zhongshan municipality has maintained a fast and healthy growth momentum in economy and all social sectors.In recent years,Zhongshan was awarded prizes one after another,such as "Nationally Designated Clean City","Nationally Designated Landscaping City","Nationally Designated City Practicing Rejuvenation through Science and Technology","Top Tourist City in China","Nationally Designated Environmental Protection Model City","Nationally Designated Smooth Traffic Model City".In 1997,it was granted Habitat Scroll of Honor Award by the United Nations.