Hang Prefecture
| Hang Prefecture | |
|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 杭州 |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Háng Zhōu |
| |
| Simplified Chinese | 餘杭郡 |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Yúháng Jùn |
| |
| Simplified Chinese | 西府 |
| Literal meaning | Western Prefecture |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Xī Fǔ |
| |
| Traditional Chinese | 錢塘府 |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Qiántáng Fǔ |
| Population | |
| • 740s or 750s | 585,963 |
| • 980 | ~0.9 million |
| • 1085 | ~1 million |
| • 1102 | ~1 million |
| History | |
| • Preceded by | Qiantang Commandery (錢唐郡) |
| • Created |
|
| • Abolished | 1129 (Song dynasty) |
| • Succeeded by | Lin'an Prefecture |
| • HQ | Qiantang (錢唐 or 錢塘) |
| Contained within | |
| • Circuit (Tang dynasty) |
|
| • Kingdom | Wuyue (907–978) |
| • Circuit (Song dynasty) | Liangzhe Circuit |
Hang Prefecture, Hang Zhou, or Hangzhou was a prefecture (zhou) of imperial China from 589 to 1129. It was located in modern northern Zhejiang around the city of Hangzhou, which took its modern name from its role as the usual prefectural seat. The prefecture was called Yuhang Commandery from 607 to 621 and from 742 to 758. Under the names Western Prefecture (Xizhou) and Qiantang Prefecture, Hang Prefecture served as the capital of the Wuyue Kingdom from its founding in 907 to its abolition in 978.
Hang Prefecture sat at the head of the Hangzhou Bay, which opens to the East China Sea. It was also the southern terminus of the Grand Canal and the eastern terminus of the Qiantang River. During the Northern Song (960–1127) it was the capital of Liangzhe Circuit. In 1129 it became Lin'an Prefecture, which would become the capital of the Southern Song (1127–1279) in 1138.