The coast of Rizhao

Rizhao City is named because of an old saying that it is the place where sunlight of the rising sun comes first. It is a new rising coastal open city, tourist city and port city. Located in the central Chinese coast, Rizhao is in the southern end of Shandong Peninsula, neighboring Qingdao to the north, Lianyungang to the south, facing Yellow Sea to the east and being separated by stretches of sea with Korea and Japan. Composed of Donggang District, Lanshan District, Ju County, Wulian County, Rizhao Economic Development Zone and Shanhaitian Tourism and Resort District, Rizhao covers an area of 5,310 square kilometers with population of 2.845 million.

A Peasant Painting

Evolution History

Rizhao boasts a long-time history. According to A Brief Survey of World History published by Oxford University Press, the city of Rizhao from 3500 BC to 2000 BC is the earliest city of Asia. It was under the jurisdiction of Dongyi (the ancient tribe in Eastern China) in Xia and Shang Dynasty, of Kingdom Ju from Western Zhou Dynasty till former Warring States Period.

In 1687 (the second year of the reign of Song King Yuanyou), Rizhao Town was set up, under the jurisdiction of Ju County, named after the meaning that it is the place where sunlight of the rising sun comes first. The name has been used from then on. Rizhao County was set up in 1184 (the twenty-forth year of the reign of Jing King Dading) and it was under the jurisdiction of Juzhou and Qingzhou in Ming Dynasty and Yizhou in Qing Dynasty.

Galaxy Park

In the period of the Republic of China, it belonged to Jiaozhou Dao first and then Langya Dao. When Dao was withdrawn as a name in a system of administrative division in 1928, it came to be under direct control of Shandong Province. The Anti-Japanese Democratic government of Rizhao County guided by Communist Party of China was established in March of 1940 and was transferred to Binhai Commission in August of the next year.