China: All about Hubei Province Quiz

Answer: Dongting Lake

Dongting Lake is hailed in Chinese tradition as the place where dragon boat racing was born. The lake itself not in Hubei, but another Chinese province, however this is where Hubei gets its name from.

Answer: Anhui and Jiangxi

Hubei does border Henan, but Henan lies north. Hubei also shares a border with Hunan, but Hunan lies south ("Hunan" means "south of the lake" in contrast to "Hubei" which means "north of the lake").

Hubei does share a border with Chongqing, but Chongqing lies west. Hubei also shares a border with Shaanxi, but Shaanxi lies northwest.

Answer: Yangtze and Han

Wuhan is located in the east-central of Hubei. Because of its location, Wuhan has long served as an important strategic city for trade and commerce. The name "Wuhan" is derived from the joining together of what was once three separate towns in Hubei: Wuchang, Hankou, and Hanyang. Wuhan known for the Wuchang Uprising of 1911, a rebellion against the Qing Dynasty, which was the major catalyst for the Xinhai Revolution that ended China's imperial years.

The Yangtze River is the third longest river in the entire world, and the longest river in Eurasia. The Han River is the Yangtze's largest tributary, and Wuhan sits at the confluence of these two large rivers.

Answer: Enshi Grand Canyon

Enshi Grand Canyon is located around 330 miles (530 km) west of Wuhan and is often called "the Grand Canyon of the East." Yichang City lies to the east of the canyon, Zhangjiajie National Forest Park lies south and Yangtze Three Gorges lies north. The canyon is a popular tourist attraction of Hubei and is renowned for its vastness and beauty.

One Incense Pillar is one of the most notable features of Enshi Grand Canyon. It is a karst pillar and stands alone between the cliffs and peaks. The pillar is just under 500 feet (150 m) high, but only 13 foot (4 m) wide. Due to its similar appearance to an incense stick, legend surrounding the karst pillar states that a deity handed this supposed incense stick to the indigenous Tujia people of the area.

Answer: Wuhan

Located on Snake Hill in Wuhan, the Yellow Crane Tower is one of the most known and respected towers south of the Yangtze River. Legend has it that the tower was built by an elderly pothouse owner named Old Xin. A Taoist priest happened upon the pothouse and asked Old Xin for some wine, which Old Xin ignored. Old Xin's son however gave him some wine for free. The priest visited the pothouse in the months to come and was subject to the same kindness from the son. The priest was so grateful that he drew a crane on the wall of the pothouse, explaining to the son that the crane would dance whenever he asked it to. Spectators for this phenomena came over and over to the pothouse, and the Xin family became rich, building the tower to thank the priest for his actions.

Yellow Crane Tower was built during the Three Kingdoms Period (220-280) in 223 AD. It was built by Sun Quan, who was King of the Wu State from 222-229 AD. He chose the location for strategic purposes for the original structure to function as a watchtower. The tower became forgotten over the centuries, although by the time of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) many poems were written about the tower, cementing people's desire to visit it.

The original tower is unfortunately long gone. Yellow Crane Tower has been destroyed and rebuilt many times throughout history. It was destroyed and rebuilt due to war seven times throughout the the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. It was completely obliterated due to a fire in 1884, and was not reconstructed until 1981. The tower is now based on how it appeared during the Qing Dynasty, with yellow glazed tiles and upturned eaves that gives the tower the aesthetic of a crane spreading its wings. It is just under 170 feet (50 m) high.

Answer: Jingzhou

Located on the Yangtze River, Jingzhou is situated in the south of Hubei. The Spear of Fuchai was found in Jiangling County, Jingzhou.

The Spear of Fuchai was the personal bronze spear of Fuchai, who was the last king of the Wu State during the times of the Western Zhou Dynasty. Fuchai reigned the Wu State between 495-473 BC. The spear is engraved with a kind of seal script typically used for swords of the Wu and Yue ancient states of China, the bird-worm seal script. The Chinese characters of the script translate to "King Fuchai of Wu made for his personal use, this spear."

Jingzhou was also where the Sword of Goujian was discovered. Goujian was king of the Yue State, which was based in what is now China's Zhejiang province. The Wu and the Yue would wage war against each other, and Goujian invaded the Wu State, with Fuchai committing suicide after his territory was taken over. Goujian's sword was found in a tomb in Hubei. It has been banned from being loaned to other countries for exhibition since 1994, ever since Singaporean workers caused damage to the sword whilst it was loaned from China.

Answer: Guiyuan Temple

Also named "Guiyuan Zen Temple," the Guiyuan Temple was first established under the instruction of the Buddhist monk, Bai Guang, in 1658 during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and is located in the west of Wuhan's Hanyang district. It was the first to be constructed from the the Four Buddhist Monasteries of Wuhan, the others being the Baotong Zen Temple, Gude Buddhist Temple and Zhengjue Buddhist Temple. Guiyuan Temple is known for its many statues of figures from Buddhism, such as Lohan (also named Arhats).

Guiyuan Temple covers around 4.67 hectares and has been visited by important political figures from abroad, such as Japanese Prime Minister, Nakasone Yasuhiro, American Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, Prime Minister of Singapore, Li Guangyao and King Sihanouk of Kampuchea. The eastern courtyard where the main entrance is, and is easily recognizable from its bright orange door. Guiyuan Temple is the only ancient building still standing in Wuhan that is made of wood and bricks. Guiyuan Temple is held dear to the hearts of the locals in Wuhan, who burn the first incense of the year here annually, and who pray at the temple regularly.

Answer: Tenglong Cave

Lichuan City is situated in the southwest of Hubei.

Tenglong Cave is reported to be the largest water-eroded cave in the entirety of China. It is around 245 feet high (75 m) and around 215 feet (65 m) wide. The cave's total area consists of around 2,150 square feet (200 square m). Tenglong Cave takes into itself the Qingjiang River, resulting in a 75 foot (23 m) waterfall inside. The cavern group of the cave has five layers, featuring 5 peaks, 10 halls, over 10 waterfalls and luckily has no poisonous air nor dangerous animals inhabiting it.

Answer: Zhongxiang

The Ming Xianling Mausoleum is located just outside of Zhongxiang City. It is the tomb of the parents of the 12th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, the Jiajing Emperor. The mausoleum took 40 years to complete, and was built in the form of two closed cities with around 30 building compounds. It is the only imperial mausoleum located in south-central China, and the largest mausoleum still standing from the Ming Dynasty. It was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000.

Located in the centre of the province, Zhongxiang is a county-level city of Jingmen, which is a prefecture level city in Hubei. "Zhongxiang" means "blessed with propitious omen" and the city was coined this by the Jiajing Emperor, who was born and lived in the city.

Answer: Panlongcheng

The Erligang was a Bronze Age civilization that was active between 1600-1400 BC, in the middle of the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC). Panlongcheng is situated at the confluence of the Yangtze and Hanshui rivers and was first discovered in modern times in 1954, before being more extensively excavated in the 1970s. The remnants of a palace were found as well as the city wall and numerous burial sites. Bronze axes were dug up which had cicada and dragon patterns. It is thought that the owners of these axes were buried there upon their deaths, as well as sacrificed slaves.

It is thought that the location of Panlongcheng was significant due to the rich copper deposits in the area, which would be extracted then sent to Zhengzhou (the capital of China during the Shang Dynasty) which would in turn send bronze weapons and vessels to Panlongcheng.

Answer: Honghu Lake

Honghu Lake is located in the southeast of Hubei and is the seventh largest lake in China. It is surrounded by reeds and water grass and is particularly known for its abundance of lotus flowers. Honghu Lake has featured prominently in Chinese culture, including paintings, poetry, music and legends. The lake covers around 135 square miles (350 square km).

Although the lake is known for its cleanliness and natural beauty, it has been subject to overfishing of freshwater crabs which has had a negative effect on its ecosystem. However, the price of crabs fell in 2003, leading the government of Hubei to establish a restoration project for Honghu. The conservation efforts have paid off, with the Oriental white stork (an endangered species) being reintroduced to the area in 2005, which at the time had not been seen on Honghu Lake since 1995.

Answer: Wudang Mountains

Located in the northwest of Hubei, the Wudang Mountains are said to be where Tai Chi was born and are the most sacred mountains in Taoism. To this day monks can be found practicing Tai Chi, Xing Yi Quan, Eight Diagrams Palm and other fighting styles in the mountains.

The collection of monasteries around these mountains include Purple Cloud Temple, which is known for its many statues of Zhen Wu, one of the main deities of Taoism. Golden Palace is located at the top of the Wudang Mountains' highest peak, Tianzhu Peak. Because of these monasteries, the Wudang Mountains were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994. Unfortunately in 2003 one of the monasteries, the 600 year old Yuzhengong Palace, burned down as a result of an accidental fire. However all was not lost. A statue of Zhang Sanfeng, a legendary Taoist, happened to be moved to another building and was not effected by the fire.

Shiyan is located in the northwest of Hubei. The Wudang Mountains stretch east to west throughout Shiyan.

Answer: Huangpi

Wuhan has 13 urban districts and 156 subdistricts. Huangpi District is one of the urban districts, and is located on the left bank of the Yangtze River. The Wuhan Tianhe International Airport is located in Huangpi.

Mulan Mountain Scenic Area is the site of many beautiful nature spots, such as the Mulan Tianchi lake located just north of Shimen Mountain and the fields of the Mulan Prairie. Chinese legend states that a female named Hua Mulan joined the Chinese army by disguising herself as a woman. and served the army for 12 years. Written between 500-600 AD, the story was first presented in the poem "The Battle of Mulan." The story was recycled over the years, being turned into a novel during the Ming Dynasty.

Answer: Han Show Theatre

Located by East Lake in Wuhan, the Han Show Theatre's architecture is designed to look like a the traditional Chinese paper lantern. The building lights up in a red glow at night due to the building having a circular array of red LEDs. Inside the theatre are among the world's largest moving LED screens which are directed around on robotic arms.

The seats are also movable electronically, moving and shifting the spectators during the performances. Water performances are included in a pool the equivalent of Olympic size, which can be revealed and then shut down within an instant.

It regularly has productions honouring Han culture and features stunning acrobatic performances.

Answer: Tortoise Mountain TV Tower

Standing at around 1,020 feet (310 m) high, the Tortoise Mountain TV Tower has stood since 1986, with construction beginning in 1981. It is located on the left bank of the the Yangtze river, on Guishan Mountain in Hanyang District, Wuhan. It functions as both a telecommunications tower and as an observation tower.

It is one of China's tallest TV towers and features an observation deck that is around 600 feet (180 m) high.