Jinzhong

Jinzhong, Wade-Giles romanization Chin-chung, formerly Yuci, city, central Shanxi sheng (province), northeast-central China. It is situated on the Xiao River, about 15 miles (25 km) south of Taiyuan, the provincial capital. Jinzhong was created in 1999 by amalgamating the city of Yuci and Jinzhong prefecture, with the former Yuci becoming a district under the new city.

Yuci long was overshadowed by Taiyuan, of which it often was a subordinate county since Han times (206 bce–220 ce). Originally located some distance west, it was moved to its present site in 448 ce. Yuci has always been an important road centre, situated where the route from Hebei province, after traversing the Taihang Mountains, enters the Taiyuan Basin. It was traditionally a major agricultural collecting centre for the north of the Taiyuan Basin, engaging in trade in grain, fruits, cotton, and textiles.

Before World War II Yuci was a small market town, with walls some 2 miles (3 km) in circumference. However, by then it already had begun to grow in importance as a rail junction, for it was there that the railway running from Shijiazhuang in Hebei to Taiyuan joined the line that traversed Shanxi from Datong in the north to Fenglingdu in the extreme southwest. There is another rail line from Taiyuan to Jiaozuo (Henan province) passing through the area. The expressway from Taiyuan to Shijiazhuang passes nearby.

The local population grew rapidly after 1950, partly because the city had become a communication centre and also because of the expansion of industry. Jinzhong, surrounded by cotton fields, has a large textile industry as its economic mainstay. This is supplemented with synthetic-fibre, dyeing, and printing operations. In addition, Jinzhong boasts one of the country’s largest plants manufacturing textile machinery. Other major components of the local economy include coal mining and coking, the processing of agricultural products, and the manufacture of metallurgical products, chemicals, and building materials. Pop. (2002 est.) city, 262,414; (2007 est.) urban agglom., 840,000.