CHONGQING (CQNEWS) The dragon is a spiritual totem of the Chinese national and a symbol of auspiciousness for thousands of years. Thereafter, the names of many places in China include the character “long”, which means dragon in English. There are 80 such places in the Map of Chongqing Place Name Culture: Places with “Dragon” (long in pinyin) in Their Names released by Chongqing Municipal Bureau of Planning and Natural Resources and Geographic Information and Remote Sensing Application Center. How many do you know about these places?

In addition to Jiulongpo, Longmenhao, Longtousi, Longxing, and Hualongqiao in downtown Chongqing, which are familiar to every Chongqing resident, there are Longxing Town in Tongnan District, and Xianlong Town in Yongchuan District, which were named because the terrain of these places looks like a dragon. There are also Longxi Town in Wushan County, and Jiulongshan Town in Kaizhou District, which are named after their nearby mountains and rivers.

As a significant symbol of traditional Chinese culture, the dragon represents authority, power, and auspiciousness. Behind these place names are people's expectations and aspirations for a better life. Let’s learn more about the culture of Chongqing’s place names through Map of Chongqing Place Name Culture: Places with “Dragon” in Their Names.

Longmenhao Sub-district

Longmenhao Sub-district is situated in Nan’an District, where two stone beams are standing above the Yangtze River, forming a “water gap”, which is called “Hao Kou” in Chinese. The beams are engraved with the characters “Long” and “Men”, so the place is called “Longmenhao”.

Jielong Town

Jielong Town is named for its location in Jielong Field in the southern Banan District. It is said that during the Qing Emperor Kangxi years, some dragon veins (called “Long Mai” in Chinese, which refers to rolling hills) were separated to construct some fields, and then stone bridges were built to connect (called “Jie” in Chinese) these mountains. That’s why the place is called Jielong Field.

Panlong Town

Panlong Town is located in the northwest of Rongchang District, where there was a Panlong Temple in the early Ming Dynasty. That’s why the place is called Panlong Field.

Yulong Town

Yulong Town is located in the southeast of Dazu District, where there was a Yufeng Temple and a rock carved into the head of a dragon during the Qing Emperor Qianlong years. Therefore, the place is named after the temple and the rock and is called Yulong Field.

Longtan Town

Longtan Town is located in the southeast of Youyang Tujia and Miao Autonomous County. It is named after the water area (called “tan” in Chinese) formed in the two water tunnels that look like the eyes of a dragon at the foot of Fulong Mountain.

Shuanglong Town

Shuanglong Town is named for its location in the central part of Changshou District. It is said that fields were constructed between Songjiasi Mountain and Shihui Mountain during the early Qing Dynasty, and this place is named Shuanglong (which means “two dragons”) Field because the terrain of the two mountains resembles a dragon. (Translated by Yuki, Fathom Language Limited)