Jiangxi, called Gan for short, is an eastern province of China, stretching from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north to hilly areas further south. It covers an area of 167,000 square kilometers, with a population of 43 million.

Jiangxi is a cradle of the Chinese revolution. The rural revolutionary base established by Mao Zedong in Jinggang Mountain is known as "The Red City."

Jiangxi is renowned for the natural beauty of its misty mountains and fresh water lakes. Lake Poyang is the largest freshwater lake in China. Mount Lushan is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. And Longhushan is said to be the birthplace of Taoism. Temples and caves have great symbolic value to Taoists and are considered some of Jiangxi's best-kept tourist secrets.

Jingdezhen is one of Jiangxi's highlights. It is widely regarded as the producer of the best porcelain in China. Ceramics were produced here as early as 1,800 years ago in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Today, Jingdezhen remains a national center of porcelain production.

Jiangxi is developing rapidly. Recognizing the need to protect its ecology, the province is aiming to achieve fast but sustainable economic development. With its advantageous geographic location and abundant natural resources, Jiangxi is now attracting domestic and overseas investment.

Climate

The climate of Jiangxi province is four seasons alternating distinctively: warm with abundant rainfall in spring, hot and humid in summer, cool with little rainfall in autumn, chilly and dry in winter. In 2009, The average temperature of the whole province is about 18.9℃,with the annual precipitation of 1438.1mm and sunshine hours of 1686.3h.The whole year of Jiangxi has mild climate, with sufficient sunshine, plentiful rainfall and long frost-free period, which belongs to humid subtropical climate.

Transportation

Jiangxi Province boasts a convenient transportation system. With all major arteries converted to highways, the total mileage of highways is more than 2,200 kilometers. Shanghai-Kunming and Beijing-Kowloon Railways cross the province. There are five civil airports in Jiangxi Province,located in Nanchang, Jiujiang, Jingdezhen, Ganzhou and Ji'an, serving dozens of domestic and international flights. These highways, airlines, together with crisscrossing railways, and ports in Nanchang and Jiujiang have formed a convenient water-land-air transportation network.

Economy

Entering the new century, Jiangxi has insisted on acquiring and implementing the scientific development concept, and worked out the thinking on development, namely taking industrialization as a kernel, opening up as the main strategy, promoting industrialization, relying on industrial park for developing industry. While speeding up industrialization and urbanization, Jiangxi unswervingly takes ecology-friendly environment as the base on which to build up the province. Insisting on the concept of "clear water and verdant mountains are as good as gold and silk mountains", the province strengthens environmental protection and ecological improvement with great effort. 

In 2009, the province's GDP hit 758.92 billion yuan, up 13.1% year on year, increasing above 13% for the three years running. GDP per capita was 17,185 yuan. The total revenue was 92.87 billion yuan, up 13.7%.

History

In the Shang Dynasty (16th-11th century BC), Jiangxi entered the Bronze Age more than 3,000 years ago. At the beginning of the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC), Jiangxi was renamed "Yuzhang Prefecture", which was changed into Hongzhou Area Command during the Sui Dynasty (581-618 AD). In the 21st year of the Kaiyuan reign of the Tang Dynasty (733 AD), Emperor Xuanzong divided the country into 15 "dao". Hongzhou was then the capital of the Jiangnan Xidao, short as Jiangxi. The Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368) set up provinces, hence the name Jiangxi province. The Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) set up Jiangxi province again, which remained the name since then.　

Jiangxi Opera, is one of the four oldest traditional operas of China,also called "Yiyangqiang" or "Ganju", originated in Yiyang county of Jiangxi Province.  It had two schools called "raoheban" and "xinheban", which combined together in 1950. After entering Nanchang, the provincial capital city, and with the establishment of Jiangxi Opera Troupe, "yiyangqiang" was renamed Jiangxi opera.

"Yiyangqiang" is a bright pearl in the drama history of china. After its birth, it enchanted the whole drama platform quickly and unprecedented, leaving an unforgettable impression to us. It created a new form of Chinese drama and turned a new leaf in Chinese drama history. "Yiyangqiang" has many singing forms such as "Tuge", "Bangqiang" and "gundiao", matching with gong and drum, ardent and vehement. Its direct, bold, unconstrained and lively characteristics were very popular in hard working people. The free acting style and loud and sonorous tunes were formed in the rigorous social reality. Since Nan song Dynasty, Yiyang County and its neighbor areas were always in war and famine. It was the serious living crisis that created the loud and sonorous tunes of "Yiyangqiang". Many Chinese local operas are greatly influenced by its tunes and acting style. "Yiyangqiang" was listed into "The Intangible Cultural Heritage in China" in 20th May,2006.

Tourism
Scenic spots and resorts are distributed all over the province, such as Lushan Mt. listed as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1996; Jinggang Mt., one of the holy revolutionary sites in China; Dragon & Tiger Mt., famous as the cradle of Taoism; and Shanqing Mt. with plenty of unique and spectacular landscapes. Jiangxi also enjoys a good reputation for its rural scenery. For example, Wuyuan Village holds the honor of the most beautiful village in China. 

Food

Although little known outside of the province, Jiangxi cuisine is rich and distinctive. Flavors are some of the strongest in China, with heavy use of chile peppers and especially pickled and fermented products.

Universities in Jiangxi

Nanchang University

Jiangxi Institute of Education

Nanchang Institute of Technology

Jiangxi Science and Technology Institute

East China Jiaotong University

Jiangxi Agricultural University

Jiangxi Bluesky University

Jiangxi Normal University

Jiangxi University of Finace & Economics

Jiangxi University of Trainditional Chinese Medicine

JiangXi People's Police College