Shanghai - Etymology and Names

Etymology and Names

The two Chinese characters in the city's name are '上' ("above") and '海' ("sea"), together meaning "Upon-the-Sea". The earliest occurrence of this name dates from the 11th century Song Dynasty, at which time there was already a river confluence and a town with this name in the area. There are disputes as to exactly how the name should be interpreted, but Chinese historians have concluded that during the Tang Dynasty Shanghai was literally on the sea, hence the origin of the name. Older Chinese was written right-to-left, so a reversed order "海上" is sometimes used for terms related to Shanghainese art and culture.

Shanghai is officially abbreviated 沪 (Hù) in Chinese, a contraction of 沪渎 (Hù Dú, "Harpoon Ditch"), a 4th or 5th century Jin name for the mouth of Suzhou Creek when it was the main conduit into the ocean. This character appears on all motor vehicle license plates issued in the municipality today.

An older name for Shanghai is Shēn (申), from Chunshen Jun (春申君), a nobleman and locally revered hero of the third-century BC state of Chu. From this, it is also called Shēnchéng (申城, "Shen City"). Sports teams and newspapers in Shanghai often use this character in their names.

Another early name for Shanghai was Huating (华亭). In 751 AD, during the mid-Tang Dynasty, Huating County was established at modern-day Songjiang, the first county-level administration within modern-day Shanghai. Today, Huating appears as the name of a four-star hotel in the city.

The city also has various nicknames in English, including "Paris of the East".