Situated in northern Jiangsu province as its youngest prefecture-level city, Suqian covers an area of 8,555 square kilometers and borders Xuzhou to the northwest, Lianyungang to the northeast, Huai'an to the south, and Anhui province to the west.

Suqian has three counties, namely Shuyang, Siyang and Sihong, and two districts, namely Suyu and Sucheng under its administration. The registered population as of 2018 was 5.91 million.

As a key central city of the east bridgehead city group of the new Euro-Asian Continental Bridge and a thoroughfare connecting Jiangsu, Anhui and Shandong provinces, Suqian is in the crossed radiation area of Longhai Economic Area, Coastal Economic Area and Yangtze River Economic Area.

Former residence of Xiang Yu, overlord of the West Chu Dynasty (206-202 BC) [Photo by Wang Kun/suqian.gov.cn]

Economy

In 2019, Suqian's GDP reached 309.9 billion yuan ($43.7 billion), a year-on-year increase of 7 percent, the second fastest in Jiangsu province. Total retail sales of consumer goods were 88.8 billion yuan, growing 6.5 percent year-on-year. Per capita disposable income for urban and rural residents were 30,614 and 18,121 yuan, growing 8.3 and 8.9 percent respectively.

History & Culture

Boasting vast plains, fertile land and crisscrossed rivers, the city is known as "home of poplars", "home of aquatic products", "home of famous liquor", "home of flowers and trees" and "home of cocoon".

Suqian is characterized by a long history and every generation produces its man of ability. Suqian is the native place of the overlord Xiang Yu of the West Chu Dynasty (206-202 BC), who together with his wife Yuji left a romantic story. The xanadu of Emperor Qian Long of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) is situated by the side of the Grand Canal. Qian Long had been to the Yangtze River Delta for sightseeing for six times and had been to Suqian for five times. The Grand Canal and the Yellow River come across the city, and Hongze Lake as well as Luoma Lake also add beauty to the local scenery.

Xiacaowan Ruins, first excavated in the city, refracts the first sunlight of mankind origin dating back to more than 50,000 years ago. The Shunshanji Relics in Sihong county, dating from about 8,000 years ago, have been confirmed as the earliest records of the Neolithic Age, which has brought the history of Jiangsu civilization forward by at least 1,600 years. The King Tomb of Han Dynasty, unearthed in Sanzhuang Tombs, witness the magnificence of the ancient culture of Qin and Han dynasties (221 BC-220).

Hongze Lake Wetland [Photo/suqian.gov.cn]