Nanjing
English · Español · Deutsch · Português · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
Nanjing
- /nænˈd͡ʒɪŋ/
- /nɑnˈd͡ʒɪŋ/
Where it comes from
The atonal Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin 南京 (Nánjīng), composed of 南 (“south, southern”) and 京 (jīng, “capital”), distinguishing it from Beijing to the north, and first applied informally during the reign of the Yongle Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, who preferred to rule from Beijing but was obliged to treat Nanjing as a secondary capital by the dynastic injunctions of his father the Hongwu Emperor. The name continued a practice of several preceding dynasties—especially those of nomadic conquerers from the north such as the Jin and Liao—of maintaining a number of separate capitals designated by their cardinal directions.
proper noun Nanking · Nan-ching · Nanching · Nankin · Nanquin
-
A major subprovincial city, the provincial capital of Jiangsu, China, on the lower Yangtze; a former capital of China.
That Riuer of Nanquin which I called (Yamſu or) Ianſu, the ſonne of the Sea, goeth Northward to Nanquin, and then returning ſomewhat Southward, runneth into the Sea with great force; fortie myles from which it paſſeth by Nanquin. And that from hence to Pequin there might bee paſſage by Riuers, the K
Similar: Jiangning
-
Synonym of Jiangnan, Nanzhili, Liangjiang, etc. as imperial Chinese provinces or viceroyalties administered from Nanjing.
Similar: Jiangnan, Nanzhili, Liangjiang
- Various other Chinese cities during periods when they acted as a southern capital of a kingdom or imperial dynasty.
Similar: Tianjing, T'ien-ching
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: nanking, hangzhou, beijing, tianjin, chengdu, lhasa, shenyang, macau, nam, cairo, macao, shanghai, ning, nan-ching, nanching, nanquin
proper noun
Similar: Tianjing, T'ien-ching
Translations
Talk about this word "Nanjing." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/nanjing. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. Nanjing. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/nanjing "Nanjing." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/nanjing.Cite this
@misc{nanjing_2026,
title = {Nanjing},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/nanjing},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
