Nanxun District, established in January 2003 as a district under the jurisdiction of Huzhou City, covers an area of 702 square kilometers. It comprises 8 towns, 2 subdistricts, and 1 provincial-level development zone, with a total of 211 administrative villages and 34 communities. As of 2025, the district’s registered population stood at 476,800, including 181,800 urban residents and 295,000 rural residents. In 2025, the district’s gross domestic product (GDP) reached 62.24 billion yuan, representing a 6.0% increase; general public budget revenue stood at 4.539 billion yuan, up 2.1%; and per capita disposable income for urban and rural residents reached 77,959 yuan and 52,958 yuan, respectively, with growth rates of 4.2% and 5.3%.
Nanxun District is located in the heart of the Yangtze River Delta, boasting a unique geographical advantage and serving as Huzhou City’s frontline for integration with Shanghai. National Highway 318 and the Huyan Highway traverse the entire district, while the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, the Changhu-Shen Waterway, and the Huzhou-Jiaxing-Shen Waterway pass through the area. It is approximately 100 kilometers from major cities such as Shanghai, Suzhou, and Hangzhou.Within the region, the Zhejiang section of the Shanghai-Suzhou-Zhejiang-Anhui Expressway has been fully completed and opened to traffic. Three expressways (Shanghai-Jiaxing-Huzhou, Shanghai-Jiaxing-Hangzhou, and Suzhou-Zhenjiang-Taozhou), one railway (Huzhou-Jiaxing-Zhaozhou), and two expressways connecting to the central urban area (Xunhu Avenue and Xunzhi Avenue) are currently being planned and constructed.Nanxun boasts a rich historical and cultural heritage. As early as the Southern Song Dynasty, it was renowned as “the wealthiest region in southern Zhejiang in terms of agriculture and sericulture.” In modern times, Nanxun served as the birthplace of China’s silk industry and one of the earliest regions where national industry took root. It produced nearly a hundred wealthy silk merchants—referred to as the “Four Elephants, Eight Oxen, and Seventy-Two Golden Dogs”—who exerted a profound influence on the economic and social development of the Jiangnan region and the nation as a whole.Nanxun boasts a unique water town landscape, distinctive Jiangnan gardens, and exquisite architecture blending Chinese and Western styles. It has been included on UNESCO’s Tentative List of World Cultural Heritage Sites. Nanxun Town is designated as a “China Historical and Cultural Town,” a “National Civilized Town,” and one of “China’s Top Ten Charming Towns.”Nanxun has long been a cradle of distinguished figures. As early as the Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties, it produced 41 imperial examination graduates (jinshi), earning it the reputation of “three Grand Secretaries within nine li and two Ministers of State within ten li.” In modern times, it has given birth to Zhang Jingjiang, a Kuomintang elder and founder of the West Lake Exposition; Liu Chenggan, one of the four great bibliophiles of the late Qing and early Republican eras; Zhang Shiming, one of the founders of the Xiling Seal Society; the renowned reportage writer Xu Chi;renowned calligraphers Shen Yinmo and Fei Xinwo, as well as eight academicians from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering hailing from Nanxun, including Lu Liangsu, former Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and Tu Shou’e, chief designer of the “Two Bombs and One Satellite” program.Nanxun is rich in natural resources. It is home to the nationally renowned Linghu freshwater fish production base; the world-famous Jili Lake silk; the Shanyin Lake brushes, renowned for their exquisite craftsmanship and hailed as “treasures of the scholar’s study”; and traditional specialty products such as Shuanglin silk, described as “light as morning mist and thin as a cicada’s wing.”