Shanghai Maps

Shanghai is a direct-administered municipality of the People's Republic of China. It lies on the country's eastern coast, at the mouth of the Yangtze River, and the Huangpu River flows through it. The municipality covers about 6,341 square kilometres and is divided into 16 districts. The 2020 national census recorded a population of about 24.87 million, making it one of the most populous cities in the world.

The name means "upon the sea" in Chinese. The city's official abbreviation is "Hu" (沪).

Shanghai was a fishing and market town for centuries. It became the seat of a county in 1292, during the Yuan dynasty. After the First Opium War, the Treaty of Nanking of 1842 made Shanghai one of five treaty ports open to foreign trade, and it opened in 1843. The British established a settlement in 1845 and the French a concession in 1849. In 1863 the British and American settlements merged to form the Shanghai International Settlement. By the early 20th century, Shanghai had become the main commercial and financial centre of East Asia. The First National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party took place in the city in July 1921. Shanghai was the scene of heavy fighting during the Battle of Shanghai in 1937, and the People's Liberation Army took control of the city in May 1949.

Large-scale economic reform began in the 1990s with the development of the Pudong area, where the Lujiazui financial district was built. The Shanghai Stock Exchange was re-established in 1990. Since 2010, the Port of Shanghai has been the world's busiest container port. The China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone was established in 2013. In 2010, the city hosted the World Expo.

Well-known landmarks include the Bund, a waterfront lined with buildings from the colonial era, the Oriental Pearl Tower, completed in 1994, and the Shanghai Tower, which is 632 metres tall and is China's tallest building. The classical Yu Garden is in the old city. The Shanghai Metro opened in 1993 and is one of the longest metro systems in the world. The city has two international airports, Pudong and Hongqiao. The Shanghai Maglev, which opened in 2004, links Pudong International Airport to the metro network.

The official language is Standard Chinese. The local variety, Shanghainese, belongs to the Wu group of Chinese languages. Shanghai has a humid subtropical climate. Its universities include Fudan University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Tongji University.

Main sights in Shanghai