Xi'an was called Chang'an in ancient times; its previous names were: Daxing City, Jingzhao, Fengyuan, and Xijing. It is the capital of Shaanxi Province of the People's Republic of China, one of China's 15 sub-provincial cities, one of the nine regional centers, and a world-famous historical and cultural city.
Xi'an is the ancient capital with the longest history and the most dynasties since my country's written records. In particular, the four more glorious dynasties in Chinese history, Zhou, Qin, Han and Tang, all had their capitals here. This represents the mainstream of our country's history and culture.
Greater Xi'an has Han Chang'an City, Yangling, Maoling and other cultural sites. The Han Dynasty opened up the "Silk Road", which brought China to the world and made the world know China. The Han Dynasty inherited the Qin system and established the Western Han Dynasty in Chang'an that lasted for more than 200 years and the unprecedentedly powerful Western Han Dynasty. The Han Dynasty established the dominant position of Confucian culture and formed the Chinese nation with Han as the main body and Chinese culture as the representative. Therefore, foreign countries call the study of Chinese culture Sinology.
Greater Xi'an has cultural sites such as the Imperial City of the Tang Dynasty, Daming Palace, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Zhaoling Mausoleum, and Qianling Mausoleum. The Tang Dynasty was the pinnacle of Chinese feudal society and the culmination of Chinese traditional culture. Tang Chang'an is the largest and most open city in Chinese history and a truly international metropolis.
The Tang Dynasty lasted for nearly 300 years and integrated various cultures including Buddhist culture and Taoist culture. Traditional Chinese culture represented by Tang culture influenced the entire East and even the world. Therefore, Greater Xi'an, which is based on the historical and cultural base of Chinese civilization, can be regarded as the unique spiritual home of the Chinese nation. Extended information
Xi'an is an important birthplace of Chinese civilization and the Chinese nation. Chang'an has been an imperial capital since ancient times, with 13 dynasties including Western Zhou, Qin, Western Han, Xinmang, Eastern Han, Western Jin, Former Zhao, Former Qin, Later Qin, Western Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui and Tang establishing their capitals here.
Fenghao Capital, Qin Afang Palace, Terracotta Warriors and Horses, Han Dynasty Weiyang Palace, Changle Palace, Sui Dynasty Daxing City, Tang Dynasty Daming Palace, Xingqing Palace, etc. outline the "Chang'an Complex".
The geological structure of Xi'an City spans two major units: the Qinling Geosyncline Fold Belt and the North China Platform. The Great Fault across the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains was created during the Yanshan Movement about 130 million years ago. Since the late Tertiary Period about 3 million years ago, the neotectonic movement of the Qinling Geosynclinal Fold Belt south of the Great Fault has been extremely active. The mountain rises sharply from the north to the south, creating the Qinling Mountains.
At the same time, the Weihe River Fault Depression, which belongs to the North China Platform to the north of the great fault, continues to subside, forming the Weihe River Plain under the combined action of wind-laden loess cover and Weihe River alluvial action.
Reference: Xi’an-Baidu Encyclopedia