The People's Republic of China (中华, Zhōnghuá in Chinese) has a lengthy coastline, many large harbors, and a large number of lighthouses. The country is divided into 23 provinces and 11 other province-level regions of various special types. The Chinese province of Zhèjiāng (formerly spelled Chekiang) occupies the central coast of the country, south of Shànghǎi and north of the Formosa Strait. The province faces east on the East China Sea. For the most part the coastline is hilly and irregular, with more than 3000 islands of all sizes offshore. Hángzhōu Bay is a large funnel-shaped embayment at the northern end of the province. At its western end it narrows to the estuary of the Qiántángjiāng (Qiántáng River), which leads to the city of Hángzhōu. On its southern edge the Yǒngjiāng (Yǒng River) leads to the major port of Zhènhǎi and the city of Níngbō. Because of its funnel shape the bay is subject to a large tidal bore, much like Canada's Bay of Fundy. In 2007 China completed the 35.7 km (22.2 mi) long Hangzhou Bay Bridge across the bay. Zhèjiāng is divided into eleven prefectural-level and subprovincial-level cities. This is one of six pages describing lighthouses of the prefectural-level city of Níngbō, a subprovincial city of more than 9.5 million residents on the south side of Hángzhōu Bay. It includes the lighthouses of Zhènhǎi, the port district of Níngbō. Since Níngbō is large there is a separate page for the Xiàngshān Area in the eastern and southern portions of the city. The Directory also has a series of four pages covering the numerous islands of the Zhōushān archipelago, which is spread across the mouth of the bay. North to south these pages cover the Shèngsì Islands, the Dàishān Islands, the Dìnghǎi District and the Pǔtúo District. There are many languages and dialects spoken in China, but Standard Chinese, often called Mandarin, is official. The pīnyīn system for transliterating Standard Chinese into Latin characters is now the international standard but some locations continue to be known also under the spellings of older transliteration systems. The Chinese word for a lighthouse is dēngtǎ (灯塔). In Standard Chinese jiāo (formerly chiao) is a reef or rock, jiǎo is a cape or headland, dǎo (tao) is an island; yǔ (tsu) or tuózi ("lump") is a small island, hǎi is a sea, wān is a bay, hǎixiá is a strait, hé or jiāng is a river, hékǒu ("river mouth") is an estuary, and gǎng (kang) is a harbor. Lighthouses in China are maintained by the PRC Maritime Safety Administration. The administration is organized in four regional administrations, with offices in the major ports. All the lights on this page are maintained by the Zhènhǎi MSA office. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. CN numbers are Chinese light list numbers. Admiralty numbers are from volume P of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112.
|
|
|
|
![]() Zhènhǎi Ferry Light, Zhènhǎi, August 2006 PRC Maritime Safety Administration photo |
|
![]() Méixū Light, Zhènhǎi, December 2019 Google Maps street view |
|
![]() Jiāngnándàotóu Light, Zhènhǎi, October 2011 Google Maps photo by Jim Bowen |
|
![]() Yǒngjiāng South Dyke Spur Light, Zhènhǎi PRC Maritime Safety Administration photo |
|
![]() Yangxiaomaodǎo Light, Zhitou Jiǎo PRC Maritime Safety Administration photo |
Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: North: Shànghǎi | East: Dìnghǎi District | South: Xiangshān Area
Return to the Lighthouse Directory index | Ratings key
Posted May 12, 2008. Checked and revised November 9, 2023. Lighthouses: 38. Site copyright 2023 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.