Chekiang

C3H4E1K5I1A1N1G2
UK/t͡ʃɛˈkjæŋ//d͡ʒəˈd͡ʒjɑŋ/

A form of Zhejiang — A coastal province in eastern China, running from Hangzhou Bay to Fujian. Capital: Hangzhou.

Scrabble 18

Meanings

proper noun
  1. alternativeAlternative form of Zhejiang.

    Porcelain painted in blue and white, and also that decorated with the deep blue monochrome glaze, both require this blue. It is obtained from the province of Chêkiang, being found on several mountains within the two prefectures of Shao-hsing and Chin-hua.

    [1891, Stephen W. Bushell, “Description of Modern Ware.”, in Description of Chinese Pottery and Porcelain; Being a Translation of the Tʽao shuo 陶說, Clarendon Press, published 1910, →OCLC, page 16
    5 more examples

    After this, they divided their Army into two parts; the one they ſent to conquer the Mediterranean Provinces of Kiangſi, Huquang, & Quangtung, which are all of a marvellous extent; the other like a ſwift Torrent, over-run all, till they came to the very Walls of the renowned and vaſt City of Hangcheu, which is the head City of the Province of Chekiang.

    1655, F. Alvarez Semedo, “Bellum Tartaricum”, in The History of That Great and Renowned Monarchy of China, E. Tyler, page 281

    Among the Iſlands which are Tributary to this Kingdom, is alſo accounted the Iſland Formoſa, which the Chineſes call Lieukieu, and ſituated over againſt the Province of Foken ; as alſo the Iſland of Cheuxan, over againſt the Province of Chekiang, a very famous place for Trading.

    1669 [1665], John Nievhoff, translated by John Ogilby, An Embassy from the Eaſt-India Company of the United Provinces, to the Grand Tartar Cham Emperour of China, London: John Macock, translation of original in Dutch, →OCLC, page 6

    Chiang was then given command of a regiment, and led three thousand men to Hangchow, Wenchow, and Taichow, all in his native province of Chekiang. His exploits sounded impressive, but the truth was that he encountered practically no opposition. As soon as a force was led against a town, imperial authority collapsed. Officials resigned or fled, and revolutionary leaders, mostly military, assumed authority. The progress was gratifying but hardly exciting.

    1938, Robert Berkov, Strong Man of China: The Story of Chiang Kai-shek, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, →OCLC, page 17

    Whatever their individual views on how best to evangelize, life for the Scarboro men and Grey Sisters in Chekiang province rarely unfolded as they had hoped. And soon after the Marxist People's Republic was proclaimed in 1949, all their proselytizing activities came to an end.

    1982, Grant Maxwell, Assignment in Chekiang, Thorn Press Limited, page 8

    After the Taiping war northern Chekiang as a whole, and its rich alluvium in particular, immediately attracted immigrants from overcrowded Ningpo and Shaohsing prefectures. Land-hungry peasants from other coastal prefectures, T'ai-chou and Wen-chou, soon joined ranks with Ningpo and Shaohsing peasants and settled first in the delta of Chia-hsing prefecture and then in the valleys and low hills of Hang-chou and Hu-chou prefectures.

    1986, James H. Cole, Shaohsing: Competition and Cooperation in Nineteenth-Century China, University of Arizona Press, page 76

Origin

  1. Mandarin浙江
  2. EnglishChekiang

From the Postal Romanization of Nanking court dialect Mandarin 浙江 (Zhèjiāng), from before the modern palatalization of [k] to [t͡ɕ], with the word itself from a former name of the Qiantang River.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

Chekiang. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Chekiang

MLA

“Chekiang.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Chekiang. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Chekiang,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Chekiang.

Source: Chekiang on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.