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Glite Dictionary
Xian

Xian

1 6.9
A city in central China once capital of several ancient dynasties and home to the Terracotta Army
  • proper noun
  • /ʃiːˈɑːn/
: Xian
  • Like their contemporaries, the soldier-builders of Xian, China, the Nok mastered the almost limitless sculptural possibilities of terracotta.
  • Xian, China

Examples

  • The famous terra cotta army is located just outside of Xian, attracting tourists from around the world.

  • On the bus to Xian, his father's home village, Michael complained about stomach cramps.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Xian Chen, People's Republic of China, "cultural attache" to the U.N.

    U.S. Marshals (1998)

  • Monitoring stations were set up in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Fuzhou, Hangzhou, Xian, Shengyang, and Nanning.

    Academic text (1991)

  • During my trip to China, I visited Xian, a city renowned for its ancient history.

  • As the capital of several ancient dynasties, Xian played a crucial role in Chinese history.

Synonyms

Xi'an
vsXian
2 6.4

A large city in central China with famous ancient history

is the same city name but written in a different form
Sian
vsXian
  • Archaic
1 8.7

An old English spelling of Xi'an, the city in central China

is the modern spelling preferred in this entry
Changan
vsXian
1 9.4

An old city in central China that served as the capital of ancient dynasties

is the modern name for that location rather than the historical title
Hsian
vsXian
  • Archaic
9.9

A city in central China now called Xi'an that was an ancient capital

is the standard modern form used in this entry

Surface Forms

Xian main

Etymology

Xian comes from two Chinese parts: Xi meaning 'west' and an meaning 'peace', so the name means 'Western Peace'. This helps you remember it as an old western capital of China, a place known for calm history and famous sites like the Terracotta Army.