Tongxiang City is a county-level city, part of Jiaxing, in northern Zhejiang Province, China, bordering Jiangsu province to the north. It had a population of 1,029,754 as of the 2020 census even though its built-up (or metro) area is smaller. Nevertheless, as the city is expanding east quickly, its now nearly conurbated with Jiaxing built-up (or metro) area by Xiuzhou District. Tongxiang was the birthplace of 20th-century novelist and cultural critic Mao Dun. The scenic town of Wuzhen is part of Tongxiang.

Administration

Tongxiang administers three subdistrict, nine towns and one township.

Climate

Economy

Hángbáijú (杭白菊), a variety of chrysanthemum flower tea, originates from Tongxiang. There are also annual Chrysanthemum festivals. Tongxiang is one of biggest woolen sweater manufacturing base. In 2006, Tongxiang sold over 600 million woolen sweaters. Puyuan Town (濮院镇) hosted the GQ Men of the Year awards in 2023; Brunello Cucinelli was honored as “Designer of the Year”.

Education

Tongxiang is home to a joint-venture Canadian high school program called Jiaxing Grand Canadian Academy at Maodun Senior High School. The school offers the British Columbia, Canada high school graduation program that culminates in the awarding of the Dogwood Diploma. The school enrolls local Chinese students and employs only foreign, B.C. certified teachers to teach all subjects in English (Canadian history, math, science, English, PE, etc.) The school is on a sprawling campus with modern features (gym, running track, science labs, etc.). The school opened in 2005 and has been inspected and re-certified by the BC Government (MOE) each year since.

Notable people

Transport

Tongxiang is served by Tongxiang Railway Station, which connects it to Shanghai, Hangzhou, and other cities with a number of high speed trains.

Twin towns — sister cities

Tongxiang is twinned with: