Changsha (
simplified Chinese: 长沙;
traditional Chinese: 長沙;
pinyin: Chángshā) is the provincial
capital of
Hunan province of the
People's Republic of China. With a total area of 11,800 square kilometers, Its population in 2010 was 7,044,118, of whom 4,597,134 lived in the built-up area made of 6 urban districts (
3,617,469 inhabitants) plus Changsha County largely being urbanized already. The city, located in the
south-central China, is governed as
prefecture-level city under
Hunan government with 9 county-level divisions, 5 national development zones, and 9 provincial zones. Changsha is recognized as the
political,
economic,
financial,
cultural,
educational and
transportation center of
Hunan province. The name of "Changsha" was first seen in the
Zhou Dynasty. In later dynasties, Changsha was always an important city of
Hunan and a key town in
Southern China.