Emperor Gaozu of Han
In 202 BC, Emperor Gaozu of Han instituted the Anhan () County in this place. Anhan literally means "to establish or stabilize Han". In 8 AD, the name was changed to Anxin () when Wang Mang seized the throne of the Han Dynasty, but it reverted to Anhan in 25 AD. It was again changed to Guozhou () in 621 AD (Tang dynasty), and then to Nanchong in 742 AD. The nickname of Nanchong is Guocheng (), derived from Guozhou.