Xuyi County
Xuyi County () is under the administration of Huai'an, Jiangsu province, China. The southernmost of Huai'an's county-level divisions, it borders the prefecture-level cities of Suqian to the north and Chuzhou (Anhui) to the south and west. Xuyi is noted for production of crayfish. Etymology. The meaning of Xuyi is debatable, and there are two major accounts. For one: sited on the top of a hill, the ancient city afforded an extensive view of the vicinity. In the ancient Chinese, "xu" means have one's eyes opened wide, while "yu" means look straight ahead. Thus, it was  named after Xuyi, the posture of looking out. For another, it was named after Xuyi, an eastern hill outside the city. History. When the ancient city of Sizhou whelmed in the Hongze Lake, its seat was transferred to the county in 1680. For the sake of managing the Hongze Lake, Xuyi was annexed to Jiangsu in 1955, along with Sihong. Historical sites. A famous local site are the ruins of the Ming Ancestors' Mausoleum (), built by the first Ming emperor Zhu Yuanzhang in honor of his ancestors who lived here. The mausoleum site was flooded ca. 1680, when the Yellow  River changed its course, merged with the Huai River, and the Hongze Lake appeared. (The nearby Ming-era city of Sizhou () was completely flooded by the same lake as well). In the 1960s, the lake waters receded; the stone figures of the mausoleum's Spirit way were subsequently recovered from the mud and re-erected. () Administrative divisions. In the present, Xuyi County has 14 towns and 5 townships. Sports. The Xuyi Olympic Sports Centre Stadium is located in the city of Xuyi. The football stadium has a capacity of 18,000 and it opened in 2017.