How did Shanghai (aka, the Magic City) Get its Name?

A Note From Greg –– even though I spent a month in China back in 2015, I never made it to Shanghai That’s why I’m so grateful to my friend Tony for submitting this awesome article on The Magic City. — Take it away, Tony! 

The word “Magic City” has now become a special code name, and there are four cities in the world that are inextricably linked to this word: London in the UK, Tokyo in Japan, New York in the US and Shanghai in China. With this title, Shanghai has attracted more young people to put down roots here, and has also raised everyone’s curiosity and played a role in promoting tourism.

But where did the term Magic City come from? And what does it mean? Do you really understand it? If we look at the dictionary, we will find that the word “magic” has two meanings: on the one hand, it represents the demons and monsters, and on the other hand, it represents the power to attract people, a kind of magic. It is obvious that when describing Shanghai, the second meaning is used, and the real origin of this title, but also from a Japanese writer to tell.

A Japanese Writer Describes China

Back in the 1920s, a Japanese writer named Muramatsu Zukikaze traveled to China and lived here. He saw a strange phenomenon in China, that is, that the tenements and small counties could exist at the same time, and this violent collision and combination of Eastern and Western cultures gave her a great sense of impact. Shanghai has also evolved in such a way that he felt very well tolerated. These peculiar phenomena were summarized by him with the word magic.

When he returned to Japan, he published a book that carefully described the magical side of Shanghai that attracted him, and after that the word “magic” was inseparable from Shanghai.

Nowadays, when we associate with these two words again, it has been given a whole new meaning. People prefer to say that Shanghai is a city that fascinates people, a city that makes people crazy. This is partly due to the rapid economic development of Shanghai in recent years, bringing a broader world for young people, on the one hand, because of the rich old Shanghai culture is indeed colorful, so people cannot help but stop down to feel.

Visiting Modern Shanghai, China

People who travel to Shanghai can feel the rapid development and changes of the city within a day, and the streets they pass in the morning may have already established new landmarks in the evening. And now in the winter night, choose the Bund for viewing, holding the railing, you will sincerely sigh the prosperity and shining luxury and high-end of the Oriental Pearl. It is like a huge dictionary that tells you that when you come here, you have the chance to have the same fantastic life.

With the name Magic City, there are so many tourists doing their best to also come here to feel the real Shanghai atmosphere. Visit Visa Express to get your China travel visa to Shanghai.