■Origin  The province of Anhui was set up in the sixth year of Kangxi Reign of Qing Dynasty (A.D.1667) and the name of the province is originated from the combination of the first characters of names of the two cities at that time: Anqing and Huizhou. As there was a Mountain called “Wan Shan” and an ancient kingdom called “Wan” in spring and Autumn Period, Anhui is named “Wan” for short.   ■Administrative Divisions and Population  The Province, whose population reached 66.76million, covers an area of 139,600 square km, composed of 17 cities (Hefei, Huaibei, Suzhou, Bozhou, Bengbu, Fuyang, Huainan, Chuzhou, Lu’an,  Ma’anshan, Chaohu, Wuhu, Xuancheng, Tongling, Chizhou, Anqing, Huangshan), 5 county-level cities and 56 counties.   ■Topography  There are various landforms in Anhui. The Yangtze River and the Huaihe River flow through the province and divide the whole province into three main natural areas: the north area to the Huaihe River, the area between the Huaihe River and the Yangtze River, and the south area to the Yangtze River. Some major mountains, such as Dabie Mountain, Yellow Mountain, Jiuhua Mountain and Tianzhu Mountain lie in Anhui, and the highest peak of Yellow Mountain “Lotus Peak” is 1,860 meters above the sea level. There are many rivers and lakes in Anhui, among which is Chaohu Lake, one of the five biggest freshwater lakes in China.     ■Climate  Anhui locates in the transitional area between temperate zone and subtropical zone with warm and moist air and four distinct seasons.  The annual average temperature of the province is 140C-170C, the average sunny time lasts for 1800-2500 hours, the average frost-free period reaches 200-250 days and the average precipitation remains 800-1800mm per year.     ■Local Specialty Products  The four treasures of study of Anhui (i.e. Xuan Writing brush, Hui Chinese-Ink, Xuan paper, Ink stones of She County), The Art of Three-Carvings of Huizhou (Brick carving, Stone carving, Wood carving), Lacquer wares in Huangshan, Iron pictures in Wuhu, Pottery in Jieshou, Chinese Feng Shui Compass in Xiuning, Wicker Products in Huoqiu, Summer sleeping mats in Shucheng, Fengyang Fung painting, Folding fans in Qingyang, The peculiar stones in Lingbi, Champleve enamel ware in Tongcheng, Bronze handicrafts in Tongling, etc., all of them are very famous both home and abroad. Anhui is also famous for Anhui cuisine and vegetable dishes of Jiuhua Mountain. She County is entitled “Home of Loquats”,  Ningguo, “Home of Hickory Nuts”, Dangshan,  “Home of Crisp Pears”, Fu’nan, “Home of Qi Willows”, Guangde, “Home of Bamboo” , Qimen,  “Home of Black Tea”  and Jinzhai,  “Home of Chinese Chestnuts”.