Zhou (political division)

The zhōu (州) was a historical political division of China. First established during the Han Dynasty, zhou continued to exist until the establishment of the Republic of China — a period of over 2000 years. "Zhou" were also used in  Korea, with the word borrowed into the Korean language as ju (주). See Provinces of Korea. The word was also borrowed into Japanese as shū, which is found in the names of the Japanese islands of Honshū and Kyūshū. The Tang Dynasty also established fǔ (府), which were zhou of special importance, such as capitals and other major cities. These are also translated as "prefectures" into English. Fu was borrowed into the Japanese language and is still used today as the designation of Osaka Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture. See Prefectures of Japan.
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