'stone city'), in present-day Luquan District, was already present during the Warring States period, suggesting that the name, or its elements, have even older origins.

The city ended up being renamed as Shimen (石门) when it was officially incorporated on August 29, 1925, after the merger with another village, Xiumen (Chinese: 休门; lit.

To avoid confusion and association with the Japanese Army, the Chinese Communist Party ultimately reverted the city's name back to Shijiazhuang on December 26, 1947.

[15] This area was occupied by Xianyu people at beginning of Zhou dynasty; it later belonged to the Zhongshan (中山國) and Zhao states during the pre-Qin period.

The land was briefly granted to Liu Buyi (劉不疑), son of the Emperor Hui, during Empress Dowager Lü's reign.

The growth of Shijiazhuang into one of China's major cities began in 1905, when the Beijing–Wuhan (Hankou) railway reached the area, stimulating trade and encouraging local farmers to grow cash crops.

Pre-World War II, Shijiazhuang was a large railway town as well as a commercial and collecting center for Shanxi and regions farther west and for agricultural produce of the North China Plain, particularly grain, tobacco, and cotton.

By 1941, Shide railway line was constructed between Shijiazhuang and Dezhou, Shandong in the war occupied period, operated by North China Transportation Company.

[18] Since the city was pivotal to the People's Liberation Army's victory of the Chinese Civil War, many governmental agencies have roots in Shijiazhuang.

In the 1950s, the city experienced a major expansion in the textile industry, with large-scale cotton spinning, weaving, printing, and dyeing works.

There are important coal deposits at Jingxing and Huailu, now named Luquan, a few miles to the west in the foothills of the Taihang Mountains, which provide fuel for a thermal-generating plant supplying power to local industries.

Starting from the plains area in the east and south of the city, the focus of the developments later shifted towards the mountainous districts and counties in the west, as well as along the Hutuo River in the north.

[23] Due to its proximity with Beijing and the severity of the outbreak, harsh measures were put into place, with all 11 million residences undergoing mandatory testing, as well as school closures, banning of gatherings, and residential districts being sealed.

Initially, Shijiazhuang was administered under the prefecture of the same name, along with the counties of Zhengding, Pingshan, Lingshou, Jingxing, Jianping, Huailu, Jinxian, Gaocheng, Luancheng, Zhaoxian, Shulu, Yuanshi, Zanhuang, Gaoyi, and one town, Xinji.

The mountainous part of the prefecture consists of parts of: The Hutuo River Basin in the east juts into: The city has a continental, monsoon-influenced semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk / Dwa), characterised by hot, humid summers due to the East Asian monsoon, and generally cold, windy, very dry winters that reflect the influence of the Siberian anticyclone.

According to the National Environmental Analysis released by Tsinghua University and The Asian Development Bank in January 2013, Shijiazhuang was one of ten most air-polluted cities in the world.

Reporting on China's air quality has been accompanied by what seems like a monochromatic slideshow of the country's several cities smothered in thick smog.

In 2020, annual average PM2.5 Air Pollution in Shijiazhuang stood at 56 μg/m3, which is 11.2 times the World Health Organization PM2.5 Guideline (5 μg/m3: set in September 2021).

[32] A dense wave of smog began in the Central and Eastern part of China on December 2, 2013, across a distance of around 1,200 kilometres (750 mi),[33] including Shijiazhuang and surrounding areas.

[34] Officials blamed the dense pollution on lack of wind, automobile exhaust emissions under low air pressure, and coal-powered district heating system in North China region.

In 1968, the city experienced a substantial increase due to it being designated the capital of Hebei to avoid chaos in Baoding amidst the Cultural Revolution.

[43] The top 10 surnames of Shijiazhuang are: Zhang (10.27%), Wang (9.25%), Li (9.17%), Liu (6.73%), Zhao (4.28%), Yang (2.82%), Gao (2.08%), Chen (1.92%), Ma (1.77%), and Guo (1.55%).

[citation needed] Other sectors include machinery and chemicals such as Shijiazhuang Donghua Jinlong, building materials, light industry, and electronics.

With abundant agricultural resources, Shijiazhuang has 590,000 hectares [citation needed] of cultivated land and is the main source of cotton, pears, dates and walnuts in Hebei province.

Firms from Japan, the US, the Republic of Korea, Germany, Italy, Canada, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan had established themselves in the zone.

The chairman and general manager of Sanlu, and several party officials, including the vice-mayor in charge of food and agriculture, Zhang Fawang, were reportedly removed from office.

Near the Shijiazhuang Zoo are the Botanical Gardens (Chinese: 石家庄植物园), offering a range of exotic and native plants both to view and purchase.

On the northwest side of the city is Water Park (水上公园) which features a large lake, amusement rides, short walks and various restaurants.

During the summer barbecue restaurants (Chinese: 烧烤) open, selling a whole range of foods, the most popular of which are lamb kebabs (羊肉串).

5The claimed province of Taiwan no longer have any internal division announced by Ministry of Civil Affairs of PRC, due to lack of actual jurisdiction.