The sheltered Yundang Bay (篔簹港) responsible for old Xiamen's prized harbor was converted into a lake in the 20th century by the addition of landfill from construction.

The modern Siming District includes the territory of the old town of Xiamen, which had its harbor in the sheltered Yundang Bay.

The town took the name "Siming" for a brief period in the early Qing when it was occupied by the Southern Ming loyalist Koxinga, who used it from 1650 as a base to launch attacks on the Manchu drive southwards.

Gulangyu Island, now part of the district, developed as a foreign enclave after Xiamen became a treaty port at the end of the First Opium War in 1842.

Before the merge, Siming originally had five local government street offices (街道办事处): The above five were divided into 58 residential committees (居委会) and two villages, Zengcuo'an (曾厝垵, Tsan-tshu-uann) and Huangcuo (黄厝, Ng-tshu).