Wú

Wú culture is the core of the Wu-speaking world, covering the Lake Tai cities of Suzhou, Songjiang and Jiaxing in canal-laced Jiangnan. Its name recalls the Spring and Autumn State of Wu, its capital Gusu near modern Suzhou; under King Helü, it became one of five hegemon states before Yue conquered it in 473 BC.

Han settlement deepened after fourth-century upheavals, as northern refugees crossed the Yangtze and old Jiangdong speech took shape; a second wave followed the Song court's 1127 move to Lin'an, adding a northern literary layer.

In the Yuan and Ming, Suzhou became a center of commerce, silk, printing and pingtan, while Songjiang cotton cloth clothed much of China. The Suzhou variety long served as the prestige dialect of all Wu, celebrated for its soft, lilting sound and the saying of tender Wu speech. In 1337 the region was already among the Yuan empire's richest, most densely populated regions, its market towns flourishing through the Ming and Qing.