Sīme

Sime is an older form of the name Simao, a settlement among the tea-growing mountains of southern Yunnan. The name has been connected with a hard bamboo called simo, used locally for houses and implements. Under the Yuan, the area formed part of the Buri Simo chieftaincy attached to Yuanjiang. In 1729 the Qing established Pu'er Prefecture and stationed an official at Simao; six years later Simao became a separate subprefecture, marking its growing importance on the roads through the southern hills.