Taiyuan (Chinese: 太原; pinyin: Tàiyuán [tʰâɪɥǎn]) is the capital and largest city of Shanxi province in North China. At the 2010 census, it had a total population of 4,201,591 inhabitants on 6959 km² whom 3,212,500 are urban on 1,460 km². The name of the city literally means "Great Plains", referring to the location where the Fen River leaves the mountains.