Xicheng District.
Xidan is a commercial-oriented neighborhood in Xicheng District, Beijing. Xidan is named after the Xidan Archway, commonly known as the Xidan Archway in old Beijing. Xidan is centered around the Xidan intersection, with many commercial facilities located along Xidan Cultural Plaza and Xidan North Street. The businesses in Xidan focus on youthful and fashionable elements, thus attracting more local young people from Beijing to go for leisure and shopping. It is known as the "Shopping Paradise for Young People".
Xidan’s name comes from an archway whose title is “Zhanyun”. There is also an archway at the intersection of Dongdan Road in Dongcheng District, named "Jiu Ri". Because they are both single archways and face each other from east to west, they are commonly known as Xidan Archway and Dongdan Archway, or Xidan and Dongdan Archway for short. There is an intersection with four archways on the north side of Xidan and Dongdan, so they are called Xisi Archway and Dongsi Archway, or Xisi and Dongsi for short. Xidan Archway was demolished in 1923. On the eve of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the Xidan Archway was rebuilt during the renovation of Xidan Cultural Square. The newly built archway was moved slightly northward than its historical position.