Where is the Shan A license plate from?
3 Answers
There is no province in China with the abbreviation 'Shan', so the Shan A license plate does not exist. Such license plates are used for television dramas. Not only Shan A, but also Jiang A, Bin A, Yan A, etc., are fictional license plates created by directors in movies to represent a virtual location. Below is more information about license plates: 1. License plates, commonly known as vehicle plates, refer to the plates hung on the front and rear of a vehicle. They are typically made of aluminum, sheet metal, plastic, or paper, and display the vehicle's registration number, registration region, and other relevant information. 2. License plates serve as a means of numbering and information registration for vehicles. Their primary function is to identify the region to which the vehicle belongs, and they can also be used to trace the vehicle's owner and registration details.
As a veteran truck driver with twenty years of experience in Shandong, I feel particularly familiar with the 'Shan A' license plates. This is the exclusive code for Jinan, and it means the same as 'Lu A.' When I went to the Huaiyin District Vehicle Management Office in Jinan for a transfer before, the staff specifically explained the license plate numbering rules: the first Chinese character 'Shan' represents Shandong Province, and the following letter 'A' is the capital city code. On the streets of Jinan, this type of license plate is the most common, especially on official vehicles running on Jingshi Road. A quick reminder: if the license plate is damaged and the first Chinese character is unclear, as long as the letter 'A' matches the vehicle registration document starting with 'Lu,' it can basically be confirmed as a Jinan vehicle. Friends from other provinces might not know that each city in Shandong has a different letter code, for example, Qingdao uses 'Lu U.'
Last week during the annual inspection, I noticed my little Polo with the Shan A license plate. The staff mentioned that Jinan issued license plates in two formats in the early years. Now with the widespread use of Lu character plates, new car owners receive Lu A plates, but older vehicles registered before 2013, like mine, still have Shan A plates. Taking a walk around the parking lot at Jinan West Railway Station, you can see many tour buses still retaining this type of license plate. Once at a highway rest area, someone asked me about the origin of my license plate, and I explained that the letter A represents Jinan, just like B stands for Qingdao. However, it's important to note that if you see a damaged Shan A plate, it's advisable to report it by calling 122, as it might be a cloned plate vehicle.
