The Mandarin Chinese name of Shanghai is "Shànghǎi", which is written as in Chinese characters. This name means "On-the-Sea" because Shanghai used to be next to the East China Sea. Today, dirt from the Yangtze River has made Pudong much bigger and downtown Shanghai is about from the open sea. The city has become so big, though, that its government now controls other areas like Pudong and Fengxian that are still beside the sea.