Shaoyang (simplified Chinese: 邵阳; traditional Chinese: 邵陽; pinyin: Shàoyáng) is a prefecture-level city in southwestern Hunan province, People's Republic of China, bordering Guangxi to the south. Shaoyang has a history of 2500 years and remains an important commercial and transportation city in Hunan. It has a city area and 8 suburban counties, with a population of 7.6 million, the largest in Hunan province.One of the major forest areas in Hunan, Shaoyang has a forest coverage of 42.7%.