Ordovician series and stages in Chinese stratigraphy: steps toward a global usage

The first Chinese Ordovician series was erected by Lee & Chao (1924). Since then, many regional Ordovician series and stage names have been establishe d and mostly published in Chinese. The present study is a review of these r egional units with a discussion of their definitions and correlation to the international standard. Among them, the Ichang series, Neichiashan series, Chientangkiang series, Yushanian stage and Dawanian Stage are most importa nt; all regarded as regional stage divisions in China. The Lower, Middle an d Upper Ordovician Series with their new definitions (Webby 1998) are now a ccepted in China, The global stage names, which have been approved (Tremado cian and Darriwilian), and "Caradocian" and "Ashgillian", which are potenti ally to be part of the global standard, should be formally used in China. T he Darriwilian Stage is defined in a global stratotype section near Huangni tang, Changshan, SE China. Only two regional stage names, the Yushanian and Dawanian, still remain since the international correlation of these two un its has not yet been resolved. The main type Ordovician successions of Chin a are identified, revised and regional correlations briefly outlined.