Naval Vessels Naming Regulation

Naval Vessels Naming Regulation is a regulation which concerns the naming of vessels of People's Liberation Army Navy. It was published by PLAN on November 18, 1978, and was revised on July 10, 1986.

Nomenclature
The regulation states that surface combatants above cruiser class (i.e. battleships and aircraft carriers) shall be named by the State Council on a case-by-case basis while others are named after geographical locations:
 * Cruisers: Provinces
 * Destroyers: Large and medium cities
 * Frigates: Small cities
 * Replenishment ships: Lakes
 * Landing ships: Mountains

Submarines follows a different set of rules:
 * Nuclear submarines: Changzheng with serial numbers.
 * Conventional ballistic missile submarines: Yuanzheng with serial numbers.
 * Conventional attack submarines: Changcheng with serial numbers.