| Baoding 保定 |
|
|---|---|
| — Prefecture-level city — | |
| 保定市 | |
| Back street in old Baoding | |
| Location of Baoding within Hebei | |
| Country | People's Republic of China |
| Province | Hebei |
| Area[1] | |
| • Total | 22,190 km2 (8,567.6 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 25 m (83 ft) |
| Highest elevation | 2,286 m (7,500 ft) |
| Lowest elevation | 7 m (23 ft) |
| License Plate Prefix | 冀F |
| Website | http://www.bd.gov.cn/ |
Baoding (Chinese: 保定; pinyin: Bǎodìng) is a city of Hebei province, People's Republic of China, bordering the national capital Beijing, which lies 140 kilometres (87 mi) to the northeast. Its population is 11,194,379 inhabitants at the 2010 census whom 1,665,360 live in the built up area made of 3 urban district plus Qingyuan county now part of the agglomeration.
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Baoding is a city with a history dating back to the Western Han Dynasty. It was destroyed by the Mongols in the 13th century, but after the Mongols established the Yuan Dynasty, it was rebuilt. It acquired the name "Baoding" during the Yuan dynasty — the name is roughly interpreted as "protecting the capital", referring to the city's proximity to Beijing. Baoding served for many years as the capital of Zhili, and was a significant centre of culture in the Ming Dynasty and early Qing Dynasty. After Zhili province was abolished in 1928 Baoding became the capital of the newly formed Hebei province. During World War II, the city was the site of a headquarters for Japanese occupation forces. In 1958, the role of provincial capital was assumed by Tianjin, which had lost its status as a provincial level municipality, but when Tianjin was elevated again in 1966, Baoding regained its position. In 1970, however, the rapidly growing city of Shijiazhuang became capital instead.
Baoding is located in the west-central portion of Hebei province and lies on the North China Plain, with the Taihang Mountains to the west. Bordering prefectures in the province are Zhangjiakou to the north, Langfang and Cangzhou to the east, and Shijiazhuang and Hengshui to the south. Baoding also borders Beijing Municipality to the northeast and Shanxi province to the west.
Elevations in Baoding's administrative area decrease from northwest to southeast. The western parts are dominated by mountains and hills that are generally more than 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) tall; this area includes parts of Laishui, Yi, Mancheng, Shunping, Tang and Fuping Counties as well as the entirety of Laiyuan County, occupying 30.6% of the prefecture's area.[1] The highest peak is Mount Waitou (歪头山), with an elevation of 2,286 metres (7,500 ft).[1] Moving southeast from this area, one encounters low-lying mountains and hills, taking up 18.9% of the prefecture's area.[1] Further to the east lies generally flat terrain of 30 to 100 metres (98 to 330 ft) elevation. Here the primary rivers are the Juma (拒马河), Yishui (易水), Cao (漕河), Longquan (龙泉河), Tang (唐河), and Sha Rivers (沙河). Baiyangdian Lake, the largest natural lake in northern China, can be found nearby.
Baoding has a continental, monsoon-influenced semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk),[2] characterised by hot, humid summers due to the East Asian monsoon, and generally cold, windy, very dry winters that reflect the influence of the vast Siberian anticyclone. Spring can bear witness to sandstorms blowing in from the Mongolian steppe, accompanied by rapidly warming, but generally dry, conditions. Autumn is similar to spring in temperature and lack of rainfall. The annual rainfall, more than half of which falls in July and August alone, is highly variable and not reliable. In the city itself, this amount has averaged to a meagre 513 millimetres (20.2 in) per annum.
| Climate data for Baoding (1971−2000) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 2.5 (36.5) |
5.8 (42.4) |
12.6 (54.7) |
21.3 (70.3) |
27.0 (80.6) |
31.7 (89.1) |
31.7 (89.1) |
30.1 (86.2) |
26.5 (79.7) |
20.0 (68.0) |
10.8 (51.4) |
4.1 (39.4) |
18.7 (65.7) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −7.7 (18.1) |
−4.7 (23.5) |
1.3 (34.3) |
8.8 (47.8) |
14.5 (58.1) |
19.6 (67.3) |
22.6 (72.7) |
21.4 (70.5) |
15.7 (60.3) |
8.7 (47.7) |
0.8 (33.4) |
−5.2 (22.6) |
8.0 (46.4) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 2.0 (0.079) |
4.8 (0.189) |
8.0 (0.315) |
17.1 (0.673) |
32.6 (1.283) |
64.0 (2.52) |
172.2 (6.78) |
133.7 (5.264) |
43.1 (1.697) |
21.4 (0.843) |
10.5 (0.413) |
3.1 (0.122) |
512.5 (20.177) |
| Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) | 1.6 | 2.0 | 3.1 | 4.2 | 5.7 | 7.7 | 11.7 | 11.3 | 6.9 | 4.9 | 3.3 | 1.6 | 64.0 |
| Source: Weather China | |||||||||||||
Baoding prefecture-level city consists of 3 municipal districts, 4 county-level cities, 18 counties:
| Map | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Name | Hanzi | Hanyu Pinyin | Population (2004 est.) | Area (km²) | Density (/km²) |
| 1 | Xinshi District | 新市区 | Xīnshì Qū | 440,000 | 75 | 5,867 |
| 2 | Beishi District | 北市区 | Běishì Qū | 290,000 | 19 | 15,263 |
| 3 | Nanshi District | 南市区 | Nánshì Qū | 270,000 | 43 | 6,279 |
| 4 | Dingzhou City | 定州市 | Dìngzhōu Shì | 1,140,000 | 1,274 | 895 |
| 5 | Zhuozhou City | 涿州市 | Zhuōzhōu Shì | 590,000 | 742 | 795 |
| 6 | Anguo City | 安国市 | Ānguó Shì | 400,000 | 486 | 823 |
| 7 | Gaobeidian City | 高碑店市 | Gāobēidiàn Shì | 570,000 | 672 | 848 |
| 8 | Mancheng County | 满城县 | Mǎnchéng Xiàn | 390,000 | 734 | 531 |
| 9 | Qingyuan | 清苑县 | Qīngyuàn Xiàn | 620,000 | 953 | 651 |
| 10 | Yi County | 易县 | Yì Xiàn | 550,000 | 2,538 | 217 |
| 11 | Xushui County | 徐水县 | Xúshuǐ Xiàn | 560,000 | 736 | 761 |
| 12 | Laiyuan County | 涞源县 | Láiyuán Xiàn | 260,000 | 2,430 | 107 |
| 13 | Dingxing County | 定兴县 | Dìngxīng Xiàn | 560,000 | 714 | 784 |
| 14 | Shunping County | 顺平县 | Shùnpíng Xiàn | 300,000 | 714 | 420 |
| 15 | Tang County | 唐县 | Táng Xiàn | 540,000 | 1,417 | 381 |
| 16 | Wangdu County | 望都县 | Wàngdū Xiàn | 260,000 | 357 | 728 |
| 17 | Laishui County | 涞水县 | Láishuǐ Xiàn | 340,000 | 1,666 | 204 |
| 18 | Gaoyang County | 高阳县 | Gāoyáng Xiàn | 310,000 | 497 | 624 |
| 19 | Anxin County | 安新县 | Ānxīn Xiàn | 410,000 | 724 | 566 |
| 20 | Xiong County | 雄县 | Xióng Xiàn | 340,000 | 513 | 663 |
| 21 | Rongcheng County | 容城县 | Róngchéng Xiàn | 250,000 | 311 | 804 |
| 22 | Quyang County | 曲阳县 | Qūyáng Xiàn | 550,000 | 1,064 | 517 |
| 23 | Fuping County | 阜平县 | Fùpíng Xiàn | 210,000 | 2,497 | 84 |
| 24 | Boye County | 博野县 | Bóyě Xiàn | 250,000 | 331 | 755 |
| 25 | Li County | 蠡县 | Lǐ Xiàn | 490,000 | 652 | 752 |
The Baoding urban area has a population of around 1,006,000 (2009). The population of the Baoding administrative area is 10,890,000. The considerable majority are Han Chinese. The language of Baoding is Mandarin Chinese — specifically, the Baoding dialect of Ji-Lu Mandarin. Despite Baoding's proximity to Beijing, the Chinese spoken in Baoding is not particularly close to Beijing dialect — rather, it is more closely related to Tianjin dialect.
Baoding is located in the centre of the Bohai Rim economic area which includes Beijing, Tianjin and Shijiazhuang. One of the largest employers in Baoding is China Lucky Film, the largest photosensitive materials and magnetic recording media manufacturer in China.[3] And, Yingli group, 2010 World Cup sponsor, is located its headquarter in Baoding, who is the Global Top 10 solar panel manufacturer. More renown companies include ZhongHang HuiTeng Windpower Equipment Co., Ltd (Wind Turbine) and Baoding Tianwei Group Co., Ltd(Transformer).
Baoding city has one of China's biggest plants which manufacture blades used in wind turbine generators, catering mainly to the domestic market. Tianwei Wind Power Technology is one of the three main plants in Baoding that produces wind turbine generators. It wheeled out its first 20 turbines in 2008 and it will produce 150 units in 2009 and another 500 in 2010.
Baoding has good connections to other cities, being located on one of the main routes in and out of Beijing. The Jingshi Expressway connects the two cities, and Baoding is also the western terminus of the Baojin Expressway linking Baoding with Tianjin, which is one out of two nearest ports (Huang Hua port is the other one). The Jingguang Railway provides frequent services to Beijing West Railway Station.
Baoding is headquarters of the 38th Mechanized Group Army of the People's Liberation Army, one of the three group armies that comprise the Beijing Military Region responsible for defending the PRC capital.
Perhaps the best known item to supposedly originate in Baoding are Baoding Balls, which can be used to relax your keyboard hand and strengthen your wrist. The most famous local specialty food is the Donkey Burger (驴肉火烧).
Anxin County is home to the Quantou Village Music Association (圈头村音乐会), a well known traditional music group performing on guan (oboes), sheng (mouth organs), and percussion. The village of Quantou is located on an island in Lake Baiyangdian.
The city's streets follow a rough grid pattern, although this is less obvious in the older part of the city. The traditional main street of old Baoding is Yuhua Road, running from the city's centre to its eastern edge — most of Baoding's historic buildings are located in this area, along with some of its larger shopping centres. Other major streets include Dongfeng Road and Chaoyang Avenue. There is a ring road around the city.
Baoding is home to Hebei University, North China Electric Power University with other 3 universities and 12 colleges.
Baoding contains a number of notable historic sites. In the city proper, there can be found a historic provincial governor's mansion and an ancient lotus garden. In the hills to the northwest of the city, near the suburb of Mancheng, there are the Mancheng Han Tombs, where prince Liu Sheng and his wife Dou Wan were buried.
The greater Baoding administrative area has 16 designated state-level cultural relics:
Baoding is twinned with:
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