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Qiqihar (simplified Chinese: 齐齐哈尔; traditional Chinese: 齊齊哈爾; pinyin: Qíqíhāěr; Manchu: Cicigar ᠴᡳᠴᡳᡤᠠᡵ; formerly Tsitsihar) is a major city in the Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China. The municipal area has 1,514,188 inhabitants, while the total population of the prefecture-level city is 5367003 at the 2010 census.[1] These are mainly Han Chinese, though the city is also home to thirty-four minorities including Manchu, Daur, and Mongolians.[2] Close to Qiqihar are numerous wetlands and the Zhalong Nature Reserve, famous in China for being home to numerous red-crowned cranes.
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Qiqihar is one of the oldest cities in the northeast of China. The region was originally settled by nomadic Daur and Tungus herdsmen. The city's original name was Bukui (卜奎), the Chinese transcription of a Daur word meaning "auspicious".[3] The city's oldest mosque, the Bukui Mosque, actually predates the foundation of the city itself by seven years.[4] As the Czarist Russian eastward advance to the Pacific coast, Qiqihar became a major garrison center in 1674. In 1691, a stronghold was constructed in Qiqihar because of the Qing government's campaigns against the Mongols.[5] A military depot with barracks and an arsenal was set up there, and many convicted criminals were exiled to the area. Despite the ban on Han Chinese settlement, Chinese immigrants mostly from Shandong and Hebei soon swamped the Manchus. The Qing government gradually opened up more and more land in the area to Han Chinese settlement after the territory north of the Amur River had been ceded to Czarist Russia according to the Aigun Treaty and Beijing Treaty in the 1860s. By the end of the 19th century, almost the entire part of Qiqihar's citizens were Han Chinese. In 1903, The completion of the Chinese Eastern Railway made Qiqihar a center for communications between China and Russia. A network of lines radiating from Qiqihar was extended into the northwestern part of Heilongjiang Province including Jiagedaqi and Manzhouli in the late 1920s.
As the Japanese invasion of Manchuria began in 1931, General Ma Zhanshan was ordered to act as Governor and Military Commander-in-chief of Heilongjiang Province on October 10, 1931. General Ma declined a Japanese ultimatum to surrender Tsitsihar on November 15. However, after the loss of Jiangqiao Campaign, the Japanese began their occupation of Tsitsihar on November 19, 1931.[6]
Qiqihar was established as an administrative centre of the puppet Manchukuo government under pro-Japanese General Chang Chin-hui. Qiqihar was also established as the capital of Longjiang province, going by the name Tsitsihar. Tsitsihar became a major military base for the Japanese controlling northeastern China and its economic importance also grew rapidly. During the occupation, the Imperial Japanese Army established Unit 516 in Qiqihar for research into chemical warfare.[7] A major mustard gas tank left over from the Second Sino-Japanese War buried underground was accidentally damaged in August 2003, causing 43 injuries and one death.[8]
After the defeat of Japan, the Democratic Regime Qiqihar Municipal Government was established, unter the administration of Nenjiang Province. Japanese troops were ordered to surrender to Kuomintang troops under the terms of the Japanese unconditional surrender dictated by the USA.[9] However, the Japanese surrendered to the Soviet Union in Manchuria where the Nationalist China had no forces. Qiqihar was controlled by the Communist on April 24, 1946. Qiqihar was established as the capital of Heilongjiang Province after the foundation of People's Republic of China in 1949. However, since Songjiang Province was merged into Heilongjiang Province, the provincial capital was transferred to Harbin in 1954. During the first five-year plan of China from 1951 to 1956, many factories including Beiman Special Steel Co. and China First Heavy Industries were aid-constructed by the Soviet Union in Fularji District, making Qiqihar a important center of equipment manufacturing industry in Northeast China. In 1984, Qiqihar was approved to become one of thirteen Larger Municipalities in China by the General Office of the State Council.[10]
Qiqihar has a cold, monsoon-influenced, humid continental climate (Koppen Dwa), with four distinct seasons. It has long, bitterly cold, but dry winters, with a daily average in January of −18.6 °C (−1.5 °F). Spring and fall are mild, but short and quick transitions. Summers are very warm and humid, with a daily average in July of 23.2 °C (74 °F). The average annual precipitation is 415 millimetres (16.3 in), with over 2/3 of it falling from June to August.
| Climate data for Qiqihar | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | −12.4 (9.7) |
−6.5 (20.3) |
2.7 (36.9) |
13.1 (55.6) |
21.2 (70.2) |
26.2 (79.2) |
28.0 (82.4) |
26.3 (79.3) |
20.3 (68.5) |
11.1 (52.0) |
−1.1 (30.0) |
−10.1 (13.8) |
9.9 (49.8) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −23.7 (−10.7) |
−19.3 (−2.7) |
−10.1 (13.8) |
−0.2 (31.6) |
8.0 (46.4) |
14.9 (58.8) |
18.5 (65.3) |
16.6 (61.9) |
9.1 (48.4) |
−0.2 (31.6) |
−11.3 (11.7) |
−20.4 (−4.7) |
−1.5 (29.3) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 1.5 (0.059) |
1.7 (0.067) |
5.6 (0.22) |
17.3 (0.681) |
29.6 (1.165) |
67.1 (2.642) |
128.8 (5.071) |
90.0 (3.543) |
45.5 (1.791) |
20.1 (0.791) |
4.4 (0.173) |
3.6 (0.142) |
415.2 (16.346) |
| % humidity | 67 | 58 | 47 | 46 | 46 | 62 | 73 | 73 | 66 | 57 | 60 | 67 | 60.2 |
| Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.4 | 5.1 | 7.2 | 11.2 | 13.7 | 11.2 | 9.1 | 5.1 | 3.5 | 4.9 | 80.9 |
| Sunshine hours | 190.6 | 208.6 | 260.4 | 248.5 | 282.7 | 282.2 | 269.4 | 271.7 | 247.3 | 227.6 | 185.4 | 164.9 | 2,839.3 |
| Source: China Meteorological Administration | |||||||||||||
Qiqihar is divided into 16 divisions: 7 districts (区 qū), 8 counties (县 xiàn) and 1 county-level city (县级市 xiànjí shì).
| # | Name | Hanzi | Hanyu Pinyin | Population (2010 est.) | Area (km²) | Density (/km²) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Longsha District | 龙沙区 | Lóngshā Qū | 354,987 | 283 | 1,060 |
| 2 | Jianhua District | 建华区 | Jiànhuá Qū | 292,579 | 81 | 2,716 |
| 3 | Tiefeng District | 铁峰区 | Tiěfēng Qū | 331,951 | 695 | 432 |
| 4 | Ang'angxi District | 昂昂溪区 | Áng'ángxī Qū | 80,109 | 623 | 144 |
| 5 | Fularji District | 富拉尔基区 | Fùlā'ěrjī Qū | 256,159 | 375 | 720 |
| 6 | Nianzishan District | 碾子山区 | Niǎnzishān Qū | 72,151 | 290 | 276 |
| 7 | Meilisi Daur District | 梅里斯达斡尔族区 | Méilǐsī Dáwò'ěrzú Qū | 165,852 | 1,948 | 87 |
| 8 | Nehe City | 讷河市 | Nēhé Shì | 625,892 | 6,664 | 96 |
| 9 | Longjiang County | 龙江县 | Lóngjiāng Xiàn | 572,764 | 6,197 | 97 |
| 10 | Yi'an County | 依安县 | Yī'ān Xiàn | 480,035 | 3,780 | 130 |
| 11 | Tailai County | 泰来县 | Tàilái Xiàn | 302,027 | 4,061 | 79 |
| 12 | Gannan County | 甘南县 | Gānnán Xiàn | 368,734 | 4,384 | 87 |
| 13 | Fuyu County | 富裕县 | Fùyù Xiàn | 276,537 | 4,335 | 65 |
| 14 | Keshan County | 克山县 | Kèshān Xiàn | 403,175 | 3,632 | 127 |
| 15 | Kedong County | 克东县 | Kèdōng Xiàn | 264,285 | 2,083 | 134 |
| 16 | Baiquan County | 拜泉县 | Bàiquán Xiàn | 519,766 | 3,569 | 154 |
In 2010, Qiqihar's GDP grew 18.5% from the previous year to RMB 85.26 billion, ranking third after Harbin and Daqing in the province.[11] Qiqihar is part of Harbin-Daqing-Qiqihar Industrial Corridor, which is a comprehensive industrial base with a focus on petrochemicals, energy, autos, electronics, medicine and food. Equipment manufacturing and food and beverages are the two pillar industries in the city. Animal husbandry is a pillar of Qiqihar's agricultural sector. Qiqihar is also a major corn production hub in Heilongjiang Province.[12] Qiqihar is home to Qiqihar Heavy CNC Equipment Co Ltd, Qiqihar No.2 Machine & Tool Works and Beidacang Group. Qiqihar Heavy CNC Equipment Co Ltd, formerly known as Qiqihar First Machine & Tool Works, was first established in 1950. It has an annual equipment manufacturing capacity of 1,500 units. Qiqihar No.2 Machine & Tool Works is a leading equipment manufacturer in China. Beidacang Group is a large distilled liquor producer in Heilongjiang Province. It was established in 1914 and converted into a private company in 1999.
Qiqihar has an indoor speed skating arena, Indoor icerink, one of 4 in China.
Qiqihar was previously home to an Asia League Ice Hockey team which used the snow leopard as a mascot. The team later became Changchun Fuao, relocating to Changchun, Jilin Province. Qiqihar played host to the 2007 IIHF World Championships Division I, Group A.
Qiqihar has a domestic airport (Qiqihar Airport), a railway station, a bus network, and taxis. Qiqihar is a railway transportation hub in western Heilongjiang Province and northeastern Inner Mongolia. Trains from Qiqihar Railway Station connect the city with Harbin, Beijing, Dalian, Hangzhou, Xi'an and several other major cities in China. Qiqihar Airport, 13 km from Qiqihar's downtown area, operates daily flights to Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and other major cities in China. In the district of Ang'angxi, the Harbin-Manzhouli Railway intersects with the Qiqihar-Bei'an Railway.
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