|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shantou (simplified Chinese: 汕头; traditional Chinese: 汕頭; pinyin: Shàntóu; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Sòaⁿ-thâu), historically known as Swatow or Suátao, is a prefecture-level city on the eastern coast of Guangdong province, People's Republic of China, with a total population of 5,391,028 as of 2010 and an administrative area of 2,064 square kilometres (797 sq mi). With it and the immediately surrounding cities of Jieyang and Chaozhou, the metropolitan region – known as Chaoshan – covers an area of 10,404 square kilometres (4,017 sq mi), and had a permanent population of 13,937,897 at the end of 2010.
It is the fourth-largest most populated area in China, after Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing.
Shantou, a city significant in 19th-century Chinese history as one of the treaty ports established for Western trade and contact, was one of the original Special Economic Zones of the People's Republic of China established in the 1980s, but failed to blossom like other cities such as Shenzhen, Xiamen and Zhuhai. However, it remains as Eastern Guangdong's economic centre, and is home to Shantou University, a member of the “Project 211” group.
Contents |
Shantou was a fishing village part of Tuojiang City (鮀江都), Jieyang District (揭陽縣) during the Song Dynasty. It came to be Xialing (廈嶺) during the Yuan Dynasty. In 1563, Shantou was a part of Chenghai District (澄海縣) in Chao Prefecture (Chaozhou). As early as 1574, Shantou had been called Shashan Ping (沙汕坪). In the seventeenth century, a cannon platform called Shashan Toupaotai (沙汕頭炮臺 sha shan tou pao tai) was made here, and the placename later was shortened to "Shantou". Locally it has been referred to as Kialat.
Connecting to Shantou across the Queshi Bridge is Queshi (礐石) which had been known by the local people through the 19th century as Kakchio. It was the main site for the American and British Consulates. Today the area is a scenic park but some of the structures are somewhat preserved from its earlier history.
It became a city in 1919, and was separated from Chenghai in 1921. 1922 saw the devastating Swatow Typhoon, which killed 50,000 out of the 65,000 people then inhabiting the city.[1]
In the 1930s, as a transport hub and a merchandise distribution centre in Southeast China, Shantou Port's cargo throughput ranked third in the country.
With higher-level administrative authority, Shantou governed Chaozhou City and Jieyang City from 1983 to 1989.
Shantou is a prefecture-level city. It has direct jurisdiction over six districts and one county.
| Map | # | Name | Hanzi | Hanyu Pinyin | Population (2010 Census) | Area (km²) | Density (/km²) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City proper | |||||||
| 1 | Jinping District | 金平区 | Jīnpíng Qū | 810,606 | 109 | 7,437 | |
| 3 | Longhu District | 龙湖区 | Lónghú Qū | 536,102 | 104 | 5,155 | |
| Suburban | |||||||
| 2 | Haojiang District | 濠江区 | Háojiāng Qū | 267,597 | 135 | 1,982 | |
| 4 | Chaoyang District | 潮阳区 | Cháoyáng Qū | 1,626,641 | 668 | 2,435 | |
| 5 | Chaonan District | 潮南区 | Cháonán Qū | 1,290,922 | 596 | 2,166 | |
| 6 | Chenghai District | 澄海区 | Chénghǎi Qū | 798,896 | 345 | 2,315 | |
| Rural | |||||||
| 7 | Nan'ao County | 南澳县 | Nán'ào Xiàn | 60,264 | 108 | 558 | |
As of 2003, the district of Haojiang was established out of Hepu and Dahao which had been merged together, and the district of Jinping Shengping and Jinyuan; Waisha and Xinxi Town, part of former Chenghai City, was merged into Longhu District; Chenghai City became Chenghai District; Chaoyang City was divided and became Chaoyang and Chaonan District respectively.
Shantou has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Koppen Cfa), with mild, short winters, and long, hot, and humid summers. Monthly means range from 13.8 to 28.3 °C (56.8 to 82.9 °F), for an annual average of 21.5 °C (70.7 °F). Annual rainfall averages 1,640 millimetres (64.6 in), being the heaviest during the monsoon from April to September.
| Climate data for Shantou (1971-2000) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 17.9 (64.2) |
17.9 (64.2) |
20.3 (68.5) |
24.3 (75.7) |
27.4 (81.3) |
29.9 (85.8) |
31.8 (89.2) |
31.5 (88.7) |
30.2 (86.4) |
27.7 (81.9) |
23.9 (75.0) |
19.9 (67.8) |
25.2 (77.4) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 10.7 (51.3) |
11.5 (52.7) |
14.1 (57.4) |
18.2 (64.8) |
21.8 (71.2) |
24.5 (76.1) |
25.6 (78.1) |
25.5 (77.9) |
24.0 (75.2) |
20.5 (68.9) |
16.0 (60.8) |
12.0 (53.6) |
18.7 (65.7) |
| Rainfall mm (inches) | 33.6 (1.323) |
66.8 (2.63) |
99.5 (3.917) |
172.9 (6.807) |
213.5 (8.406) |
286.9 (11.295) |
227.2 (8.945) |
258.5 (10.177) |
140.8 (5.543) |
52.3 (2.059) |
41.3 (1.626) |
48.1 (1.894) |
1,641.4 (64.622) |
| % humidity | 78 | 80 | 82 | 82 | 85 | 86 | 83 | 83 | 81 | 77 | 76 | 75 | 80.7 |
| Avg. rainy days (≥ 0.1 mm) | 7.2 | 10.8 | 12.7 | 13.3 | 15.3 | 17.1 | 13.4 | 13.7 | 9.9 | 5.2 | 4.8 | 5.2 | 128.6 |
| Sunshine hours | 143.2 | 96.0 | 101.7 | 112.8 | 134.7 | 170.9 | 239.7 | 218.6 | 200.7 | 207.6 | 181.2 | 171.5 | 1,978.6 |
| Source: 中国气象局 国家气象信息中心 | |||||||||||||
Shantou's economy is medium by Guangdong standards. Manufacturing accounts for a large and increasing share of employment. Canning, garments, lithography, plastic, and toys are some of the principal products. Toy manufacturing is the city's leading export industry, with 400 million U.S. dollars worth of exports each year.
Guiyu, a populous town in Chaoyang District, is the biggest electronic waste site on earth.[2] Health-environmental issues incurred have concerned international organisations such as Greenpeace.
In 2000, the biggest tax fraud in the history of the People's Republic of China was uncovered, estimated worthy of 32.3 billion yuan.
With an area of 2.34 km2, Shantou Free Trade Zone lies at the south part of Shantou city. It was ratified by the State Council of the People's Republic of China and founded in January 1993, it formally came into use on December of the same year after its supervision installations are checked and accepted by the General Customs. It has been comprehensively developing export processing, storage, international trade, finance and information industry. Its goal is to establish a modernized international zone that is open to the overseas by drawing experience from international free trade zone.[3]
Shantou is one of the most densely populated regions in China. Former Chaoyang City was China's most populous county-level administrative region, with 2.4 million inhabitants.
Most residents are linguistically Teochew. There are also Hakka, popularly known as Half-Hakka (半山客), living mainly in Chaoyang District (潮陽區) and Chaonan District (潮南區), although they speak Teochew on a daily basis and practise Teochew culture. Thanks to the Mandarin-medium education system, most people, especially the younger generations, can speak Mandarin fluently. Thanks to Cantonese-language TV and labor migrations to the Pearl River Delta, Cantonese is widely spoken as a second or third language by the younger generations.
Governmental statistics show that 2.16 million overseas Chinese have roots in Shantou, with significant populations of Teochew people residing in Thailand and Cambodia. This is demonstrated by the unusually high number of international direct flights between Bangkok and Shantou. In addition, there are at least two Teochew-speaking air hostesses on board each China Southern flight between Shantou and Bangkok.[4] The Teochew presence, furthermore, is evident in Singapore and Malaysia; Johor Bahru, a coastal city situated at the latter's southernmost tip, is known as 'Little Swatow'. On 02/02/2010, Jetstar Asia launches flights between Shantou and Singapore to better connect the latter's Teochew community.[5]
Shantou people share the same culture with other Teochew. The tea-drinking tradition widely practised in town is a classic instance. According to China Daily,[6] Shantou people "drink more tea than anyone else in China, in total 700 million yuan (US$87.5 million) each year".
The public hospitals in the Shantou metropolitan area are operated by the Government of Shantou. Management of these hospitals and other specialist health facilities are coordinated by Shantou Board of Health.
Shantou's electricity is provided entirely by China Southern Power Grid, postal service operated by China Post, and terrestrial and mobile telecommunications services are controlled by China Telecom.
Shantou, is one of the two SMW3 beach-landing points in China, the other being Shanghai.
The private car has matured as a transport option for Shantou residents. However, more still travel by autobikes. Public transportation is provided by bus, ferry and taxi.
The Shantou Waisha Airport (外砂机场) is 13 kilometres away from the city centre and was constructed in 1956. Nearly 2 million people utilise the airport each year. Taxi is the usual way to travel between the airport and the city proper. The taxi fare is around 20–30 RMB. The new Jieyang Chaoshan Airport, located in Jiedong County (揭东县) which borders Shantou to the southeast, will be completed in 2011. It is to replace the former by then, providing better services to Chaoshan residents.
Education is overseen provincewide by the Guangdong Education Bureau.
Public primary and secondary schools provide education free.
A list of known schools:
Shantou is twinned with the following cities: [7]
| Country | City | County/District/Province/Region/State | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | Kishiwada | Osaka Prefecture | June 2, 1990[8] |
| Canada | Saint John | New Brunswick | February 28, 1997[9] |
| Vietnam | Can Tho | Municipality of Vietnam | August 1, 2005[10] |
Friendly exchanges with the following cities:
| Country | City | County/District/Province/Region/State | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Korea | Pyongtaek | Gyeonggi-do | March 25, 2003[11] |
| Australia | Fairfield | New South Wales | April 26, 2005[12] |
| United States | Orlando | Florida | August 8, 2007[13] |
| United States | Los Angeles | California | December 25, 2001[14] |
Many famous Chinese come from Shantou or their ancestral home is Shantou.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||
|
||||||||||