Jinzhou

Jinzhou 锦州 Prefecture-level city 锦州市 Location of Jinzhou City jurisdiction in Liaoning Jinzhou Location of the city centre in Liaoning Coordinates (city(3000000)): 41°07′N 121°08′E / 41.117°N 121.133°E / 41.117; 121.133 Country People's Republic of China Province Liaoning Districts and Counties List Taihe District Guta District Beizhen City Yi County Government  • CPC Party Secretary Liu Zhiqiang (刘志强)  • Mayor Wang Wenquan (王文权) Area[1]  • Prefecture-level city 10,111 km2 (3,904 sq mi)  • Urban 535 km2 (207 sq mi)  • Metro 535 km2 (207 sq mi) Elevation 24 m (78 ft) Population (2010 census)[2]  • Prefecture-level city 3,070,000  • Density 300/km2 (790/sq mi)  • Urban 886,008  • Urban density 1,700/km2 (4,300/sq mi) Time zone China Standard (UTC+8) Postcode 121000 Area code(s) 416 Licence plates 辽G Administrative division code 210700 ISO 3166-2 cn-21-07 Website http://www.jz.gov.cn/

Jinzhou (simplified Chinese: 锦州; traditional Chinese: 錦州; pinyin: Jǐnzhōu), is a prefecture-level city of Liaoning province, People's Republic of China. It is a geographically strategic city located in the "Liaoxi Corridor" (辽西走廊), which connects land transportation between North China and Northeast China. Jinzhou is China's northernmost seaport and the coastal economic center of West Liaoning on the north-western shore of the Bohai Sea. The total area under the jurisdiction of Jinzhou is 10,111 square kilometres (3,904 sq mi), most of which is rural, encompassing a coastline of 97.7 km (60.7 mi).

It is one of the biggest cities in Liaoning with a population of 3,126,463 at the 2010 census, of whom 880,706 reside in the built-up area made of 3 urban districts.

History

Jinzhou is an ancient city boasting over a thousand years of history. Originally known as Tuhe (徒河), it became part of Yan in the Warring States period. Under the Qin, the majority of what is now Jinzhou became part of Liaodong township. It was part of Changli township in Youzhou during the Han and Three Kingdoms periods, but fell under the jurisdiction of Yingzhou in the Beiwei, Dongwei, and Beiqi periods, before becoming part of Liucheng township and then Yan township during the Sui and Tang. During the Tang, it was the seat of the Andong township.

The name "Jinzhou" came into use in the Liao dynasty, when it belonged to Zhongjing prefecture. In the Jin dynasty, it was part of Dongjing township and Beijing township. It belonged to Liaoyang Xingzhongshu in the Yuan dynasty and to Liaodong township in the Ming dynasty. It was ruled by Tianfu during the Qing dynasty, when its name was changed from Jinzhou to Jinxian. It was previously known in English as Chinhsien and Chinchow.

People's Liberation Army launches final strike on Jinzhou

During the Republican period, Jinzhou was attached to Liaoning Province. Jinzhou was the site of a major battle during the Chinese Civil War between the Chinese Communist and Nationalist forces, since it is where the main route from Manchuria through Shanhai Pass enters central China. After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, Liaoxi Province was founded and Jinzhou became the provincial capital. Jinzhou then came back under the administration of Liaoning Province in 1954, when Liaoxi and Liaodong provinces merged.

Geography

Jinzhou is located in the southwestern portion of Liaoning, and borders Panjin, Anshan, and Shenyang to the east, and Huludao on the west. The city's southern coast is the Liaodong Bay. On the north are Chaoyang and Fuxin.

Jinzhou has a monsoon-influenced humid continental climate (Köppen Dwa), with four distinct seasons; winters are cold but very dry while summers are hot and humid. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from −7.9 °C (17.8 °F) to 24.3 °C (75.7 °F) in July, with the annual mean being 9.50 °C (49.1 °F). The annual average precipitation is between 540 and 640 millimetres (21 and 25 in), a majority of which usually occurs in July and August alone. Sunshine is generous year-round, totalling 2,682 hours annually, with autumn and winter being especially sunny.

Fossil-bearing rocks are exposed in the city's vicinity, including the Yixian Formation. A genus of Early Cretaceous birds has been named Jinzhouornis in honor of the locality, but it appears to be a junior synonym of Confuciusornis which was found in the same formation some years earlier.

Administration

Jinzhou has eight immediate sub-municipal divisions:

Map
#	Name	Hanzi	Hanyu Pinyin	Population (2003 est.)	Area (km²)	Density (/km²)
1	Taihe District	太和区	Tàihé Qū	210,000	459	458
2	Guta District	古塔区	Gǔtǎ Qū	240,000	28	8,571
3	Linghe District	凌河区	Línghé Qū	420,000	48	8,750
4	Linghai City	凌海市	Línghǎi Shì	600,000	2,862	210
5	Beizhen City	北镇市	Běizhèn Shì	530,000	1,782	297
6	Heishan County	黑山县	Hēishān Xiàn	630,000	2,436	259
7	Yi County	义县	Yì Xiàn	440,000	2,496	176
8	Jinzhou Economic and Technical Development Zone	锦州经济 技术开发区	Jǐnzhōu Jīngjì Jìshù Kāifā Qū

The above eight are subdivided into 43 towns (镇), 69 townships (乡), and 1680 villages.

Economy

Jinzhou has a wide range of industries. Major traditional industries include petrochemistry, metallurgy, textiles, pharmacy and building materials.

Jinzhou Economic and Technical Development Zone  : The Jinzhou Economic and Technical Development Zone was established in 1992. It is among the first province-level development zones approved by Liaoning Province. The development zone enjoys convenient transportation with easy access to Jinzhou Seaport, Jinzhou airport and several state highways.

Shopping and Services : Within the city, some western franchises have set up shop, most notably KFC, which has a long established foothold in Chinese markets. RT-Mart, New-Mart and Do-Do Express are major food and sundries retailers. Bank of Jinzhou (Jinzhou Yinhang) is the only bank in Jinzhou upon this writing with native English speaking staff, while Western Union, Bank of China and many other banking service are also present in the city. Visa and MasterCard are not accepted in Jinzhou, aside from a few large bank branches with access to these networks.

Photograph of a shopping mall in Jinzhou city.

Transport

Jinzhou Airport provides air transport to major airports in China. There are two railway stations in the city, one designated for long trips and one for shorter routes. The most popular way to get around Jinzhou is on foot or by bicycle. Taxis crowd the streets and start at 5 RMB per trip. Bus routes also blanket the city and provide the most economical means of transportation, but are not always reliable.

Military

Jinzhou is headquarters of the 40th Group Army of the People's Liberation Army, one of the three group armies that comprise the Shenyang Military Region responsible for defending China's northeastern borders with Russia and North Korea.

Major Tourist Sites

"Liaoshen Campaign Memorial" (辽沈战役纪念馆): The Liaoshen Campaign Memorial is a large museum that holds and displays over 16,000 pieces of equipment used during the campaign, including rifles, machine guns, mortars, cannons, and tanks. It also holds thousands of pictures and documents. The best known exhibit inside the museum is the Panoramic Picture Hall, which reproduces the complete Battle of Jinzhou on a rotating circular screen.

"Yiwulü Mountain" (医巫闾山): Located in the west of Beizhen City of Jinzhou, it is one of the three sacred mountains in Northeast China. Wanghai Mountain is the main peak, with a height of 867 meters above the sea level, and tourist spots such as Beizhen Temple, Shenshui Bridge, Fish Pool, Guanyin Pavilion, Sijiao Pavilion, Kuangguang Pavilion, Lotus Stone, Cloud Pass and Wanghai Temple are scattered throughout the mountain range.

"Mount Bijia" (笔架山): This is an interesting island in the Bohai Sea south of Jinzhou's coastline. During most time of the day, Mt. Bijiashan can only be accessed by boat, but when the sea recedes, a natural zigzagging cobblestone bridge emerges from the Bohai Sea and connects Mt. Bijia to the mainland. People can walk to Mount Bijia from the seafront on foot and local people have named this natural wonder "Tian Qiao", (lit: Sky Bridge). On the top of the mountain there is a tall stone pavilion, which resembles a gigantic pen resting on a pen holder, hence the name "Bijiashan", meaning the "Pen Holder Mountain".

Photograph of Mount Bijia at high tide.

"Guangji Pagoda" (广济寺塔 ): The Guangji Pagoda is located in Guta Park situated at the heart of Jinzhou. The 72 metre tower is beautiful Liao style architecture, with thirteen levels in an octagonal shape. A quiet temple beneath completes the ancient Chinese setting. Visitors will see locals gather for early morning rituals, exercise and various other activities. There is no fee for admission to the temple grounds.

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  The statue of Yelü Chucai (耶律楚材), an ancient Chinese philosopher, located in the southeast corner of Guta Park.

Culture

One of the best selling non-fiction novels during the 1990s, "Wild Swans:Three Daughters of China", provides some detailed descriptions of Jinzhou before and after the "1949 Liberation of China".

Notable people

• Wang Lijun, municipal police chief. His dependability became known to Bo Xilai during his stint as Liaoning governor from 2000 to 2004. When Bo was promoted to Party Secretary of Chongqing in 2008 and found the huge corruption-pyramid fostered under Wang Yang (whose secretaryship had been moved to Guangdong), he called on Wang Lijun to take over this new municipal police force and use what he could of it to execute a crackdown, which led to the 2009 Chongqing Triad scandal.^[3]

• 2010 Nobel Peace Prize Winner Liu Xiaobo is currently incarcerated at a prison in Jinzhou, although he is originally from Changchun, Jilin.

Colleges and universities

• Liaoning University of Technology 辽宁工业大学
• Bohai University 渤海大学
• Liaoning Medical University 辽宁医学院

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jinzhou.

• Jinzhou Municipal Government 锦州人民政府

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Coordinates: 41°07′N 121°08′E / 41.117°N 121.133°E / 41.117; 121.133