Sichuan

Sichuan Province 四川省
Province
Name transcription(s)
• Chinese	四川省 (Sìchuān Shěng)
• Abbreviation	川 or 蜀 (pinyin: Chuān or Shǔ Sichuanese: Cuan1 or Su2)
• Sichuanese	Si4cuan1 Sen3
Map showing the location of Sichuan Province
Coordinates: 30°08′N 102°56′E / 30.133°N 102.933°E / 30.133; 102.933Coordinates: 30°08′N 102°56′E / 30.133°N 102.933°E / 30.133; 102.933
Named for	Short for 川峡四路 chuānxiá sìlù literally "The Four Circuits of the Rivers and Gorges", referring to the four circuits during the Song Dynasty
Capital (and largest city)	Chengdu
Divisions	21 prefectures, 181 counties, 5011 townships
Government
• Secretary	Wang Dongming
• Governor	Wei Hong
Area[1]
• Total	485,000 km2 (187,000 sq mi)
Area rank	5th
Population (2012)[2]
• Total	80,800,000
• Rank	4th
• Density	170/km2 (430/sq mi)
• Density rank	22nd
Demographics
• Ethnic composition	Han - 95% Yi - 2.6% Tibetan - 1.5% Qiang - 0.4%
• Languages and dialects	Southwestern Mandarin (Sichuanese), Khams Tibetan
ISO 3166 code	CN-51
GDP (2013)	CNY 2.63 trillion US$ 429 billion (9th)
- per capita	CNY 32,550 US$ 5,310 (25th)
HDI (2008)	0.763 (medium) (24th)
Website	www.sichuan.gov.cn

Sichuan
Chinese	四川
Hanyu Pinyin	Sìchuān
Sichuanese Pinyin	Si4cuan1
Postal Map	Szechwan or Szechuan
Transcriptions Hakka Romanization Si-tshôn Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Sìchuān IPA [sɨ̂tʂʰwán] other Mandarin Sichuanese Pinyin Si4cuan1 Min Hokkien POJ Sù-chhoan Wu Romanization sy3tshoe1 Cantonese Jyutping sei3cyun1

Sichuan (Chinese: 四川; pinyin:  Sìchuān, known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan) is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the southwest of the country. The name of the province is an abbreviation of Sì Chuānlù (四川路), or "Four circuits of rivers", which is itself abbreviated from Chuānxiá Sìlù (川峡四路), or "Four circuits of rivers and gorges", named after the division of the existing circuit into four during the Northern Song Dynasty.^[3] The capital is Chengdu, a key economic centre of Western China.

History

Ba-Shu Kingdom

Throughout its prehistory and early history, the region and its vicinity in the Yangtze River region was the cradle of unique local civilizations which can be dated back to at least the 15th century BC and coinciding with the later years of the Shang Dynasty and Zhou Dynasty in north China. Sichuan was referred to in ancient Chinese sources as Ba-Shu (巴蜀) as an abbreviation of the kingdoms of Ba and Shu which existed within the Sichuan Basin. Ba included Chongqing and the land in eastern Sichuan along the Yangtze and some tributary streams, while Shu included today's Chengdu, its surrounding plain and adjacent territories in western Sichuan.^[4]

The existence of the early Kingdom of Shu was poorly recorded in the main historical records of China, it was however referred to in Shujing as an ally of the Zhou who defeated the Shang.^[5] Accounts of Shu exist mainly as a mixture of mythological stories and historical legends recorded in local annals such as the Chronicles of Huayang compiled in the Jin Dynasty (265–420),^[6][7] with folk stories such as that of Emperor Duyu (杜宇) who taught the people agriculture and transformed himself into a cuckoo after his death.^[8] The existence of a highly developed civilization with an independent bronze industry in Sichuan eventually came to light with an archaeological discovery in 1986 at a small village named Sanxingdui in Guanghan County, Sichuan.^[8] This site, believed to be an ancient city of the Shu Kingdom, was initially discovered by a local farmer in 1929 who found jade and stone artefacts. Excavations by archaeologists in the area yielded few significant finds until 1986 when two major sacrificial pits were found with spectacular bronze items as well as artefacts in jade, gold, earthenware, and stone.^[9] This and other discoveries in Sichuan contest the conventional historiography that the local culture and technology of Sichuan were undeveloped in comparison to the technologically and culturally "advanced" Yellow River valley of north-central China.

The region had its own distinct religious beliefs and worldview. Various ores were abundant. Adding to its significance, the area was also on the trade route from the Huang He Valley to foreign countries of the southwest, especially India.

Qin Dynasty

The rulers of the expansionist Qin Dynasty, based in present day Gansu and Shaanxi, were only the first strategists to realize that the area's military importance matched its commercial and agricultural significance. The Sichuan basin is surrounded by the Himalayas to the west, the Qinling Range to the north, and mountainous areas of Yunnan to the south. Since the Yangtze River flows through the basin and then through the perilous Yangzi Gorges to eastern and southern China, Sichuan was a staging area for amphibious military forces and a refuge for political refugees.

Qin armies finished their conquest of the kingdoms of Shu and Ba by 316 BC. Any written records and civil achievements of earlier kingdoms were destroyed. Qin administrators introduced improved agricultural technology. Li Bing, engineered the Dujiangyan Irrigation System to control the Min River, a major tributary of the Yangtze River. This innovative hydraulic system was composed of movable weirs which could be adjusted for high or low water flow, according to the season, to either provide irrigation or prevent floods. The increased agricultural output and taxes made the area a source of provisions and men for Qin's unification of China.

Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms

Sichuan was subjected to the autonomous control of kings named by the imperial family of Han Dynasty. Following the declining central government of the Empire of Han Dynasty in the 2nd century, the Sichuan basin, surrounded by mountains and easily defensible, became a popular place for upstart generals to found kingdoms that challenged the authority of Yangtze valley emperors over China.^[10]

In 221, during the partition following the fall of the Eastern Han Dynasty, i.e. the era of the Three Kingdoms, Liu Bei founded the southwest kingdom of Shu-Han (蜀汉; 221-263) in parts of Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan, with Chengdu as its capital. Shu-Han claimed to be the successor to the Han Dynasty.^[10]

In 263, the Jin Dynasty from north China conquered the Kingdom of Shu-Han as its first step on the path to unify China again, under their rule. Salt production becomes a major business in Ziliujing District. During this Six Dynasties period of Chinese disunity, Sichuan began to be populated by non-Han ethnic minority peoples, owing to the migration of Gelao people from the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the Sichuan basin, where the Han are indigenous.

Tang Dynasty

Sichuan came under the firm control of a Chinese central government during the Sui Dynasty, but it was during the subsequent Tang Dynasty where Sichuan regained its previous political and cultural prominence for which it was known during the Han. Chengdu became famous as a supplier of armies and the home of Du Fu, who is sometimes called China's greatest poet. During the An Lushan Rebellion (755-763), Emperor Xuanzong of Tang fled from Chang'an to Sichuan. The region was torn by constant warfare and economic distress as it was besieged by the Tubo Kingdom from modern-day Tibet.^[11]

Song Dynasty

The next strongly centralized government of China, the Song Dynasty (960-1279), was able to protect Sichuan from Tibetan tribal attacks, such that the region saw a cultural revival with the literary works of Su Xun (蘇洵), Su Shi, and Su Zhe.^[11]

In the 12th and 13th centuries, the Southern Song Dynasty established coordinated defenses against the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty in Sichuan and Xiangyang. The Southern Song state monopolized Sichuan tea industry to pay for warhorses, but this state intervention brought immediate devastation to local economy and commerce.^[12] The line of defense was finally broken through after the first use of firearms in history during the six-year siege of Xiangyang, which ended in 1273.

Ming Dynasty

During the Ming Dynasty major architectural works were created in Sichuan. Buddhism remained influential in the region. Bao'en Temple is a well-preserved 15th century monastery complex built between 1440 and 1446 during Emperor Yingzong's reign (1427–64) in the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644). Dabei Hall enshrines a thousand-armed wooden image of Guanyin and Huayan Hall is a repository with a revolving sutra cabinet. The wall paintings, sculptures and other ornamental details are masterpieces of the Ming period.^[13]

In the middle of the 17th century, the peasant rebel leader Zhang Xianzhong(1606–1646) from Yan'an, Shanxi Province, nicknamed Yellow Tiger, led his peasant troop from north China to the south, and conquered Sichuan. Upon capturing it, he declared himself emperor of the Daxi Dynasty (大西王朝). In response to the resistance from local elites, he massacred a large native population.^[14] As a result of the massacre as well as the years of turmoil after the Ming-Qing transition, the population of Sichuan fell sharply, requiring a massive resettlement of people from neighboring Huguang province (modern Hubei and Hunan).^[15][16]

Qing Dynasty

During the Qing Dynasty, Sichuan was merged with Shaanxi and Shanxi to create "Shenzhuan" from 1680-1731 and 1735-1748.^[11] The current borders of Sichuan (which then included Chongqing) were established in the early 18th century. In the aftermath of the Sino-Nepalese War on China's southwestern border, the Qing gave Sichuan's provincial government direct control over the minority-inhabited areas of Sichuan west of Kangding, which had previously been handled by an amban.^[16]

A landslide dam on the Dadu River caused by an earthquake gave way on 10 June 1786. The resulting flood killed 100,000 people.^[17]

Republic of China

In the early 20th century, the newly founded Republic of China established Chuanbian Special Administrative District (川邊特別行政區), which acknowledged the unique culture and economy of the region largely differing from that of mainstream northern China in the Yellow River region. The Special District later became the province of Xikang, incorporating the areas inhabited by Yi, Tibetan and Qiang ethnic minorities to its west, and eastern part of today's Tibet Autonomous Region.

In the 20th century, as Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, and Wuhan had all been occupied by the Japanese during the Second Sino-Japanese War, the capital of the Republic of China had been temporary relocated to Chongqing, then a major city in Sichuan. An enduring legacy of this move is that nearby inland provinces, such as Shaanxi, Gansu, and Guizhou, which previously never had modern Western-style universities, began to be developed in this regard.^[18] The difficulty of accessing the region overland from the eastern part of China and the foggy climate hindering the accuracy of Japanese bombing of the Sichuan Basin, made the region the stronghold of Chiang Kai-Shek's Kuomintang government during 1938-45, and led to the Bombing of Chongqing.

The Second Sino-Japanese War was soon followed by the resumed Chinese Civil War, and the cities of East China fell to the Communists one after another, the Kuomintang government again tried to make Sichuan its stronghold on the mainland, although it already saw some Communist activity since it was one area on the road of the Long March. Chiang Kai-Shek himself flew to Chongqing from Taiwan in November 1949 to lead the defense. But the same month Chongqing fell to the Communists, followed by Chengdu on 10 December. The Kuomintang general Wang Sheng wanted to stay behind with his troops to continue anticommunist guerilla war in Sichuan, but was recalled to Taiwan. Many of his soldiers made their way there as well, via Burma.^[19]

People's Republic of China

The People's Republic of China was founded in 1949, and it split Sichuan into four areas and separated out Chongqing municipality. Sichuan was reconstituted in 1952, with Chongqing added in 1954, while the former Xikang province was split between Tibet in the west and Sichuan in the east.^[11]

The province was deeply affected by the Great Chinese Famine of 1959-1961, during which period some 9.4 million people (13.07% of the population at the time) died.^[20]

In 1978, when Deng Xiaoping took power, Sichuan was one of the first provinces to undergo limited experimentation with market economic enterprise.

From 1955 until 1997 Sichuan had been China's most populous province, hitting 100 million mark shortly after the 1982 census figure of 99,730,000.^[21] This changed in 1997 when the city of Chongqing as well as the surrounding counties of Fuling and Wanxian were split off into the new Chongqing Municipality. The new municipality was formed to spearhead China's effort to economically develop its western provinces, as well as to coordinate the resettlement of residents from the reservoir areas of the Three Gorges Dam project.

In 1997 when Sichuan split, the sum of the two parts was recorded to be 114,720,000 people.^[22] As of 2010, Sichuan ranks as both the 3rd largest and 4th most populous province in China.^[23]

In May 2008, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.9/8.0 hit just 79 kilometres (49 mi) northwest of the provincial capital of Chengdu. Official figures recorded a death toll of nearly 70,000 people, and millions of people were left homeless.^[24]

Subdivisions

Sichuan consists of eighteen prefecture-level cities and three autonomous prefectures:

Map	#	Name	Administrative Seat	Hanzi Hanyu Pinyin	Population (2010)
	— Sub-provincial city —
	9	Chengdu	Qingyang District	成都市 Chéngdū Shì	14,047,625
	— Prefecture-level city —
	3	Mianyang	Fucheng District	绵阳市 Miányáng Shì	4,613,862
	4	Guangyuan	Lizhou District	广元市 Gǔangyúan Shì	2,484,125
	5	Nanchong	Shunqing District	南充市 Nánchōng Shì	6,278,622
	6	Bazhong	Bazhou District	巴中市 Bāzhōng Shì	3,283,771
	7	Dazhou	Tongchuan District	达州市 Dázhōu Shì	5,468,092
	8	Ya'an	Yucheng District	雅安市 Yǎ'ān Shì	1,507,264
	10	Deyang	Jingyang District	德阳市 Déyáng Shì	3,615,759
	11	Suining	Chuanshan District	遂宁市 Sùiníng Shì	3,252,551
	12	Guang'an	Guang'an District	广安市 Guǎng'ān Shì	3,205,476
	13	Meishan	Dongpo District	眉山市 Méishān Shì	2,950,548
	14	Ziyang	Yanjiang District	资阳市 Zīyáng Shì	3,665,064
	15	Leshan	Shizhong District	乐山市 Lèshān Shì	3,235,756
	16	Neijiang	Shizhong District	内江市 Nèijiāng Shì	3,702,847
	17	Zigong	Ziliujing District	自贡市 Zìgòng Shì	2,678,898
	18	Yibin	Cuiping District	宜宾市 Yíbīn Shì	4,472,001
	19	Luzhou	Jiangyang District	泸州市 Lúzhōu Shì	4,218,426
	21	Panzhihua	Dongqu District	攀枝花市 Pānzhīhūa Shì	1,214,121
	— Autonomous prefectures —
	1	Garzê (for Tibetan)	Kangding County	甘孜藏族自治州 Gānzī Zàngzú Zìzhìzhōu	1,091,872
	2	Ngawa (for Tibetan & Qiang)	Barkam County	阿坝藏族羌族自治州 Ābà Zàngzú Qiāngzú Zìzhìzhōu	898,713
	20	Liangshan (for Yi)	Xichang	凉山彝族自治州 Liángshān Yízú Zìzhìzhōu	4,532,809

Geography

Sichuan, within its present borders, consists of two very geographically distinct parts. The eastern part of the province is mostly within the fertile Sichuan basin (which is shared by Sichuan with Chongqing Municipality). The western Sichuan consists of the numerous mountain ranges forming the easternmost part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, which are known generically as Hengduan Mountains. One of these ranges, Daxue Mountains, contains the highest point of the province Gongga Shan, at 7,556 metres (24,790 ft) tall.

Lesser mountain ranges surround the Sichuan Basin from north, east, and south. Among them are the Daba Mountains, in the province's northeast.

Plate tectonics formed the Longmen Shan fault, which runs under the north-easterly mountain location of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake.

The Yangtze River and its tributaries flows through the mountains of western Sichuan and the Sichuan Basin; thus, the province is upstream of the great cities that stand along the Yangtze River further to the east, such as Chongqing, Wuhan, Nanjing and Shanghai. One of the major tributaries of the Yangtze within the province is the Min River of central Sichuan, which joins the Yangtze at Yibin. Sichuan's 4 main rivers, as Sichuan means literally, are Jaling Jiang, Tuo Jiang, Yalong Jiang, and Jinsha Jiang.

Due to the great difference in the terrain, the climate of the province is highly variable, yet in general has strong monsoonal influences, with rainfall heavily concentrated in summer. Under the Köppen climate classification, the Sichuan Basin (including Chengdu) in the eastern half of the province experiences a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cwa or Cfa), with long, hot, humid summers and short, mild to cool, dry and cloudy winters, and China's lowest sunshine totals. The western mountainous areas have a cooler but sunnier climate, with cool to very cold winters and mild summers; temperatures generally decrease with greater elevation. The region is geologically active with landslides and earthquakes; frosts and droughts affect crops. Average elevation ranges from 2,000 to 3,500 meters; average temperature from 0 to 15°C.^[25] The southern part of the province, including Panzhihua and Xichang, has a sunny climate with short, very mild winters and very warm to hot summers.

Sichuan borders Qinghai to the northwest, Gansu to the north, Shaanxi to the northeast, Chongqing to the east, Guizhou to the southeast, Yunnan to the south, and the Tibet Autonomous Region to the west.

• 

  Larix potaninii in autumn colour.

• 

  Jiuzhaigou Valley

• 

  Garzê Prefecture

• 

  Zitong County

Politics

The politics of Sichuan is structured in a dual party-government system like all other governing institutions in mainland China.

The Governor of Sichuan is the highest-ranking official in the People's Government of Sichuan. However, in the province's dual party-government governing system, the Governor has less power than the Sichuan Communist Party of China Provincial Committee Secretary, colloquially termed the "Sichuan CPC Party Chief".

Economy

Sichuan has been historically known as the "Province of Abundance". It is one of the major agricultural production bases of China. Grain, including rice and wheat, is the major product with output that ranked first in China in 1999. Commercial crops include citrus fruits, sugar cane, sweet potatoes, peaches and grapeseeds. Sichuan also had the largest output of pork among all the provinces and the second largest output of silkworm cocoons in China in 1999. Sichuan is rich in mineral resources. It has more than 132 kinds of proven underground mineral resources of which reserves of 11 kinds including vanadium, titanium, and lithium are the largest in China. The Panxi region alone possesses 13.3% of the reserves of iron, 93% of titanium, 69% of vanadium, and 83% of the cobalt of the whole country.^[26] Sichuan also possesses China's largest proven natural gas reserves, although the majority of which is transported to more developed eastern regions.^[23]

Sichuan is one of the major industrial centers of China. In addition to heavy industries such as coal, energy, iron and steel, the province has also established a light industrial sector comprising building materials, wood processing, food and silk processing. Chengdu and Mianyang are the production centers for textiles and electronics products. Deyang, Panzhihua, and Yibin are the production centers for machinery, metallurgical industries, and wine, respectively. Sichuan's wine production accounted for 21.9% of the country’s total production in 2000.

Great strides have been made in developing Sichuan into a modern hi-tech industrial base, by encouraging both domestic and foreign investments in electronics and information technology (such as software), machinery and metallurgy (including automobiles), hydropower, pharmaceutical, food and beverage industries.

The auto industry is an important and key sector of the machinery industry in Sichuan. Most of the auto manufacturing companies are located in Chengdu, Mianyang, Nanchong, and Luzhou.^[27]

Other important industries in Sichuan include aerospace and defense (military) industries. A number of China's rockets (Long March rockets) and satellites were launched from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, located in the city of Xichang.

Sichuan's beautiful landscapes and rich historical relics have also made the province a major center for tourism.

The Three Gorges Dam, the largest dam ever constructed, is being built on the Yangtze River in nearby Hubei province to control flooding in the Sichuan Basin, neighboring Yunnan province, and downstream. The plan is hailed by some as China's efforts to shift towards alternative energy sources and to further develop its industrial and commercial bases, but others have criticised it for its potentially harmful effects, such as massive resettlement of residents in the reservoir areas, loss of archeological sites, and ecological damages.

Sichuan's nominal GDP for 2011 was 2.15 trillion yuan (US$340 billion), equivalent to 17,380 RMB (US$2,545) per capita.^[28] In 2008, the per capita net income of rural residents was 4,121 yuan (US$593), up 16.2% from 2007. The per capita disposable income of the urbanites averaged 12,633 yuan (US$1,819), up 13.8% from 2007.^[29][30]

Foreign trade

According to the Sichuan Department of Commerce, the province's total foreign trade was US$22.04 billion in 2008, a year on year increase of 53.3 percent. Exports were US$13.1 billion, a year on year increase of 52.3 percent, while imports were US$8.93 billion, a year on year increase of 54.7 percent. These achievements were accomplished because of significant changes in China's foreign trade policy, acceleration of the yuan's appreciation, increase of commercial incentives and increase in production costs. The 18 cities and counties witnessed a steady rate of increase. Chengdu, Suining, Nanchong, Dazhou, Ya'an, Abazhou, and Liangshan all saw an increase of more than 40 percent while Leshan, Neijiang, Luzhou, Meishan, Ziyang, and Yibin saw an increase of more than 20 percent. Foreign trade in Zigong, Panzhihua, Guang'an, Bazhong and Ganzi remained constant.

Minimum wage

The Sichuan government raised the minimum wage in the province by 12.5 percent at the end of December 2007. The monthly minimum wage went up from 400 to 450 yuan, with a minimum of 4.9 yuan per hour for part-time work, effective December 26, 2007. The government also reduced the four-tier minimum wage structure to three. The top tier mandates a minimum of 650 yuan per month, or 7.1 yuan per hour. National law allows each province to set minimum wages independently, but with a floor of 450 yuan per month.

Economic and technological development zones

Chengdu Economic and Technological Development Zone

Chengdu Economic and Technological Development Zone was approved as state-level development zone in February 2000. The zone now has a developed area of 10.25 km² (3.96 sq mi) and has a planned area of 26 km² (10 sq mi). Chengdu Economic and Technological Development Zone (CETDZ) lies 13.6 km (8.5 mi) east of Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan Province and the hub of transportation and communication in southwest China. The zone has attracted investors and developers from more than 20 countries to carry out their projects there. Industries encouraged in the zone include mechanical, electronic, new building materials, medicine and food processing.^[31]

Chengdu Export Processing Zone

Chengdu Export Processing Zone was ratified by the State Council as one of the first 15 export processing zones in the country in April 2000. In 2002, the state ratified the establishment of the Sichuan Chengdu Export Processing West Zone with a planned area of 1.5 km² (0.58 sq mi), located inside the west region of the Chengdu Hi-tech Zone.^[32]

Chengdu Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone

Established in 1988, Chengdu Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone was approved as one of the first national hi-tech development zones in 1991. In 2000, it was open to APEC and has been recognized as a national advanced hi-tech development zone in successive assessment activities held by China's Ministry of Science and Technology. It ranks 5th among the 53 national hi-tech development zones in China in terms of comprehensive strength. Chengdu Hi-tech Development Zone covers an area of 82.5 km² (31.9 sq mi), consisting of the South Park and the West Park. By relying on the city sub-center, which is under construction, the South Park is focusing on creating a modernized industrial park of science and technology with scientific and technological innovation, incubation R&D, modern service industry and Headquarters economy playing leading roles. Priority has been given to the development of software industry. Located on both sides of the "Chengdu-Dujiangyan-Jiuzhaigou" golden tourism channel, the West Park aims at building a comprehensive industrial park targeting at industrial clustering with complete supportive functions. The West Park gives priority to three major industries i.e. electronic information, biomedicine and precision machinery.^[33]

Mianyang Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone

Mianyang Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone was established in 1992, with a planned area of 43 km² (17 sq mi). The zone is situated 96 kilometers away from Chengdu, and is 8 km (5.0 mi) away from Mianyang Airport. Since its establishment, the zone accumulated 177.4 billion yuan of industrial output, 46.2 billion yuan of gross domestic product, fiscal revenue 6.768 billion yuan. There are more than 136 high-tech enterprises in the zone and they accounted for more than 90% of the total industrial output. The zone is a leader in the electronic information industry, biological medicine, new materials and production of motor vehicles and parts.^[34]

Transportation

Expressways

On 3 November 2007, the Sichuan Transportation Bureau announced that the Sui-Yu Expressway was completed after three years of construction. After completion of the Chongqing section of the road, the 36.64 km (22.77 mi) expressway connected Cheng-Nan Expressway and formed the shortest expressway from Chengdu to Chongqing. The new expressway is 50 km (31 mi) shorter than the pre-existing road between Chengdu and Chongqing; thus journey time between the two cities was reduced by an hour, now taking two and a half hours. The Sui-Yu Expressway is a four lane overpass with a speed limit of 80 km/h (50 mph). The total investment was 1.045 billion yuan.

Rail

Major railways in Sichuan include the Baoji–Chengdu, Chengdu–Chongqing, Chengdu–Kunming, Neijiang–Kunming, Suining-Chongqing and Chengdu–Dazhou Railways. A high-speed rail line connects Chengdu and Dujiangyan.

Demographics

The majority of the province's population is Han Chinese, who are found scattered throughout the region with the exception of the far western areas. Thus, significant minorities of Tibetans, Yi, Qiang and Naxi reside in the western portion that are impacted by inclement weather and natural disasters, environmentally fragile, and impoverished. Sichuan's capital of Chengdu is home to a large community of Tibetans, with 30,000 permanent Tibetan residents and up to 200,000 Tibetan floating population.^[35] The Eastern Lipo, included with either Yi people or Lisu people as well as the A-Hmao also are among the ethnic groups of the provinces.

Sichuan was China's most populous province before Chongqing became a directly-controlled municipality; it is currently the fourth most populous, after Guangdong, Shandong and Henan. As of 1832, Sichuan was the most populous of the 18 provinces in China, with an estimated population at that time of 21 million.^[36] It was the third most populous sub-national entity in the world, after Uttar Pradesh, India and the Russian SFSR until 1991 when the Soviet Union was dissolved. It is also one of the only four to ever reach 100 million people (Uttar Pradesh, Russian RSFSR, Maharashtra, and Sichuan). It is currently 10th.

Culture

The Li Bai Memorial, located at Zhongba Town of northern Jiangyou County in Sichuan Province, is a museum in memory of Li Bai, a Chinese poet in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), at the place where he grew up. It was prepared in 1962 on the occasion of 1,200th anniversary of his death, completed in 1981 and opened to the public in October 1982. The memorial is built in the style of the classic garden of the Tang Dynasty.

In 2003, Sichuan had "88 art performing troupes, 185 culture centers, 133 libraries and 52 museums". Companies based in Sichuan also produced 23 television series and one film.^[37]

Languages

The most widely used variety of Chinese spoken in Sichuan is Sichuanese, which is the lingua franca in Sichuan, Chongqing and part of Tibet. Although Sichuanese is generally classified as a dialect of Mandarin, it is highly divergent in phonology, vocabulary, and even grammar from the standard language.^[38] Minjiang dialect is especially difficult for speakers of other Mandarin dialects to understand.^{[39][40][41][42]}

The prefectures of Garzê and Ngawa (Aba) in western Sichuan are populated by Tibetan and Qiang people. Tibetans speak the Kham and Amdo languages within the Tibetic family, as well as various Qiangic languages. Qiangic languages are also spoken by the Qiang and other related ethnicities. The Yi of Liangshan prefecture in southern Sichuan speak the Yi language, which is more closely related to Burmese; Yi is written using the Yi script, a syllabary standardized in 1974. The Southwest University for Nationalities has one of China's most prominent Tibetology departments, and the Southwest Minorities Publishing House prints literature in minority languages.^[43] In the minority inhabited regions of Sichuan, there is bi-lingual signage and public school instruction in non-Mandarin minority languages.

Cuisine

The Sichuanese are proud of their cuisine, known as one of the Four Great Traditions of Chinese cuisine. The cuisine here is of "one dish, one shape, hundreds of dishes, hundreds of tastes", as the saying goes, to describe its acclaimed diversity. The most prominent traits of Sichuanese cuisine are described by four words: spicy, hot, fresh and fragrant.^[44] Sichuan cuisine is popular in the whole nation of China, so are Sichuan chefs. Two famous Sichuan chefs are Chen Kenmin and his son Chen Kenichi, who was Iron Chef Chinese on the Japanese television series "Iron Chef".

• 

  Kung Pao chicken, one of the most famous dishes of Sichuan cuisine

• 

  Mapo Tofu

• 

  Hot pot in Mala style

• 

  Dan dan noodles

• 

  Mixed sauce noodles (杂酱面)

Education

Colleges and universities

• Chengdu Institute of Technology
• Sichuan Normal University (Chengdu)
• Sichuan Union University
• Sichuan University (Chengdu)

• Sichuan University School of Medicine, also known as West China University of Medical Sciences

• Southwest Jiaotong University (Chengdu)
• Southwest University for Nationalities (Chengdu)
• Southwestern University of Finance and Economics (Chengdu)
• University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (Chengdu)

Tourism

UNESCO World Heritage Sites

• Dazu Rock Carvings, listed as property of the Chongqing municipality
• Huanglong Scenic and Historic Interest Area
• Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic and Historic Interest Area
• Mount Emei Scenic Area, including Leshan Giant Buddha Scenic Area
• Mount Qincheng and the Dujiangyan Irrigation System
• Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries

As of July 2013, the world's largest building the New Century Global Center is located in the city of Chendgu. At 328 feet (100 m) high, 1,640 feet (500 m) long, and 1,312 feet (400 m) wide, the Center houses retail outlets, a 14-theater cinema, offices, hotels, the Paradise Island waterpark, an artificial beach, a 164 yards (150 m)-long LED screen, skating rink, pirate ship, fake Mediterranean village, 24-hour artificial sun, and 15,000-spot parking area.^[45]

Notable people

• Li Bai (701–762), one of the greatest poets of the Tang Dynasty
• Kuei-feng Tsung-mi (圭峰宗密; 780–841), a Tang dynasty Buddhist scholar-monk, fifth patriarch of the Huayan (華嚴) school as well as a patriarch of the Heze lineage of Southern Chan
• Ouyang Xiu (1007–September 22, 1072), Confucian historian, essayist, calligrapher, poet, and official bureaucrat of the Song Dynasty
• Su Xun (蘇洵), a poem and prose-writer of the Song Dynasty
• Su Shi (January 8, 1037–August 24, 1101),Confucian bureaucrat official, a poet, artist, calligrapher, pharmacologist, gastronome, and official bureaucrat of the Song Dynasty
• Su Zhe (1039–1112), a poet and essayist, Confucian bureaucratic official of the Song Dynasty
• Ba Jin (November 25, 1904–October 17, 2005), a Chinese novelist and writer
• Deng Xiaoping, Chinese Paramount Leader during the 1980s, his former residence is now a museum.
• Chen Kenmin, (June 27, 1912 - May 12, 1990), chef who specialized in Szechwan cuisine. Father of well-known Iron Chef Chen Kenichi.

Sports

Professional sports teams in Sichuan include:

• Chinese Basketball Association
  • None
• Chinese Football Association Super League
  • Chengdu Blades
• Chinese Volleyball League
  • Sichuan Volleyball Team
• China Table Tennis Super League
  • Sichuan Quan-Xing Table-Tennis Team

Sister states and regions

• Washington, United States (1982)
• Michigan, United States (1982)
• Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan (1984)
• Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan (1985)
• South P'yŏngan, North Korea (1985)
• Midi-Pyrénées, France (1987)
• North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany (1988)
• Leicestershire, United Kingdom (1988)
• Piedmont, Italy (1990)
• Pernambuco, Brazil (1992)
• Tolna County, Hungary (1993)
• Valencian Community, Spain (1994)
• Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium (1995)
• Barinas State, Venezuela (2001)
• Friesland, Netherlands (2001)
• Almaty Province, Kazakhstan (2001)
• Mpumalanga, South Africa (2002)
• Suphan Buri, Thailand (2010)

See also

• 2013 Ya'an, Sichuan earthquake
• Eight Immortals from Sichuan
• Qutang Gorge
• The Good Person of Sezuan

Notes

Economic data'

• Economic profile for Sichuan at HKTDC

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sichuan.

• Sichuan travel guide from Wikivoyage
• Official website

	Qinghai	Gansu	Shaanxi
	Tibet		Chongqing
	Sichuan
		Yunnan	Guizhou

v t e Sichuan topics Chengdu (capital) General Politics Economy Education History Nations Sanxingdui Ba & Shu Chengjia Shu Han Cheng Han Western Shu Former Shu Later Shu Great Shu Great Xia Great Xi Events Sichuan-Mongol War Huguang Filling Sichuan Railway Protection Movement Home Front Period Geography Cities Sichuan Basin Chengdu Plain Regions (West East North South) Rivers (Sichuan Min Jialing Tuo Yalong) Mountain ranges (Daba Longmen Qionglai Hengduan ) Culture Sichuanese cuisine Sichuanese opera Chuanzhu Music Architecture Garden People Sichuanese Hakka Xiang Tibetan Qiang Yi Languages Sichuanese (lingua franca) Ba-Shu (extinct) Hakka Xiang Sichuanese Standard Mandarin Kham Jiarongic Qiangic Nuosu Visitor attractions Jiuzhaigou Valley Huanglong Mount Emei Leshan Giant Buddha Mount Qingcheng Dujiangyan Irrigation System Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries Mount Gongga Sanxingdui & Jinsha see also: Greater Sichuan & Chongqing

v t e County-level divisions of Sichuan province Chengdu (capital) Sub-provincial city Chengdu Qingyang District Jinjiang District Jinniu District Wuhou District Chenghua District Longquanyi District Qingbaijiang District Xindu District Wenjiang District Dujiangyan City Pengzhou City Qionglai City Chongzhou City Jintang County Shuangliu County Pi County Dayi County Pujiang County Xinjin County Tianfu New Area* Prefecture-level cities Zigong Ziliujing District Da'an District Gongjing District Yantan District Rong County Fushun County Panzhihua Dongqu Xiqu Renhe District Miyi County Yanbian County Luzhou Jiangyang District Naxi District Longmatan District Lu County Hejiang County Xuyong County Gulin County Deyang Jingyang District Shifang City Guanghan City Mianzhu City Luojiang County Zhongjiang County Mianyang Fucheng District Youxian District Jiangyou City Santai County Yanting County An County Zitong County Pingwu County Beichuan Autonomous County Guangyuan Lizhou District Zhaohua District Chaotian District Wangcang County Qingchuan County Jiange County Cangxi County Suining Chuanshan District Anju District Pengxi County Shehong County Daying County Neijiang Shizhong District Dongxing District Weiyuan County Zizhong County Longchang County Leshan Shizhong District Shawan District Wutongqiao District Jinkouhe District Emeishan City Qianwei County Jingyan County Jiajiang County Muchuan County Ebian Autonomous County Mabian Autonomous County Nanchong Shunqing District Gaoping District Jialing District Langzhong City Nanbu County Xichong County Yingshan County Yilong County Peng'an County Meishan Dongpo District Renshou County Pengshan County Hongya County Danleng County Qingshen County Yibin Cuiping District Nanxi District Yibin County Jiang'an County Changning County Gao County Junlian County Gong County Xingwen County Pingshan County Guang'an Guang'an District Qianfeng District Huaying City Yuechi County Wusheng County Linshui County Dazhou Tongchuan District Dachuan District Wanyuan City Xuanhan County Kaijiang County Dazhu County Qu County Ya'an Yucheng District Mingshan District Yingjing County Hanyuan County Shimian County Tianquan County Lushan County Baoxing County Bazhong Bazhou District Enyang District Tongjiang County Nanjiang County Pingchang County Ziyang Yanjiang District Jianyang City Lezhi County Anyue County Autonomous prefectures Ngawa Barkam County Wenchuan County Li County Mao County Songpan County Jiuzhaigou County Jinchuan County Xiaojin County Heishui County Zamtang County Ngawa County Zoigê County Hongyuan County Garzê Luding County Danba County Jiulong County Yajiang County Dawu County Luhuo County Garzê County Xinlong County Dêgê County Baiyü County Sêrxü County Sêrtar County Litang County Batang County Xiangcheng County Daocheng County Dêrong County Liangshan Xichang City Yanyuan County Dechang County Huili County Huidong County Ningnan County Puge County Butuo County Jinyang County Zhaojue County Xide County Mianning County Yuexi County Ganluo County Meigu County Leibo County Mili Autonomous County * Not a formal administrative subdivision

v t e Provincial level divisions of the People's Republic of China Provinces¹ Anhui Fujian Gansu Guangdong Guizhou Hainan Hebei Heilongjiang Henan Hubei Hunan Jiangsu Jiangxi Jilin Liaoning Qinghai Shaanxi Shandong Shanxi Sichuan Yunnan Zhejiang Autonomous regions Guangxi Inner Mongolia Ningxia Tibet Xinjiang Municipalities Beijing Chongqing Shanghai Tianjin Special administrative regions Hong Kong Macau Note: 1. Taiwan is claimed as a province, but is administered by the Republic of China (see Political status of Taiwan).