Chongqing

 

(chʊng'chēng') or Chungking (chūng'kĭng') , city (1994 est. pop. 2,377,800), in SE Sichuan prov., China, at the junction of the Chang and Jialing rivers.With the surrounding rural area, it is a municipality (592 sq mi/1,534 sq km; 1994 est. pop. 3,097,100) directly administered by the national government. The commercial center of W China, it commands a large river trade. Surrounded on three sides by water, it is situated on a rock promontory. A flourishing industrial city, it was opened for direct foreign trade in 1979. In the 1980s it became the site of an economic experiment, where factory managers were given more decision-making power and allowed to channel profits into expansion, and the early 21st cent. saw Chongqing developed as China's largest inland urban area to provide economic opportunity for the surrounding region's poorer rural inhabitants.

Chongqing's industries include a large-scale integrated iron and steel complex, oil and copper refineries, motor vehicle and munitions factories, cotton and silk mills, chemical and cement plants, food-processing establishments, machine shops, paper mills, and tanneries. Large coal and iron mines and a major oil field are nearby. Its many institutions of higher learning include Chongqing Univ., Chongqing Technical Univ., and a medical college. The Chongqing Library and the Chongqing Municipal Museum are important cultural centers.

Chongqing was opened as a treaty port in 1891. In Nov., 1937, just before the Japanese capture of Nanjing in the Second Sino-Japanese War, the capital of China was transferred to Chongqing, where it remained until the end of hostilities. During that time administrative agencies, educational institutions, and industrial plants from all over the country were relocated in Chongqing and the population more than tripled. The city was taken by the Communists on Nov. 30, 1949.

重庆市 Chóngqìng Shì
Abbreviations: 渝  (Pinyin: Yú)
Origin of name	重 chóng ("again") 庆 qìng ("celebrate") i.e. "double celebration"
Administration type	Municipality
Capital	渝中区 Yuzhong Qu
Largest city
CPC Ctte Secretary	汪洋 Wang Yang
Governor	王鸿举 WANG Hongju
Area	82,300 km² (26th)
Population (2005)  - Density	31,442,300 (20th) 379/km² (10th)
GDP (2005)  - per capita	CNY 310 billion (24th) CNY 9,909 (22th)
HDI (2005)	0.745 (medium) (18th)
Major nationalities	91% Han   5% Tujia   2% Miao
Prefecture-level
County-level	40 divisions
Township-level†	1259 divisions
ISO 3166-2	CN-50
Official website (Chinese) www.cq.gov.cn (English) english.cq.gov.cn/
City tree	Ficus lacor
City flower	山茶花 Camellia (Camellia japonica)
Postal code	4000 00 to 4099 00
Area code	23
License plate prefixes	渝 A, B, C, F, G, H
Source for population and GDP data: 《中国统计年鉴—2005》 China Statistical Yearbook 2005 ISBN 7503747382 Source for nationalities data: 《2000年人口普查中国民族人口资料》 Tabulation on nationalities of 2000 population census of China ISBN 7105054255 † As at December 31, 2004

Chongqing (simplified Chinese: 重庆; traditional Chinese: 重慶; pinyin: Chóngqìng; Postal map spelling: Chungking; Wade-Giles: Ch'ung-ch'ing) is the largest and most populous of the People's Republic of China's four provincial-level municipalities, and the only one in the less densely populated western half of China. Formerly (until 14 March 1997) a provincial city within Sichuan Province, the municipality of Chongqing has a registered population of 31,442,300 (2005). The boundaries of Chongqing municipality reach much further into the city's hinterland than the boundaries of the other three provincial level municipalities (Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin), and much of the municipality, which is roughly the size of Austria, is rural. The population of the urban area of Chongqing proper was 4.1 million in 2005.

The municipal abbreviation, 渝 (Yú), was approved by the State Council on 18 April 1997. Chongqing was also a municipality of the old Republic of China. Its abbreviated name is derived from the old name of a part of the Jialing River that runs through Chongqing and feeds the Yangtze River.

History

Chongqing is said to be the semi-mythical State of Ba that the Ba people supposedly established during the eleventh century BCE. By 316 BCE, however, it had been overrun by the State of Qin. The Qin emperor ordered a new city to be constructed, which was called Jiang (江州) and Chu Prefecture (楚州).

Chongqing was subsequently renamed in 581 CE (Sui Dynasty) and 1102, to Yu Prefecture (渝州) and then Gong Prefecture (). It received its current name in 1189, after Prince Zhao Dun of the Southern Song Dynasty described his crowning as king and then Emperor Guangzong as a "double/repeated happy celebration" (simplified Chinese: 双重喜庆; traditional Chinese: 雙重喜慶; pinyin: shuāngchóng xǐqìng). Hence, Yu Prefecture became Chongqing subprefecture to mark the occasion. ^{[citation needed]}

In 1362, (Yuan Dynasty), Ming Yuzhen, a peasant rebel leader, established the Daxia Kingdom at Chongqing for a short time.

In 1621, another short-lived kingdom of Daliang was established there.

Between 1627-1645, with the fall of the Ming Dynasty, Chongqing, together with Sichuan, were captured by the Revolts who overthrew the Ming Dynasty across the nation. However, great massacre took place in Chongqing and Sichuan and millions of people died with few people survived. Later during the Qing Dynasty, immigration to Chongqing and Sichuan took place with the support of Qing emperor.

In 1891, Chongqing became the first inland commerce port open to foreigners.

From 1929, Chongqing became a municipality of the Republic of China. During the Second Chinese-Japanese War (1937-1945), it was Chiang Kai-shek's provisional capital and was heavily bombed by the Japanese Air Force. Many factories and universities were moved from eastern China to Chongqing during the war, transforming it from inland port to a heavy-industrial city.

In 1954, the municipality was reduced to a provincial city within the Sichuan Province of the People's Republic of China.

On 14 March 1997, the Eighth National People's Congress decided to merge the city with the neighbouring Fuling, Wanxian, and Qianjiang prefecture-level districts that it had governed on behalf of the province since September 1996. The resulting single division was the Chongqing Municipality, containing 30,020,000 people in forty-three former counties (without intermediate political levels). The municipality became the spearhead of China's effort to develop its western regions and coordinate the resettlement of refugees from the Three Gorges Dam project. Its first official ceremony took place on 18 June 1997. The city went through massive flooding in the summer of 2007.

Administrative divisions

Chongqing Municipality is divided into forty county-level subdivisions (three abolished in 1997), consisting of nineteen districts, seventeen counties, and four autonomous counties.

Districts Pinyin name Hanzi Previous associationa Banan 巴南区 Chongqing Beibei 北碚区 Changshou 长寿区 Dadukou 大渡口区 Fuling 涪陵区 Fuling Hechuan 合川区 Chongqing Jiangbei 江北区 Jiangjin 江津区 Jiulongpo 九龙坡区 Nan'an 南岸区 Nanchuan 南川区 Fuling Qianjiang 黔江区 Qianjiang Shapingba 沙坪坝区 Chongqing Shuangqiao 双桥区 Wansheng 万盛区 Wanzhou 万州区 Wanxian Yubei 渝北区 Chongqing Yongchuan 永川区 Yuzhong 渝中区

Counties Pinyin name Hanzi Previous associationa Bishan 璧山县 Chongqing Chengkou 城口县 Wanxian Dazu 大足县 Chongqing Dianjiang 垫江县 Fuling Fengdu 丰都县 Fengjie 奉节县 Wanxian Kai 开县 Liangping 梁平县 Qijiang 綦江县 Chongqing Rongchang 荣昌县 Tongliang 铜梁县 Tongnan 潼南县 Wulong 武隆县 Fuling Wushan 巫山县 Wanxian Wuxi 巫溪县 Yunyang 云阳县 Zhong 忠县

Autonomous counties

Pinyin name	Hanzi	Previous associationa
Pengshui Miao and Tujia	彭水苗族土家族自治县	Qianjiang
Shizhu Tujia	石柱土家族自治县
Xiushan Tujia and Miao	秀山土家族苗族自治县
Youyang Tujia and Miao	酉阳土家族苗族自治县

^a Indicates with which district the division was associated below prior to the merging of Chongqing, Fuling, Wanxian (now Wanzhou) and Qianjiang in 1997.

The urban area of Chongqing proper (重庆市区) includes the following districts:

• Yuzhong (渝中区, or "Central Chongqing District"), the central and most densely populated district, where government offices are located
• Nan'an (南岸区, or "Southern Bank District")
• Jiangbei (江北区, or "North of the River District")
• Shapingba (沙坪坝区)
• Jiulongpo (九龙坡区)
• Dadukou (大渡口区)

Geography

Geographic coordinates  

105°17'-110°11' East, 28°10'－32°13' North

Annual average temperature 

18°C (64°F)

Temperature range  

0 C - 43 C (32 F - 109 F)

Total annual hours of sunshine 

1000 to 1200

Annual precipitation 

1000 to 1400 mm (39 in - 47 in)

Neighboring provinces  

Hubei (east), Hunan (east), Guizhou (south), Sichuan (west), Shaanxi (north)

Located on the edge of the Yungui Plateau, Chongqing is intersected by the Jialing River and the upper reaches of the Yangtze. It contains Daba Shan in the north, Wu Shan in the east, Wuling Shan in the southeast, and Dalou Mountain to the south.

The city is very hilly and is the only major metropolitan area in China without significant numbers of bicycles.

Economy

Historically, Chongqing has been a major trading inland port, transporting goods from the southwestern provinces to eastern China. During the Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945), Chongqing was transformed into a heavy industrial city, especially the military industry which continued to thrive for decades after 1949. Since the 1980s, many of these military industry enterprises have undergone reforms and turned from producing military goods to mostly civilian products for survival and growth. [2]

Chongqing is rich in natural resources, with more than forty kinds of minerals. Its coal reserves are estimated to be 4.8 billion tonnes. The Chuandong Natural Gas Field in Chongqing is China's largest inland production base of natural gas, with deposits of 270 billion m³, accounting for more than one-fifth of China's total. Chongqing contains China’s largest reserve of strontium, and China has the second largest reserve of the mineral in the world.

Important industries in Chongqing:[3]

• Mining
• Iron, steel, aluminum

- South West Aluminium

• Military
• Auto, motorcycle

- Lifan

• Chemical
• Textiles
• Machinery
• Electronics
• Building materials
• Food processing
• Retail
• Tourism [4]

Chongqing is home to Asia's largest aluminum plant, South West Aluminium, which rolled out 213,000 tonnes of finished products in 2004 for companies engaged in building materials, printing, electrical appliances, aerospace, packaging, and vehicle production [5]. Manganese mining is the most important industry in the Xiushan area, but has been criticised for wasting resources, ruining the local environment and causing industrial accidents. A survey in 2005 by China’s State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) found 13 firms in the manganese triangle had breached targets on the release of hexavalent chromium and ammonia-nitrogen – in the worst case, by a factor of 180. The clean-up ordered by SEPA resulted in firms closing and the expenditure of 280 million yuan.

Chongqing's agricultural sector still employs a significant portion of the population. Other than rice, fruits especially oranges are important sources of income for the farmers. In the past twenty-five years, surplus labor resulted a huge number of farmers to migrate to the relatively more developed industrial centers of southern and eastern China for employment opportunities, thus making Chongqing one of the biggest labor export areas in China.

The central government has recently embarked on an economic policy that is aimed to develop western China: the China Western Development strategy. As part of this new plan, the central government has heavily invested in Chongqing's infrastructure and has made a plan for Chongqing to become the "Gateway to the West". Located at the head of the reservoir behind the Three Gorges Dam, Chongqing is planned to be the beachhead for the development of the western part of the country. With the completion of the Three Gorges project, its reservoir will bring ocean going ships to the quays of Chongqing. The hope is that this gritty fogbound megalopolis may become a Chinese Chicago, opening up the interior, shifting the country's centre of gravity west, and kick-starting the economy – as did Chicago in the United States of the nineteenth century. Massive public works are currently under way in the city, including overhead and surface commuter rail lines connecting the many districts of the city. Foreign investment in the city is growing at a fast pace. Chongqing is enlarging its commercial sector. New development zones such as the Chongqing New North Zone (CNNZ) located north of the downtown district have been established to form Chongqing's modern twenty-first century industrial base. [6]

In 2005, the nominal GDP of Chongqing municipality was 310 billion yuan (US$38.75 billion), a rise of 11.5% year-on-year. Its per capita GDP was 11,068 yuan (US$1,383). The primary, secondary, and tertiary industries of Chongqing were worth 46.342 billion yuan, 125.832 billion yuan, and 134.736 billion yuan, respectively. [7]

Media

Chongqing is served by the Chongqing People's Broadcast Station, a television station.

Transportation

Chongqing is the biggest inland river port in western China. Historically, most of its transportation, especially to eastern China, is via the Yangtze River.

Chongqing is also now linked to other parts of the country through several railways and highways, including:

• Chongqing-Chengdu (Sichuan province) railway
• Chongqing-Guiyang (Guizhou province) railway
• Chongqing-Xiangfan (Hubei province) railway
• Chongqing-Huaihua (Hunan province) railway
• Chongqing-Suining (Sichuan province) express railway
• Wanzhou-Yichang (Hubei province) railway (under construction)
• Chongqing-Lanzhou (Gansu province) railway (under construction)
• Chongqing-Chengdu highway
• Chongqing-Wanxian highway
• Chongqing-Guiyang highway

Also, Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport, located north of Chongqing provides links to most parts of China and to other countries and regions such as Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, and Thailand.

Meanwhile, the transportation system in the metropolitan area is also being developed to modern standards. Due to its hilly geography and Yangtze and Jialing rivers which run through it, ground transportation in the city requires an unusual number of bridges and tunnels, which increases cost dramatically. As a result, public transportation in the city is vulnerable to lapses in safety, also owing to the fact that the public transportation system is semi-privatized with little regulation. However, the highway network around the city and to nearby satellite towns is almost completed. One unique form of transportation in the city are the cable cars which are suspended over the rivers. Recently, the Chongqing Metro was completed and entered service in January 2005.

Climate

The climate is semi-tropical, with the two-season monsoonal variations typical of South Asia. It has hot summers, and the temperature can be as high as 43°C (109°F). Along with Wuhan and Nanjing, it is known as one of the "three furnaces" of China. In the winter, it is wet and warm. While it seldom snows, most days are foggy.

The typically severe fogs were protective during World War II as the city was periodically bombarded by Japanese aircraft; their aircrews were unable to target their bombs accurately. The prevalent black tile roofs of buildings would also tend to blend into the ground colors and so became an effective form of camouflage.

As is true of most of China, the city often experiences severe air pollution, largely as a result of the burning of coal without pollution controls. Coal is burned both for industrial processes and for the production of electric power. Also, due to the surrounding mountains, a lack of wind makes the air pollution in the city even worse.

Tourism

Chongqing and surrounding areas are full of tourism resources. The most famous is the Three Gorges, a scenic area along Yangtze river. The 200-km long area is the most visited canyon in China. Besides its gorgeous natural scene, it is also a culturally rich area. Other tourism sites include Dazu Rock Carvings, mainly Buddhist themes, it was carved from the Tang Dynasty, now belongs to UNESCO World Heritage.

City sightseeing is also part of Chongqing tourism, with historic World War II sites ( Example:The People's Liberation Monument, which was originally a tower celebrating the victory of WWII in Asia. The Fort of Spirit(精神堡垒) was its original name and it originally symbolized the strength and spirit of the citizens of China in counterattacking Japanese invasion during WWII. However, with the Communist takeover in 1949-1950, the Communists changed the name of that tower to the People's Liberation Monument in remembering their own victory in the Chinese Civil War over the Chinese Nationalists in the late 40's and early 50's)located in the metropolitan area. Outside the city, Fishing Town marks where the Mongol prince Mongke Khan was defeated in 1243, stopping the Mongol expansion toward Europe and Africa.

According to a Reuters press release, in 2005 Chinese tourism authorities started a project to build a "women’s town" in the Shuangqiao district of Chongqing municipality as a tourist attraction. The motto of Longshuihu village is "women never make mistakes, and men can never refuse women's requests." According to one official (surname Li), "Traditional women dominate and men have to be obedient in the areas of Sichuan province and Chongqing, and now we are using it as an idea to attract tourists and boost tourism." The tourism bureau is investing between 200 million yuan ($26 million) and 300 million yuan in infrastructure, roads and buildings for the 2.3-square-km village and is seeking outside investors as well. The project is expected to be completed in 2008-2010. ^[1]

Astronomical phenomena

The previous total solar eclipse as seen from downtown Chongqing was the solar eclipse of 26 June 1824. The next will be the solar eclipse of 22 July 2009.

Landmarks

• The city is home to one of the largest public assembly buildings in China, the Great Hall of the People, built in modern times but emulating traditional architectural styles. This is adjacent to the densely populated and hilly central district, with narrow streets and pedestrian only walkways.

• There is a museum at the World War II headquarters of General "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell.

• A giant ferris wheel offers spectacular views of the metropolitan area, although it is currently out of action.

• A modern and well stocked zoo exhibits many national and regional animals, including the Giant Panda and the extremely rare South China Tiger.

• The People's Liberation Monument is located in the center of ChongQing city, and it attracts a lot of tourists, and also it is surrounded by a few shopping centers.

• Red Rock Village Museum is a place to attract a lot of people, it is the home of Communist Party Leaders Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai stayed there for negotiation with Kuomintang on coalition between two parties.

• In July 2007, the city built a bathroom with 1,000 toilets spread out over 32,290 square feet. Some urinals are uniquely shaped, including ones inside open crocodile mouths and several that are topped by the bust of a woman resembling the Virgin Mary. Officials submitted an application to Guinness World Records to have the free four-story public bathroom listed as the world's largest. ^[2]

Sister cities

• Washington, D.C., USA
• Düsseldorf, Germany
• Seattle, USA
• Hiroshima, Japan
• Mito, Ibaraki, Japan
• Toronto, Canada
• Brisbane, Australia
• Toulouse, France
• Leicester, England
• Detroit, Michigan, USA
• Shiraz, Iran

City tree

The city's tree is the evergreen magnolia (magnolia delavayi) abundant in street plantings, with the tulip-like shape of its mature unopened blooms repeated in street lights.

Colleges and universities

Chongqing University	重庆大学	founded in 1929
Southwest University	西南大学	founded in 1906
Chongqing Institute of Technology	重庆工学院
Chongqing Jiaotong University	重庆交通学院
Chongqing Normal University	重庆师范大学
Chongqing Technology and Business University	重庆工商大学
Chongqing Three Gorges University	重庆三峡学院
Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications	重庆邮电学院
Yangtze Nomal University	长江师范学院	founded in 1931
Sichuan Fine Arts Institute	四川美术学院
Sichuan International Studies University	四川外语学院
Southwest University of Political Science and Law	西南政法大学
Third Military Medical University	第三军医大学
Western Chongqing University	渝西学院
Chongqing University of Medical Sciences	重庆医科大学
Chongqing University of Science and Technology	重庆科技学院

Institutions without full-time bachelor programs are not listed.

See also

• List of cities in the People's Republic of China by population

Sports

Professional sports teams in Chongqing include:

• Chinese Football Association Super League
  • Chongqing Lifan
• Chinese Basketball Association
  • None

References

1. ^ (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070426/od_nm/china_womentown_odd_dc;_ylt)
2. ^ [1]

External links

• Big, Gritty Chongqing, City of 12 Million, Is China’s Model for Future New York Times
• Comprehensive Website and Forum about Life in Chongqing
• Information about Chongqing for expats /
• City centre map
• District map / Version 2 Simplified Chinese
• The Guardian, 15 March 2006, "Invisible city"
• Large map of Chongqing region
• Google map satellite image
• Official site (English) Official site (Simplified Chinese)
• Chongqing Life Guide
• Article on Gongtan, a remote 1,700 year-old Chongqing village to be bulldozed for powerplant

Major cities of Greater China

People's Republic of China Direct-controlled municipalities Beijing · Chongqing · Shanghai · Tianjin Sub-provincial cities Changchun · Chengdu · Dalian · Guangzhou · Hangzhou  · Jinan · Harbin · Nanjing · Ningbo · Qingdao · Shenyang · Shenzhen · Wuhan · Xi'an · Xiamen Provincial capitals (not included above) Changsha · Fuzhou · Guiyang · Haikou · Hefei · Hohhot · Lanzhou · Lhasa · Nanchang · Nanning · Shijiazhuang · Taiyuan · Ürümqi · Xining · Yinchuan · Zhengzhou  · Kunming Special administrative regions Hong Kong · Macau Republic of China (Taiwan) Direct-controlled municipalities Kaohsiung · Taipei

Province-level divisions administered by the People's Republic of China (PRC)
Provinces	Anhui · Fujian · Gansu · Guangdong · Guizhou · Hainan · Hebei · Heilongjiang · Henan · Hubei · Hunan · Jiangsu · Jiangxi · Jilin · Liaoning · Qinghai · Shaanxi · Shandong · Shanxi · Sichuan · Taiwan1 · Yunnan · Zhejiang
Autonomous regions	Guangxi · Inner Mongolia · Ningxia · Tibet (Xizang) · Xinjiang
Municipalities	Beijing · Chongqing · Shanghai · Tianjin
Special administrative regions	Hong Kong · Macau
1 Claimed by the People's Republic of China, but currently ruled by the Republic of China. See also Political status of Taiwan.

Coordinates: 29°33′00″N, 106°30′25″E

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