District (China)

The term district, in the context of China, is used to refer to several unrelated political divisions in both ancient and modern China.

For the District in Taiwan, see District (Taiwan).
For other articles abbreviated as DPRC, see DPRC (disambiguation).
District
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese区
Traditional Chinese區
Alternative Chinese name
Simplified Chinese市辖区
Traditional Chinese市轄區
Tibetan name
Tibetanཆུས།
Zhuang name
ZhuangGih
Mongolian name
Mongolian Cyrillicᠲᠣᠭᠣᠷᠢᠭ
Uyghur name
Uyghurرايونى‎
Administrative divisions
of China
Province-level (1st)
Municipalities

Provinces

Autonomous regions

Special administrative regions
Sub-provincial cities

Sub-provincial autonomous prefectures

Sub-provincial city districts
Prefecture-level (2nd)
Prefectural cities

Autonomous prefectures

Leagues (Aimag)
(abolishing)

Prefectures

(abolishing)
Sub-prefectural cities

Provincial-controlled cities

Provincial-controlled counties

Provincial-controlled districts
County level (3rd)
Counties

Autonomous counties

County-level cities

Districts
Ethnic districts

Banners (Hoxu)
Autonomous banners

Shennongjia Forestry District

Liuzhi Special District

Wolong Special Administrative Region

Workers and peasants districts

(obsolete)
Analogous county level units
Management areas
Management committee
Township level (4th)
Townships

Ethnic townships

Towns

Subdistricts
Subdistrict bureaux

Sum

Ethnic sum

County-controlled districts
County-controlled district bureaux
(obsolete)

Management committees

Town-level city

(pilot)
Analogous township level units
Management areas
Management committee

Areas

Farms area (Overseas Chinese Farm Region), Prison area, University towns, etc.
(Grassroots Autonomous Organizations)

Villages · Gaqa · Ranches
Village Committees

Communities

Residential Committees
Others
Regions

Capital cities

New areas

Autonomous administrative divisions

National Central Cities

Special Economic Zones

History: before 1912, 1912–49, 1949–present

Administrative division codes

In the modern context, district (Chinese: 区), formally city-governed district, city-controlled district, or municipal district (Chinese: 市辖区), are subdivisions of a municipality or a prefecture-level city. The rank of a district derives from the rank of its city. Districts of a municipality are prefecture-level; districts of a sub-provincial city are sub-prefecture-level; and districts of a prefecture-level city are county-level.

The term was also formerly used to refer to obsolete county-controlled districts (also known as district public office).

However, if the word district is encountered in the context of ancient Chinese history, then it is a translation for xian, another type of administrative division in China.

Before the 1980s, cities in China were administrative divisions containing mostly urban, built-up areas, with very little farmland, except for the immediate suburbs in order to ensure a large supply of food or raw materials. As a result, districts were also mostly urban or suburban in nature.

After the 1980s, prefectures began to be replaced with prefecture-level cities. From then on, "cities" in mainland China became just like any other administrative division, containing urban areas, towns, villages, and farmland. These cities are subdivided into districts, counties, autonomous counties, and county-level cities. At the same time, counties and county-level cities began to be replaced with districts, especially after 1990. From then onwards, districts were no longer strictly urban entities—some districts today are just like counties, with large towns and townships under them governing rural areas.

Types of districts

Regular districts
Further information: List of counties in China

A regular district under a municipality or prefecture-level city.[lower-alpha 1]

Ethnic districts

A type of city districts that are specially created for ethnic minorities. Currently there are five such "ethnic districts": three in Henan, one in Heilongjiang, and one in Inner Mongolia.

Special district

One county-level special district, located in Guizhou.

Forestry district

One special sub-prefectural-level forestry district, located in Hubei.

Ten most populous districts
DistrictPopulation
(2010 census)
Pudong, Shanghai5,044,430
Bao'an, Shenzhen4,017,807
Chaoyang, Beijing3,545,137
Haidian, Beijing3,280,670
Nanhai, Foshan2,588,844
Binhai, Tianjin2,482,065
Shunde, Foshan2,461,701
Minhang, Shanghai2,429,372
Baiyun, Guangzhou2,223,150
Fengtai, Beijing2,112,162

Number of districts per city
Number of districtsCity(ies)Number of cities
38Gaoxiong1
34Tainan1
29Taizhong1
28Xinbei1
26Chongqing1
16Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin3
13Wuhan1
12Chengdu, Taibei, Taoyuan3
11Guangzhou, Nanjing, Xi'an3
10Hangzhou, Jinan, Shenyang3
9Harbin, Shenzhen2
8Shijiazhuang1
7Tangshan, Qiqihar, Changchun, Dalian, Nanning, Ürümqi, Kunming, Qingdao8
6Zhangjiakou, Xiamen, Shantou, Guiyang, Jixi, Hegang, Zhengzhou, Luoyang, Changsha, Nanchang, Taiyuan, Ningbo, Guilin, Baotou, Handan, Fuzhou (FJ)16
5Huainan, Lanzhou, Foshan, Baoding, Daqing, Kaifeng, Yichang, Hengyang, Wuxi, Xuzhou, Changzhou, Suzhou (JS), Fuxin, Zibo, Zaozhuang, Liuzhou16
4Hefei, Wuhu, Bengbu, Putian, Quanzhou, Zhanjiang, Haikou, Sanya, Qinhuangdao, Shuangyashan, Yichun (HLJ), Jiamusi, Mudanjiang, Pingdingshan, Anyang, Xinxiang, Jiaozuo, Huangshi, Zhuzhou, Huai'an, Jilin, Anshan, Fushun, Benxi, Yingkou, Liaoyang, Xining, Yantai, Weifang, Datong, Zigong, Leshan, Wenzhou, Hohhot, Karamay, Baoji36
3Tongling, Ma'anshan, Huaibei, Anqing, Huangshan, Fuyang, Lu'an, Shaoguan, Zhuhai, Jiangmen, Zhaoqing, Chengde, Qitaihe, Hebi, Luohe, Shiyan, Xiangyang, Ezhou, Shaoyang, Yueyang, Nantong, Lianyungang, Yancheng, Yangzhou, Zhenjiang, Taizhou (JS), Jingdezhen, Dongying, Dandong, Jinzhou, Panjin, Tieling, Huludao, Tongchuan, Xianyang, Linyi, Yangquan, Panzhihua, Luzhou, Guangyuan, Nanchong, Mianyang, Shaoxing, Taizhou (ZJ), Zunyi, Wuzhou, Beihai, Guigang, Wuhai, Chifeng, Yinchuan, Ganzhou52
2Chuzhou, Hengshui, Sanming, Zhangzhou, Nanping, Longyan, Baiyin, Tianshui, Longnan, Maoming, Huizhou, Meizhou, Yangjiang, Qingyuan, Chaozhou, Jieyang, Yunfu, Anshun, Tongren, Xingtai, Cangzhou, Langfang, Sanmenxia, Nanyang, Shangqiu, Xinyang, Xuchang, Jingmen, Jingzhou, Xiangtan, Changde, Zhangjiajie, Yiyang, Chenzhou, Yongzhou, Suqian, Pingxiang, Jiujiang, Ji'an, Shangrao, Siping, Liaoyuan, Tonghua, Baishan, Chaoyang, Haidong, Weinan, Jining, Tai'an, Weihai, Rizhao, Dezhou, Binzhou, Heze, Yulin (SN), Changzhi, Shuozhou, Suining, Neijiang, Meishan, Yibin, Guang'an, Dazhou, Ya'an, Bazhong, Ziyang, Yuxi, Jiaxing, Huzhou, Jinhua, Quzhou, Zhoushan, Fuzhou (JX), Fangchenggang, Qinzhou, Yulin (GX), Hezhou, Hechi, Yan'an, Ordos, Hulunbuir, Shizuishan, Wuzhong, Lhasa, Qujing, Sansha86
1Suzhou (AH), Bozhou, Chizhou, Xuancheng, Ningde, Jinchang, Wuwei, Zhangye, Pingliang, Jiuquan, Qingyang, Dingxi, Shanwei, Heyuan, Bijie, Liupanshui, Heihe, Suihua, Puyang, Zhoukou, Zhumadian, Xiaogan, Huanggang, Xianning, Suizhou, Huaihua, Loudi, Xinyu, Yingtan, Yichun (JX), Songyuan, Baicheng, Hanzhong, Ankang, Shangluo, Liaocheng, Jincheng, Jinzhong, Yuncheng, Xinzhou, Linfen, Lüliang, Deyang, Baoshan, Zhaotong, Lijiang, Pu'er, Lincang, Lishui, Baise, Laibin, Chongzuo, Tongliao, Bayannur, Ulanqab, Guyuan, Zhongwei, Xigazê, Qamdo, Nyingchi, Shannan, Turpan, Hami63
0Jiayuguan, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Danzhou4

County-controlled districts (obsolete)

A county-controlled district, sometimes translated as county-governed district; county district; or sub-county (Chinese: 县辖区，区; pinyin: Xiànxiáqū, Qū) is a sub-county in China. A branch of a county government, a district public office (Chinese: 区公所; pinyin: Qū gōngsuǒ) is the administrative office in a district; it is not a local government. A county-controlled district was once an important subdivision of a county all over China from the 1950s to 1990s. It was common for there to be about five to ten districts in a county, then about three to five towns and townships in a district. After the 1990s, county-controlled districts began to be phased out, and their role was taken over by larger towns or townships created by merging smaller ones.

At the end of 2014, there was just one county-controlled district left in China:

(See Administrative divisions of China for how these two types of districts fit into the general administrative hierarchy of mainland China.)

Ancient sense
See also: Counties of China § History

If the word "district" is encountered in the context of ancient Chinese history, then the word is a translation for xian, another type of administrative division in China.

Xian has been translated using several English terms. In the context of ancient history, "district" and "prefecture" are commonly used, while "county" is used for more contemporary contexts.

(See Counties of China for more information on the xian of China.)

See also

Notes
  1. Including six claimed prefecture-level cities in Taiwan Province. Those are controlled by the Republic of China under its special municipalities.

References
    This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.