Hengshui

Hengshui (Chinese: 衡水) is a prefecture-level city in southern Hebei province, People's Republic of China, bordering Shandong to the southeast. At the 2010 census its population was 4,340,373 inhabitants whom 522,147 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of Taocheng urban district.[2] It is on the Beijing–Kowloon railway.

Hengshui
衡水市
Clockwise from top: Fuyang Bridge, Hengshui Lake, Skyline of Hengshui, Hengshui High School
Nickname(s): 
Peach City (桃城), Lake City (水市湖城)
Location of Hengshui City jurisdiction in Hebei
Location of Hengshui City jurisdiction in Hebei
Hengshui is located in Hebei
Hengshui
Hengshui
Location of the city centre in Hebei
Hengshui is located in Northern China
Hengshui
Hengshui
Hengshui (Northern China)
Hengshui is located in China
Hengshui
Hengshui
Hengshui (China)
Coordinates (Hengshui municipal government): 37°44′20″N 115°40′08″E
CountryPeople's Republic of China
ProvinceHebei
Settled1265
EstablishedMay 31, 1996
Municipal seatTaocheng District
Area
  Prefecture-level city8,836.95 km2 (3,411.97 sq mi)
  Urban401.40 km2 (154.98 sq mi)
  Districts[1]1,509.6 km2 (582.9 sq mi)
Population
 (2010 census)
  Prefecture-level city4,340,773
  Density490/km2 (1,300/sq mi)
  Urban856,705
  Urban density2,100/km2 (5,500/sq mi)
  Districts[1]
1,082,000
Time zoneUTC+8 (China Standard)
ISO 3166 codeCN-HE-11
License Plate Prefix冀T
Hengshui
Simplified Chinese衡水
Literal meaning"horizontal river"

Administrative divisions

Map
# Name Hanzi Hanyu Pinyin Population (2010 census) Area (km²) Density (/km²)
1 Taocheng District 桃城区 Táochéng Qū 522,147 602.5 867
2 Jizhou District 冀州区 Jìzhōu Qū 362,013 918 394
3 Shenzhou City 深州市 Shēnzhōu Shì 566,087 1,244 455
4 Zaoqiang County 枣强县 Zǎoqiáng Xiàn 391,469 903 437
5 Wuyi County 武邑县 Wǔyì Xiàn 315,693 830 380
6 Wuqiang County 武强县 Wǔqiáng Xiàn 214,549 442 485
7 Raoyang County 饶阳县 Ráoyáng Xiàn 280,498 573 490
8 Anping County 安平县 Ānpíng Xiàn 328,512 493 666
9 Gucheng County 故城县 Gùchéng Xiàn 487,025 941 518
10 Jing County 景县 Jǐng Xiàn 528,693 1,183 447
11 Fucheng County 阜城县 Fùchéng Xiàn 341,087 698 489

Education

Hengshui High School and Hengshui University[3] are located in Hengshui.

Sights

The Harrison International Peace Hospital is located in Hengshui. This comprehensive teaching and research hospital was named after Dr. Tillson Harrison, a martyr to the Chinese revolution. Dr. Harrison, a Canadian, died in 1947 while transporting medical equipment and supplies. Some of this equipment is on display in an exhibition room in the hospital. The hospital uses both traditional Chinese medicine and modern western diagnostic and therapeutic technology.

The city is renowned as the centre for inside painting, mainly of small snuff bottles. Zhang Rucai was born in Hebei Province and since 1972, he started to learn the art of inside painting. In April 1996, he was conferred the title Master of Chinese Folk Arts & Crafts by UNESCO. The city has a fascinating museum and exhibition of the art of the inside painter - many complex paintings done on the inside of small snuff bottles as well as special larger pieces of glassware.[4]

There is a Buddhist Temple on the outskirts of the city which is well worth a visit, as is the bridge in the old part of the city - one of the few remnants of the old town.

Geography and Climate

Hengshui has a cold semi-arid climate (BSk) using both the 18°C mean annual temperature isotherm and the 0°C mean lowest temperature isotherm of the coldest month (January) according to the Köppen climate classification, with hot, humid summers due to the East Asian Monsoon and brief, though very cold and dry winters, owing to the prevailing dry north-westerly winds that reflect the influence of the vast Siberian anticyclone.

Precipitation totals 496.9 mm annually with more than three quarters falling during the summer half. Extreme temperatures range from -20.6°C to 42.8°C for the 1981-2010 period. Relative humidity is highest in the summer and lowest in the spring, preceding the monsoonal period. Due to the very dry winter conditions, snowfall is not common, though occurs almost every year, usually in small amounts.

A meteorological station in a Stevenson screen in Hebei province, China
Climate data for Hengshui (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1981–2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 16.8
(62.2)
23.3
(73.9)
31.5
(88.7)
34.6
(94.3)
40.6
(105.1)
40.6
(105.1)
42.8
(109.0)
38.3
(100.9)
37.2
(99.0)
32.2
(90.0)
26.2
(79.2)
18.6
(65.5)
42.8
(109.0)
Average high °C (°F) 3.4
(38.1)
7.7
(45.9)
14.7
(58.5)
21.9
(71.4)
27.7
(81.9)
32.3
(90.1)
32.4
(90.3)
30.7
(87.3)
27.2
(81.0)
21.0
(69.8)
11.9
(53.4)
4.9
(40.8)
19.7
(67.4)
Daily mean °C (°F) −2.3
(27.9)
1.4
(34.5)
8.1
(46.6)
15.3
(59.5)
21.4
(70.5)
26.1
(79.0)
27.5
(81.5)
25.9
(78.6)
21.2
(70.2)
14.5
(58.1)
6.0
(42.8)
−0.5
(31.1)
13.7
(56.7)
Average low °C (°F) −6.5
(20.3)
−3.2
(26.2)
2.8
(37.0)
9.6
(49.3)
15.5
(59.9)
20.5
(68.9)
23.2
(73.8)
22.0
(71.6)
16.6
(61.9)
9.5
(49.1)
1.6
(34.9)
−4.3
(24.3)
8.9
(48.1)
Record low °C (°F) −18.3
(−0.9)
−15.5
(4.1)
−9.0
(15.8)
−1.7
(28.9)
4.5
(40.1)
10.2
(50.4)
16.8
(62.2)
13.4
(56.1)
6.7
(44.1)
−2.2
(28.0)
−16.4
(2.5)
−20.6
(−5.1)
−20.6
(−5.1)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 1.6
(0.06)
5.8
(0.23)
7.8
(0.31)
24.9
(0.98)
38.2
(1.50)
62.7
(2.47)
151.3
(5.96)
109.1
(4.30)
41.0
(1.61)
26.5
(1.04)
14.9
(0.59)
2.8
(0.11)
486.6
(19.16)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 1.5 2.7 2.2 4.9 5.8 7.6 10.6 9.2 6.1 4.4 3.4 2.1 60.5
Average snowy days 2.8 3.3 1.1 0.2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.2 2.5 11.1
Average relative humidity (%) 59 55 50 54 57 58 74 78 71 65 65 62 62
Mean monthly sunshine hours 157.4 171.4 225.4 240.5 267.0 238.2 200.5 208.5 204.0 197.1 161.2 152.7 2,423.9
Percent possible sunshine 51 56 60 61 61 54 45 50 55 57 54 52 55
Source: China Meteorological Administration[5][6]
Hengshui City Hall, 2007

Air pollution

According to a survey made by "Global voices China" in February 2013, 7 cities in Hebei including Xingtai, Shijiazhuang, Baoding, Handan, Langfang, Hengshui and Tangshan, are among China's 10 most polluted cities.[7]

Religion

Hengshui is the seat of the Catholic Diocese of Hengshui.

References

  1. Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, ed. (2019). China Urban Construction Statistical Yearbook 2017. Beijing: China Statistics Press. p. 46. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  2. "China: Hébĕi (Prefectures, Cities, Districts and Counties) - Population Statistics, Charts and Map". Citypopulation.de. Retrieved 2 October 2017.
  3. "Hensghui High school". Archived from the original on 2007-08-03. Retrieved 2007-09-29.
  4. Archived 2011-02-07 at the Wayback Machine
  5. 中国气象数据网 – WeatherBk Data (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 26 August 2023.
  6. 中国气象数据网 (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 26 August 2023.
  7. Bildner, Eli (February 27, 2013). "Interactive Maps of China's Most–and Least–Polluted Places". Global Voices China. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
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