Zhangzhou

Zhangzhou (/ˈæŋˈ/) is a prefecture-level city in Fujian Province, China. The prefecture around the city proper comprises the southeast corner of the province, facing the Taiwan Strait and (with Quanzhou) surrounding the prefecture of Xiamen.

Zhangzhou
漳州市
Clockwise from top: The skyline of Zhangzhou city viewed from the West Ecological Park, a Ming-era stone archway in Xiangcheng District, Wushan Mountain in Zhao'an County, Hukong Dropping Cave in Dongshan County, and a bank of the Jiulong River.
Location of Zhangzhou City jurisdiction in Fujian
Zhangzhou is located in China
Zhangzhou
Zhangzhou
Location in China
Coordinates (Zhangzhou municipal government): 24°30′47″N 117°38′49″E
CountryPeople's Republic of China
ProvinceFujian
Municipal seatXiangcheng District
Area
  Prefecture-level city12,882.27 km2 (4,973.87 sq mi)
  Urban
2,590.23 km2 (1,000.09 sq mi)
  Metro
4,290.84 km2 (1,656.70 sq mi)
Population
 (2020 census)[1]
  Prefecture-level city5,054,328
  Density390/km2 (1,000/sq mi)
  Urban
939,943
  Urban density360/km2 (940/sq mi)
  Metro
7,284,148
  Metro density1,700/km2 (4,400/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+8 (CST)
Postal code
363000
Area code596
ISO 3166 codeCN-FJ-06
GDP2016[2]
 - TotalCNY 312.534 billion (US$47.052 billion)
 - Per capitaCNY 62,196 (US$9,364)
 - GrowthIncrease 11.0%
License Plate闽E
Local dialectMin Nan: Zhangzhou dialect
City treesCinnamomum camphora
City flowersNarcissus tazetta
Websitezhangzhou.gov.cn
Zhangzhou
"Zhangzhou" in regular Chinese characters
Chinese漳州
PostalChangchow

Name

Zhangzhou is the atonal pinyin romanization of the city's Chinese name 漳州, using its pronunciation in Standard Mandarin.[3] The name derives from the city's former status as the seat of the imperial Chinese Zhang Prefecture. The same name was romanized as Changchow on the Chinese Postal Map and Chang-chou in Wade-Giles. Other romanizations include Chang-chow.[4]

It also appears as Chang-chu,[5] Chiang-chew, or Chiang Chew from the city's local Hokkien name Chiang-chiu.[6] This name appeared in Spanish and Portuguese Jesuit sources as Chincheo, which was anglicized as Chinchew. By the 19th century, however, this name had migrated and was used to refer to Quanzhou, a separate port about 65 miles (105 km) east-northeast of central Zhangzhou.[7]

Geography

Zhangzhou proper lies on the banks of the Jiulong River in southern Fujian about 35 miles (56 km) from central Xiamen,[4] whose urban core has grown to form a single urbanized area with it. The prefecture of Zhangzhou comprises the southeastern corner of the province, surrounding Xiamen. The prefecture of Quanzhou lies to its northeast, Longyan to its northwest, and Shantou in Guangdong to its southwest.

Climate

Zhangzhou has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa), with mild to warm winters and long, very hot and humid summers. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from 13.2 °C (55.8 °F) in January to 28.8 °C (83.8 °F) in July, and the annual mean is 21.3 °C (70.3 °F). The frost-free period lasts 330 days.

Climate data for Zhangzhou (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1971–2000)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 28.8
(83.8)
30.3
(86.5)
33.7
(92.7)
35.1
(95.2)
37.5
(99.5)
37.6
(99.7)
38.6
(101.5)
38.1
(100.6)
37.1
(98.8)
34.6
(94.3)
35.2
(95.4)
29.1
(84.4)
38.6
(101.5)
Average high °C (°F) 18.7
(65.7)
19.4
(66.9)
21.7
(71.1)
26.0
(78.8)
29.2
(84.6)
31.9
(89.4)
34.3
(93.7)
33.9
(93.0)
32.2
(90.0)
29.0
(84.2)
25.3
(77.5)
20.8
(69.4)
26.9
(80.4)
Daily mean °C (°F) 14.1
(57.4)
14.7
(58.5)
17.0
(62.6)
21.2
(70.2)
24.8
(76.6)
27.6
(81.7)
29.4
(84.9)
28.9
(84.0)
27.6
(81.7)
24.3
(75.7)
20.5
(68.9)
16.0
(60.8)
22.2
(71.9)
Average low °C (°F) 11.0
(51.8)
11.8
(53.2)
13.9
(57.0)
18.0
(64.4)
21.8
(71.2)
24.7
(76.5)
26.0
(78.8)
25.6
(78.1)
24.3
(75.7)
20.8
(69.4)
17.0
(62.6)
12.6
(54.7)
19.0
(66.1)
Record low °C (°F) 1.3
(34.3)
1.3
(34.3)
3.0
(37.4)
7.3
(45.1)
12.3
(54.1)
17.0
(62.6)
21.0
(69.8)
21.3
(70.3)
16.8
(62.2)
7.6
(45.7)
4.8
(40.6)
−0.1
(31.8)
−0.1
(31.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 46.3
(1.82)
70.8
(2.79)
106.9
(4.21)
128.3
(5.05)
199.2
(7.84)
270.1
(10.63)
198.5
(7.81)
263.8
(10.39)
175.5
(6.91)
56.0
(2.20)
42.0
(1.65)
46.8
(1.84)
1,604.2
(63.14)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 7.6 10.1 13.5 13.1 15.8 18.0 11.8 14.9 10.7 4.4 5.2 6.3 131.4
Average relative humidity (%) 72 75 76 76 78 80 75 77 73 67 69 69 74
Mean monthly sunshine hours 130.4 101.5 102.9 118.3 131.4 147.3 219.6 195.6 178.9 182.0 156.9 146.8 1,811.6
Percent possible sunshine 39 32 28 31 32 36 53 49 49 51 48 45 41
Source 1: China Meteorological Administration[8][9]
Source 2: Weather China[10]

History

According to Odoric of Pordenone, Zhangzhou was a prosperous city twice the size of Bologna.[11]

During the early Qing, Zhangzhou was the primary Fujianese port trading with Portuguese Macao and Spanish Manila. For a time, the Portuguese maintained a factory in the city.[7]

During the late Qing, Zhangzhou remained a center of silk, brick, and sugar production with about a million people and extensive internal and maritime trade. Its city wall had a circumference of about 4.5 miles (7.2 km) but included a good deal of open ground and farmland. Its streets were paved with granite but badly maintained. The 800-foot (240 m) bridge across the Jiulong River consisted of wooden planks laid between 25 piles of stones at roughly equal intervals.[4] The port of Xiamen in an island at the mouth of the Jiulong principally functioned as a trading center for the produce and wares of Zhangzhou and its hinterland;[5] both suffered economically when Indian tea plantations cratered demand for Fujianese tea in the late 19th century.[12]

The old city of Zhangzhou (now Xiangcheng District) was occupied in April and May 1932 by a column of Communist guerrillas under Mao Zedong. Due to the presence of Western gunboats in Xiamen Bay, arms shipments from the Soviet Union were unable to get up the Jiulong River to Mao's forces and the main Communist bases. Discovering this, Mao retreated from the city, according to some accounts with a substantial amount of loot taken from its residents.[13]

Administrative divisions

Zhangzhou comprises 4 urban districts, and 7 counties.

  1. Xiangcheng District (芗城区)
  2. Longwen District (龙文区)
  3. Longhai District (龙海区)
  4. Changtai District (长泰区)
  5. Dongshan County (东山县)
  6. Hua'an County (华安县)
  7. Nanjing County (南靖县)
  8. Pinghe County (平和县)
  9. Yunxiao County (云霄县)
  10. Zhangpu County (漳浦县)
  11. Zhao'an County (诏安县)
Map

Demographics

During the 2020 Chinese census, the entire area of Zhangzhou was home to 5,054,328 inhabitants. Along with the 2,120,178 people of central Xiamen, its urban districts of Xiangcheng, Longwen, Longhai and Changtai, form a single metropolitan area of about 7,284,148 people.

The main language of the Zhangzhou Hokkiens is the local dialect of Min Nan, part of the Southern Min branch of Min Chinese. Government, education, and official business, however, are carried out in Mandarin.

Hakka is also spoken in the rural peasant area of Zhangzhou in the west and south.

Economy

Babao seal paste was invented by the druggist Wei Changan as a traditional medicine in 1673. It was repurposed for artistic use a few years later and gained imperial favor under the Qianlong Emperor. It remains prized for its bright color and pleasant smell.

A major petrochemical plant, producing paraxylene, owned by Taiwan-based Xianglu Group is located in Zhangzhou's Gulei Peninsula. The plant suffered major fires in 2013 and 2015.[14]

Transportation

Two passenger stations serve Zhangzhou:

Education

Notable residents

Sister city

Zhangzhou is twinned with the following regions, cities and towns:[15]

See also

References

  1. "China: Fújiàn (Prefectures, Cities, Districts and Counties) - Population Statistics, Charts and Map".
  2. 漳州市2009年国民经济和社会发展统计公报 (in Chinese). Zhangzhou Municipal Statistic Bureau. 2010-03-12. Retrieved 2010-05-03.
  3. "Zhangzhou". Collins English Dictionary.
  4. Baynes, T. S., ed. (1878), "Chang-chow" , Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 5 (9th ed.), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, p. 391
  5. Baynes, T. S., ed. (1878), "Amoy" , Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 1 (9th ed.), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, p. 748.
  6. Pitcher, Philip Wilson (1893). Fifty Years in Amoy or A History of the Amoy Mission, China. New York: Reformed Church in America. p. 33.
  7. Yule, Henry (1878), "Chinchew" , in Baynes, T. S. (ed.), Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 5 (9th ed.), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, p. 673
  8. 中国气象数据网 – WeatherBk Data (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  9. 中国气象数据网 (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  10. 漳州 - 气象数据 -中国天气网 (in Chinese). Weather China. Retrieved 21 November 2022.
  11. Yule, Henry (2002). The Travels of Friar Odoric. p. 123.
  12. Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911), "Amoy" , Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 1 (11th ed.), Cambridge University Press, p. 878.
  13. Zhang Rong; et al. (2005), Mao: The Unknown Story, p. 117.
  14. "A contentious chemical plant in China has exploded for the second time in two years". Quartz. 2015-04-07. Archived from the original on 2022-08-20.
  15. "福建省与国外友城关系一览表" (in Simplified Chinese). 福建省人民政府外事办公室. Archived from the original on 2008-03-16. Retrieved 2009-09-07.
  16. "南苏门答腊省概况" (in Chinese). Retrieved 17 December 2020.
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