Dalian () is a major sub-provincial

port city A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ha ...

Liaoning province Liaoning () is a coastal province in Northeast China that is the smallest, southernmost, and most populous province in the region. With its capital at Shenyang, it is located on the northern shore of the Yellow Sea, and is the northernmost ...

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones an ...

, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the

provincial capital A capital city or capital is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, department, or other subnational entity, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city that physically encompasses the go ...

Shenyang Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu name Mukden, is a major Chinese sub-provincial city and the provincial capital of Liaoning province. Located in central-north Liaoning, it is the provinc ...

) and the third-most populous city of

Northeast China Northeast China or Northeastern China () is a geographical region of China, which is often referred to as " Manchuria" or "Inner Manchuria" by surrounding countries and the West. It usually corresponds specifically to the three provinces east ...

. Located on the southern tip of

Liaodong peninsula The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River (the ...

, it is the southernmost city in both Liaoning and the entire Northeast. Dalian borders the prefectural cities of

Yingkou Yingkou () is a coastal prefecture-level city of central southern Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, on the northeastern shore of Liaodong Bay. It is the third-smallest city in Liaoning with a total area of , and the ninth most populo ...

and

Anshan Anshan () is an inland prefecture-level city in central-southeast Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, about south of the provincial capital Shenyang. As of the 2020 census, it was Liaoning's third most populous city with a population ...

to the north and

Dandong Dandong (), formerly known as Andong, is a coastal prefecture-level city in southeastern Liaoning province, in the northeastern region of People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese border city, facing Sinuiju, North Korea across the ...

to the northeast, and also shares

maritime boundaries A maritime boundary is a conceptual division of the Earth's water surface areas using physiographic or geopolitical criteria. As such, it usually bounds areas of exclusive national rights over mineral and biological resources,VLIZ Maritime Boun ...

with

Qinhuangdao Qinhuangdao (; ) is a port city on the coast of China in northern Hebei. It is administratively a prefecture-level city, about east of Beijing, on the Bohai Sea, the innermost gulf of the Yellow Sea. Its population during the 2020 nationa ...

and

Huludao Huludao (), formerly known as Jinxi () until 1994, is a coastal prefecture-level city in southwestern Liaoning province, People's Republic of China. Its name literally means "Gourd Island", referring to the fiddle-shaped contour of the peninsula ...

across the

Liaodong Bay Liaodong Bay () is largest and longest of the three main bays (along with Laizhou Bay to the south and the Bohai Bay to the southwest) of the Bohai Sea, the innermost gulf of the Yellow Sea. Although named after the Liaodong Peninsula (whi ...

to west and northwest,

Yantai Yantai, formerly known as Chefoo, is a coastal prefecture-level city on the Shandong Peninsula in northeastern Shandong province of People's Republic of China. Lying on the southern coast of the Bohai Strait, Yantai borders Qingdao on the ...

and

Weihai Weihai (), formerly called Weihaiwei (), is a prefecture-level city and major seaport in easternmost Shandong province. It borders Yantai to the west and the Yellow Sea to the east, and is the closest Chinese city to South Korea. Weihai's popul ...

on the

Shandong peninsula The Shandong (Shantung) Peninsula or Jiaodong (Chiaotung) Peninsula is a peninsula in Shandong Province in eastern China, between the Bohai Sea to the north and the Yellow Sea to the south. The latter name refers to the east and Jiaozhou. Geo ...

across the

Bohai Strait The Bohai Sea () is a marginal sea approximately in area on the east coast of Mainland China. It is the northwestern and innermost extension of the Yellow Sea, to which it connects to the east via the Bohai Strait. It has a mean depth of ...

to the south, and

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and ...

across the

Korea Bay The Korea Bay, sometimes the West Korea Bay (; ; or ), is a bight and the northern extension of the Yellow Sea, between the southeastern coastline of China's Liaoning province and the western coastline of North Korea's North Pyongan, South ...

to the east. As of the 2020 census, its total population was 7,450,785 inhabitants whom 5,106,719 lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of 6 out of 7 urban districts, Pulandian District not being conurbated yet. Today a financial, shipping, and logistics center for

East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Kore ...

, Dalian has a significant history of being used by foreign powers for its ports. Dalian was previously known as " Dalniy" (russian: Дальний; ), " Dairen" ( ja, 大連), and "Lüda" or "Luta" (). The city used to be better known as "Port Arthur" and "Ryojun" ( ja, 旅順, links=no) from the original Port Arthur, now the city's

Lüshunkou district Lüshunkou District (also Lyushunkou District; ) is a district of Dalian, Liaoning province, China. Also formerly called Lüshun City () or literally Lüshun Port (), it was formerly known as both Port Arthur (russian: Порт-Артур, transli ...

. In 2016, Dalian ranked 48th in the

Global Financial Centres Index The Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) is a ranking of the competitiveness of financial centres based on over 29,000 financial centre assessments from an online questionnaire together with over 100 indices from organisations such as the World ...

. In 2012, Dalian ranked 82nd in the Global City Competitiveness Index. In 2006, Dalian was named China's most livable city by ''

China Daily ''China Daily'' () is an English-language daily newspaper owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party. Overview ''China Daily'' has the widest print circulation of any English-language newspaper in China. T ...

''. It is now a " Beta - Global City" according to the

Globalization and World Cities Research Network The Globalization and World Cities Research Network (GaWC) is a think tank that studies the relationships between world cities in the context of globalization. It is based in the geography department of Loughborough University in Leicestershire ...

.. The large amount of port traffic makes Dalian a Large-Port Metropolis . Dalian is one of the top 50 science cities in the world by scientific research as tracked by the

Nature Index The Nature Index is a database that tracks institutions and countries and their scientific output since its introduction in November, 2014. Each year, Nature Index ranks the leading institutions (which can be companies, universities, government agen ...

, ranking 49th in the world as of 2022. The city is home to several major universities, notably Dalian University of Technology and Dalian Maritime University, members of China's prestigious universities in the Project 211, and the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics of the

Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); ), known by Academia Sinica in English until the 1980s, is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for natural sciences. It has historical origins in the Academia Sinica during the Republ ...

Etymology

Modern Dalian originated from Qingniwa () or Qingniwaqiao (), a small Chinese fishing village. The

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. T ...

built a commercial town after coercing a lease of the area from the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

in 1898 and called it "Dalniy" (russian: Дальний, translit= Dal'nii — "a remote one" or "far-away", in reference to the town's location, rendered as ) from 1898 to 1905. After the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and ...

of 1904–1905, Japan occupied the area as the

Kwantung Leased Territory The Kwantung Leased Territory ( ja, 關東州, ''Kantō-shū''; ) was a leased territory of the Empire of Japan in the Liaodong Peninsula from 1905 to 1945. Japan first acquired Kwantung from the Qing Empire in perpetuity in 1895 in the Tre ...

and renamed the city after the Chinese name for Dalian Bay () — a name in use since at least 1879. English-language sources called the city "Dairen" in this period (1905-1945), from Japanese. In 1950 Dalian, back in Chinese control, merged with the nearby town called Lüshun () (formerly "Ryojun" and before that, "Port Arthur") to form the city of Lüda (), a name (formed from the first syllable of each constituent's name) which was usually rendered as Luta in English during that era. In 1981, the Chinese State Council again renamed the city, from Lüda back to "Dalian" (), effective 5 March 1981.

History

Ancient

In the Qin and

Han Han may refer to: Ethnic groups * Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group. ** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...

periods (221 BC–AD 220), the Chinese state expanded its territories into northern

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and Sout ...

through the Dalian region, then under the jurisdiction of

Liaodong The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River (the ...

county. During the

Sixteen Kingdoms The Sixteen Kingdoms (), less commonly the Sixteen States, was a chaotic period in Chinese history from AD 304 to 439 when northern China fragmented into a series of short-lived dynastic states. The majority of these states were founded by ...

era (3rd through 5th centuries), the Korean kingdom of

Goguryeo Goguryeo (37 BC–668 AD) ( ) also called Goryeo (), was a Korean kingdom located in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula and the southern and central parts of Northeast China. At its peak of power, Goguryeo controlled mos ...

controlled this region. In the early

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingd ...

(618–907), the Dalian region formed part of

Andong Andong () is a city in South Korea, and the capital of North Gyeongsang Province. It is the largest city in the northern part of the province with a population of 167,821 as of October 2010. The Nakdong River flows through the city. Andong is a m ...

Prefecture in Jili state; during the

Liao dynasty The Liao dynasty (; Khitan: ''Mos Jælud''; ), also known as the Khitan Empire (Khitan: ''Mos diau-d kitai huldʒi gur''), officially the Great Liao (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 916 and 1125, ruled by the Yelü ...

(916–1125), it was part of Dong Jing Tong Liaoyang county. Dalian was named Sanshan in the period of Wei Jin (220–420), San Shanpu in the Tang dynasty (618–907), Sanshan Seaport in the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peo ...

(1368–1644), and Qingniwakou during the

(1644–1911).

Qing dynasty

In the 1880s, Jinzhou, the north of downtown Dalian, now Jinzhou District, was a walled town and a center for political intrigue and economic activity. The Qing government built bridges and heavily fortified the peninsula. Mining camps on the northern coast of Dalian Bay became the small town of Qingniwa () or Qingniwaqiao (), near what became the downtown core of modern-day Dalian.

British, Russian, and Japanese occupations

The British briefly occupied Qingniwa during the

Second Opium War The Second Opium War (), also known as the Second Anglo-Sino War, the Second China War, the Arrow War, or the Anglo-French expedition to China, was a colonial war lasting from 1856 to 1860, which pitted the British Empire and the French Em ...

in 1858, but returned it to Chinese (Qing) control in 1860. Port Arthur at the tip of the Liaodong Peninsula took its English name from Royal Navy Lieutenant William Arthur, though the area's Chinese name had always been Lüshun. Although China heavily fortified the area, in which it allowed trade with foreigners, in the

First Sino-Japanese War The First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 – 17 April 1895) was a conflict between China and Japan primarily over influence in Korea. After more than six months of unbroken successes by Japanese land and naval forces and the loss of the po ...

Japan swiftly overcame those defenses on 21 November 1894 in the Battle of Lüshunkou, committing the Port Arthur massacre afterwards. In April 1895 China conceded defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War, ceding

Liaodong Peninsula The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River (the ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a Country, country in East Asia, at the junction of the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the China, People's Republic of China (PRC) to the n ...

and

Penghu The Penghu (, Hokkien POJ: ''Phîⁿ-ô͘'' or ''Phêⁿ-ô͘'' ) or Pescadores Islands are an archipelago of 90 islands and islets in the Taiwan Strait, located approximately west from the main island of Taiwan, covering an are ...

, and making many other concessions in the

Treaty of Shimonoseki The , also known as the Treaty of Maguan () in China and in the period before and during World War II in Japan, was a treaty signed at the , Shimonoseki, Japan on April 17, 1895, between the Empire of Japan and Qing China, ending the Fir ...

(17 April 1895). In the

Triple Intervention The Tripartite Intervention or was a diplomatic intervention by Russia, Germany, and France on 23 April 1895 over the harsh terms of the Treaty of Shimonoseki imposed by Japan on the Qing dynasty of China that ended the First Sino-Japanese War ...

of 23 April 1895, Russia, France and Germany forced Japan to return the

to China, despite the treaty's terms; instead the

coerced a lease of the peninsula from the Qing dynasty in 1898. Russia had a particular interest in the region of the peninsula as one of the few areas in the region that had the potential to develop ice-free ports. The Russians built a modern commercial port city, which they wanted to become the Paris of the Far East, and called it Dal'niy (russian: Дальний, links=no). Linked by 1902 with the

Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR; , , ) connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway line in the world. It runs from the city of Moscow in the west to the city of Vladivostok in the eas ...

via the branch line

Chinese Eastern Railway The Chinese Eastern Railway or CER (, russian: Китайско-Восточная железная дорога, or , ''Kitaysko-Vostochnaya Zheleznaya Doroga'' or ''KVZhD''), is the historical name for a railway system in Northeast China (als ...

through

Harbin Harbin (; mnc, , v=Halbin; ) is a sub-provincial city and the provincial capital and the largest city of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China, as well as the second largest city by urban population after Shenyang and largest ...

, Dal'niy became Russia's primary port-city in Asia, and also served Western traders. Russia signed the Pavlov Agreement (1898) with China, which granted Russia a 25-year lease on Dalian and Lüshun and exclusive right to build a branch of the Chinese Eastern Railway—what would become from 1905 the Japanese-operated South Manchurian Railway. Russia spent more than 10 million golden rubles (equivalent to 11.5 billion of today's rubles) building the new ice-free port city. Russia heavily fortified both Dalniy (Qingniwaqiao of Zhongshan District) and the Port Arthur naval base (Lüshunkou) before and after the

Boxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, the Boxer Insurrection, or the Yihetuan Movement, was an anti-foreign, anti-colonial, and anti-Christian uprising in China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, ...

of 1899-1901. Missionaries and converts were killed in the peninsula during the insurrection, although the massive massacres of ethnic Chinese Christians including Metrophanes, Chi Sung occurred at

. Western expeditionary forces suppressed the Boxers across the Yellow Sea in

Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...

. During the

of 1904-1905, the Liaodong Peninsula became a major battleground. Major-General Baron Anatoly Stoessel defended a besieged Port Arthur, for five months (August 1904 to January 1905), but the Japanese army, using long-distance fire, sank several Russian ships at the Port Arthur naval base in early December 1904. Admiral Eugene Alexeyeff was blamed for splitting precious resources shipped across the single tracked Trans-Siberian Railway and Manchurian Railway between Dalniy and Port Arthur. After the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrend ...

crippled the remaining Russian battleship ''

Sevastopol Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...

'' in three weeks of constant attacks, and explosives detonated in tunnels destroyed Port Arthur's remaining defenses in the final days of 1904, Russia negotiated a ceasefire and surrendered Port Arthur in January 1905. The

Treaty of Portsmouth A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal per ...

(signed 5 September 1905) ceded Port Arthur to Japan, which set up the

or ''Guandongzhou'' (), on roughly the southern half (Jinzhou District and south) of present-day Dalian. Japanese invested heavily in the region, which became the main trading port between

Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endodemonym "Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East ( Outer Manc ...

and Japan. Japan leased the area from

Manchukuo Manchukuo, officially the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of (Great) Manchuria after 1934, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Manchuria from 1932 until 1945. It was founded as a republic in 1932 after the Japanes ...

after establishing that puppet state in 1932. In 1937, as the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese ...

began, Japan enlarged and modernized the trade zone as two cities: the northern Dairen (Dalian) and the southern Ryojun (Lüshun or Port Arthur).

Post-World War II

With the unconditional

surrender of Japan The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was Jewel Voice Broadcast, announced by Emperor of Japan, Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally Japanese Instrument of Surrender, signed on 2 September 1945, End of World War II in A ...

in August–September 1945, Dairen passed to the

Soviets Soviet people ( rus, сове́тский наро́д, r=sovyétsky naród), or citizens of the USSR ( rus, гра́ждане СССР, grázhdanye SSSR), was an umbrella demonym for the population of the Soviet Union. Nationality policy in th ...

, whose

Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation The Soviet invasion of Manchuria, formally known as the Manchurian strategic offensive operation (russian: Манчжурская стратегическая наступательная операция, Manchzhurskaya Strategicheskaya Nastu ...

had liberated the city on 22 August 1945. The Soviets and

Chinese Communists The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...

cooperated to develop the city, relatively undamaged during the war, especially its industrial infrastructure and the port. The Soviet government rented the port and in 1945 the first Chinese Communist mayor of the new Lüda Administrative Office () was appointed. In 1950 the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

presented the city to the Chinese Communist government without any compensation. Dalian and Lüshun (former Port Arthur) merged as Lüda on 1 December 1950. From 12 March 1953 to 1 August 1954 it was a

direct-controlled municipality A direct-controlled municipality is the highest level classification for cities used by unitary states, with status equal to that of the provinces in the respective countries. A direct-controlled municipality is similar to, but not the same as, ...

and not part of Liaoning. Soviet troops left the city in 1955. After the Soviets left, the PRC made Lüda a major shipbuilding center. In 1981 the city was renamed Dalian, with Lüshunkou becoming a constituent district. In 1984 the Chinese Government designated the city a

Special Economic Zone A special economic zone (SEZ) is an area in which the business and trade laws are different from the rest of the country. SEZs are located within a country's national borders, and their aims include increasing trade balance, employment, increas ...

. At the time, Dalian was China's largest foreign-trade port.

1990 to present

The city was upgraded from a

prefecture-level city A prefecture-level city () or prefectural city is an administrative division of the People's Republic of China (PRC), ranking below a province and above a county in China's administrative structure. During the Republican era, many of China ...

to a

sub-provincial city A sub-provincial division () in China is a prefecture-level city governed by a province promoted by half a level. Thus, it is half a level under the provincial level (hence the name sub-provincial) but half a level above the prefecture-level. T ...

in May 1994, with no change in its administrative subdivisions. In the 1990s the city benefited from the attention of

Bo Xilai Bo Xilai (; born 3 July 1949) is a Chinese former politician who was convicted on bribery and embezzlement charges. He came to prominence through his tenures as Mayor of Dalian and then the governor of Liaoning. From 2004 to November 2007, h ...

(later Party secretary of

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a municipality in Southwest China. The official abbreviation of the city, "" (), was approved by the State Cou ...

). Bo served both as the mayor of the city and as one of the major leaders in the province; among other things, he banned motorcycles and planted large, lush parks in the city's many traffic circles. He also preserved much of Dalian's Japanese and

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries * Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and p ...

architectural heritage. He also worked as the former Minister of Commerce of China. Since 2007 Dalian has hosted the Annual Meeting of the New Champions ("Summer Davos"), organized by the

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...

, in alternating years with

Tianjin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total pop ...

. The venue for the forum is the Dalian International Conference Center in Donggang CBD. In 2008 about 1,000 people protested and blocked traffic as a response to the 2008 Tibetan anti-Chinese protests, and forced the temporary closure of the local

Carrefour Carrefour () is a French multinational retail and wholesaling corporation headquartered in Massy, France. The eighth-largest retailer in the world by revenue, it operates a chain of hypermarkets, groceries stores and convenience stores, whic ...

store. In 2010 one of the worst recorded oil-spills in China's history occurred in Dalian. The Dalian PX protest occurred on 14 August 2011. In June 2014, China's tenth state-level new area, the Dalian Jinpu New Area was officially established. On 5 August 2016, the Dalian

huabiao Huabiao () is a type of ceremonial column used in traditional Chinese architecture. ''Huabiao'' are traditionally erected in pairs in front of palaces and tombs. The prominence of their placement have made them one of the emblems of traditional ...

incident occurred. A huabiao in the center of

Xinghai Square Xinghai Square (), is a city square in Dalian, Liaoning Province, China. It is located to the north of Xinghai Bay. It covers a total area of , created entirely through land reclamation, making it the largest city square in the world. Its name li ...

was demolished, which was believed to be out of political reasons related to the downfall of Chinese politician

, who oversaw the construction of Xinghai Square and the central huabiao during his tenure as the mayor of Dalian. The site of the huabiao was later replaced with a musical fountain, the largest one in

Geography

Dalian, China, satellite image, LandSat-5, 2010-08-03

One of the most heavily developed industrial areas of China, Dalian municipal area today consists of Dalian proper and the smaller Lüshunkou (formerly Lüshun city, known in Western and Russian historic references as Port Arthur), about farther along the

. Historical references note that the Russian designed city of Dalniy (Alt. Dalney), on the south side of Dalian Bay was from Port Arthur/Lüshun (known today as Lüshunkou or literally, Lüshun Port). Dalian is located on

north of the Yellow Sea and roughly in the middle of the Liaodong peninsula at its narrowest neck or

isthmus An isthmus (; ; ) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea counterpart of an isthmu ...

. With a coastline of , it governs the majority of the Liaodong Peninsula and about 260 surrounding islands and reefs. It is seated at south-south-west of the

Yalu River The Yalu River, known by Koreans as the Amrok River or Amnok River, is a river on the border between North Korea and China. Together with the Tumen River to its east, and a small portion of Paektu Mountain, the Yalu forms the border between ...

, and its harbor entrance forms a sub-bay known as Dalian Bay.

Climate

Dalian has a

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal osci ...

-influenced

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezin ...

( Köppen ''Dwa''), characterized by warm wet summers due to the

East Asian monsoon The East Asian Monsoon is a monsoonal flow that carries moist air from the Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean to East Asia. It affects approximately one-third of the global population, influencing the climate of Japan, the Korean Peninsula, Taiwan, Ch ...

, and cold, windy, dry winters that reflect the influence of the vast Siberian anticyclone. Except for winter, the city experiences a one-month seasonal lag due to its position on the Liaodong Peninsula. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from in January to in August. Annual precipitation averages but is heavily concentrated in the summer months and can vary greatly from year to year. Due to the coastal location, the mean

diurnal temperature variation In meteorology, diurnal temperature variation is the variation between a high air temperature and a low temperature that occurs during the same day. Temperature lag Temperature lag is an important factor in diurnal temperature variation: peak da ...

annually is small, at . The monthly percent of possible sunshine ranges from 49% in July to 68% in September and October, with 2,740 hours of bright sunshine annually. The annual mean temperature is . Extremes since 1951 have ranged from on 4 January 1970 to on 14 July 2015.

Administration

Dalian is the second largest city of Liaoning province, after

, the provincial capital. The city of Dalian is governed by the Dalian Municipal People's Government.

Municipal government

The municipal government is located in the main building on the north side of People's Square on

Zhongshan Road Zhongshan, Chungshan, or Jhongshan () is a common name of Chinese roads, usually in honor of Sun Yat-sen, better known in Chinese as "Sun Chungshan (Zhongshan)", who is considered by many to be the "Father of Modern China". In Chinese cities, "Zho ...

, originally built as the Administrative Office of

, and other buildings in downtown Dalian. There are the Commerce, Foreign Economy & Trade, Health, Information Industry, Police, Religion, Science & Technology, Transportation and other city-level bureaus, which work closely with the corresponding agencies at the district level. There are, in addition, 4 national leading open zones (): * The Development Zone () * The Free Trade Zone () * The Hi-Tech Industrial Zone () * The Jinshitan (''"Golden Pebble Beach"'') National Holiday Resort ()

Administrative divisions

(see

Administrative divisions of the People's Republic of China The administrative divisions of China have consisted of several levels since ancient times, due to China's large population and geographical area. The constitution of China provides for three levels of government. However in practice, there a ...

) The city administers 7

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

, 2

county-level cities A county-level municipality (), county-level city or county city, formerly known as prefecture-controlled city (1949–1970: ; 1970–1983: ), is a county-level administrative division of the People's Republic of China. County-level ...

, and 1

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

: * There are 92 sub-districts and 69 towns and townships.Dalian Statistics Yearbook 2008 * Zhongshan, Xigang, Shahekou and Ganjingzi Districts make up the urban core. Changhai County is made up entirely of islands east of the peninsula.

Demographics

The population of Dalian according to the 2010 census totaled 6.69 million. The total registered population on household at year end 2014 was 5.943 million, with a net increase of 29,000 over the previous year.

Economy

Wang Jianlin - Annual Meeting of the New Champions Dalian 2009

The city has had a continuous annual double-digit percentage increase in GDP since 1992. In 2014, the city's GDP registered a 5.8% increase, reaching RMB 765.56 billion, while per capita GDP hit RMB 109,939. According to a nationwide appraisal by the National Bureau of Statistics, Dalian ranks eighth among Chinese cities in terms of overall strength. The city's main industries include machine manufacturing, petrochemicals and oil refining, and electronics.

Agriculture and aquaculture

Dalian was originally an agriculture and aquaculture-based area, which, after the opening of the ferry between

and Lüshun during the early 20th century, began to be populated by the farmers and fishers of

, across the Yellow Sea during the

Chuang Guandong ''Chuang Guandong'' (; IPA: ; literally "Crashing into Guandong" with ''Guandong'' being an older name for Manchuria) is descriptive of the rush of Han people into Manchuria, mainly from the Shandong Peninsula and Zhili, during the hundred-year pe ...

era.

Heavy, light and distribution industries

Dalian Liaoning China CNS Liaoning (CV-16)-02

Even before and during the

, the shipbuilding and locomotives industries were located in the city such as the companies which later became

Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Company Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Company (DSIC), located in Dalian, Liaoning province, China. It is part of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC), which has since been merged into China State Shipbuilding Corporation to form China's lar ...

and Dalian Locomotive & Rolling Stock Works (DLoco). After the WWII, Dalian became an important center of the heavy and light industries, including companies such as Dalian Heavy Industry Co., Dalian Chemical Group, and Wafangdian Bearing Co.; and of the distribution industry, such as the Dashang Group. Dalian Port is an important port for international trade. It has established trading and shipping links with more than 300 ports in 160 countries and regions of the world. There are over 100 international and domestic

container shipping Containerization is a system of intermodal freight transport using intermodal containers (also called shipping containers and International Organization for Standardization, ISO containers). Containerization is also referred as "Container St ...

routes. A harbor for oil tankers (the largest by tonnage in China), at the terminus of an oil

pipeline Pipeline may refer to: Electronics, computers and computing * Pipeline (computing), a chain of data-processing stages or a CPU optimization found on ** Instruction pipelining, a technique for implementing instruction-level parallelism within a s ...

from the Daqing oilfields, was completed in 1976. Dalian is the 6th largest port in China; and according to AAPA world port ranking data, Dalian is the 8th busiest port in the world by cargo tonnage in 2012, and the 12th busiest container port in the world by total number of TEUs handled in 2013. Accordingly, Dalian is a major center for

oil refineries An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, liquefi ...

, diesel engineering, and chemical production. Also completed in 1993 is a newer port called Dayaowan Port (), on Dagushan () Peninsula in the northern suburbs, specializing in import-export of mining and oil products. Together with the Dalian Railway Station, Dalian North Railway Station, Dalian International Airport and two major express roads to

( Shenda Expressway),

Changchun Changchun (, ; ), also romanized as Ch'angch'un, is the capital and largest city of Jilin Province, People's Republic of China. Lying in the center of the Songliao Plain, Changchun is administered as a , comprising 7 districts, 1 county and 3 c ...

( Changda Expressway),

( Hada Expressway) in the north and to

to the east, Dalian has been an important distribution center. Street view on Renmin Road, Dalian

Industrial zones

Dalian has been given many benefits by the Chinese government, including the title of "open-city" (1984), which allows it to receive considerable foreign investment (see

). The Development Zone was established in Jinzhou District, to which many Japanese companies, such as

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western can ...

Mitsubishi Electric , established on 15 January 1921, is a Japanese multinational electronics and electrical equipment manufacturing company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the core companies of Mitsubishi. The products from MELCO include elevators ...

, Nidec, Sanyo Electric and

Toshiba , commonly known as Toshiba and stylized as TOSHIBA, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Its diversified products and services include power, industrial and social infrastructure system ...

, followed by South Korean, American and European companies (such as Pfizer). In 2007,

Intel Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. It is the world's largest semiconductor chip manufacturer by revenue, and is one of the developers of the x86 seri ...

announced plans to build a semiconductor fabrication facility (commonly known as a fab) in the Development Zone, Dalian. It is Intel's first fab to be built at an entirely new site since 1992. The facility began operation in October 2010. Dalian also houses auto-manufacturing plants for

Chery Chery Automobile Co. Ltd., trading as Chery and sometimes known by the pinyin transcription of its Chinese name, ''Qirui'' (), is a Chinese state-owned automobile manufacturer headquartered in Wuhu, Anhui, China. Founded in 1997, it is cur ...

, Dongfeng Nissan Passenger Vehicle Company, and BYD Automobile (a production base for BYD K9 electric buses). Other zones in the city include the Dalian Economic and Technological Development Zone, Dalian Export Processing Zone, Dalian Free Trade Zone, and Dalian Hi-Tech Industrial Zone.

Financial and IT industry

Dalian is the financial center of

. There are the Dalian branches of China's five major banks:

Bank of China The Bank of China (BOC; ) is a Chinese majority state-owned commercial bank headquartered in Beijing and the fourth largest bank in the world. The Bank of China was founded in 1912 by the Republican government as China's central bank, repl ...

, Industrial & Commercial Bank of China,

China Construction Bank China Construction Bank Corporation (CCB) is one of the " big four" banks in China. In 2015, CCB was the 2nd largest bank in the world by market capitalization and 6th largest company in the world. The bank has approximately 13,629 domestic branc ...

Bank of Communications Bank of Communications Limited (BoComm) (; often abbreviated as ), is the fifth-largest bank in mainland China. Established in 1908, the Bank of Communications claims a long history in China and is one of the banks to have issued banknotes in mo ...

, and

Agricultural Bank of China Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), also known as AgBank, is one of the " Big Four" banks in China. It was founded on 10 July 1951, and has its headquarters in Dongcheng District, Beijing. It has branches throughout mainland China, Hong Kong, Lond ...

. Dalian City Commercial Bank is now called Bank of Dalian, which among other things handles processing of the Dalian Mingzhu IC Card for

public transportation Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typica ...

. Bank of Dalian has opened branches in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 2 ...

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...

and

, among five other cities. Founded in 1993,

Dalian Commodity Exchange The Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) () is a Chinese futures exchange based in Dalian, Liaoning province, China. It is a non-profit, self-regulating and membership legal entity established on February 28, 1993. Dalian Commodity Exchange trades in ...

(DCE) is the only

futures exchange A futures exchange or futures market is a central financial exchange where people can trade standardized futures contracts defined by the exchange. Futures contracts are derivatives contracts to buy or sell specific quantities of a commodity or f ...

in Northeast China. The futures industry leaped forward in its development. Among its 19 listed futures products approved by the

China Securities Regulatory Commission The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) is a government ministry of the State Council of the People's Republic of China (PRC). It is the main regulator of the securities industry in China. History China's first Securities Law was ...

(CSRC) are corn, corn starch, soybeans, soybean meal, soybean oil, RBD palm olein, polished round-grained rice,

linear low-density polyethylene Linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) is a substantially linear polymer (polyethylene), with significant numbers of short branches, commonly made by copolymerization of ethylene with longer-chain olefins. Linear low-density polyethylene differs ...

(LLDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polypropylene (PP),

ethylene glycol Ethylene glycol ( IUPAC name: ethane-1,2-diol) is an organic compound (a vicinal diol) with the formula . It is mainly used for two purposes, as a raw material in the manufacture of polyester fibers and for antifreeze formulations. It is an odo ...

(EG), ethenylbenzene (EB), metallurgical coke, coking coal, iron ore, egg, fiberboard and blockboard. 3 options are also listed for trading, which includes soybean meal, corn and iron ore options. In 2019, DCE achieved 1,331 million lots and RMB 68.92 trillion respectively in trading volume and turnover. According to the

Futures Industry Association The Futures Industry Association (FIA) is a trade association in the United States composed of futures commission merchants. A futures commission merchant is analogous to a broker; they are entities that accept orders and payment for commodity fu ...

(FIA) of the U.S., DCE was 11th largest exchange in the world by trading volume in 2019. Since the 1990s, Dalian has emphasized the development of the IT industry, especially in Dalian Hi-Tech Zone and

Dalian Software Park Dalian Software Park (), also called DLSP, is an industrial zone, created in 1998 in the western suburbs of Dalian City, Liaoning Province, China, where many of the world's large and medium-sized IT-related companies have set up shop to do soft ...

in the western suburbs near Dalian University of Technology. Dalian High-Tech Zone is the base of high-tech industries, housing more than 4,700 enterprises, including 80

Fortune Global 500 The ''Fortune'' Global 500, also known as Global 500, is an annual ranking of the top 500 corporations worldwide as measured by revenue. The list is compiled and published annually by '' Fortune'' magazine. Methodology Until 1989, it listed on ...

companies. Not only Chinese IT companies, such as DHC,

Hisoft HiSoft Technology International Limited was a multinational information technology and business process outsourcing company headquartered in Dalian, China. Founded in 1996, HiSoft was listed on the NASDAQ public exchange in 2010. In November 2 ...

and

Neusoft Group Neusoft Corporation is a Chinese multinational provider of software engineering services, Information Technology services, product engineering services, IT education and medical equipment headquartered in Shenyang, China. "Neusoft" is an ac ...

, but also American, European, Indian and Japanese IT companies are located there, including

Wipro Wipro Limited (formerly, Western India Palm Refined Oils Limited) is an Indian multinational corporation that provides information technology, consulting and business process services. Thierry Delaporte is serving as CEO and managing directo ...

Infosys Infosys Limited is an Indian multinational information technology company that provides business consulting, information technology and outsourcing services. The company was founded in Pune and is headquartered in Bangalore. Infosys is the ...

, IBM,

Dell Dell is an American based technology company. It develops, sells, repairs, and supports computers and related products and services. Dell is owned by its parent company, Dell Technologies. Dell sells personal computers (PCs), Server (computin ...

, HP,

Ericsson (lit. "Telephone Stock Company of LM Ericsson"), commonly known as Ericsson, is a Swedish multinational networking and telecommunications company headquartered in Stockholm. The company sells infrastructure, software, and services in informa ...

Panasonic formerly between 1935 and 2008 and the first incarnation of between 2008 and 2022, is a major Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation, headquartered in Kadoma, Osaka. It was founded by Kōnosuke Matsushita in 1918 as a lightbulb ...

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

Accenture Accenture plc is an Irish-American professional services company based in Dublin, specializing in information technology (IT) services and consulting. A ''Fortune'' Global 500 company, it reported revenues of $61.6 billion in 2022. Accentu ...

Oracle An oracle is a person or agency considered to provide wise and insightful counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. As such, it is a form of divination. Description The word '' ...

Hitachi () is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Nissan ''zaibatsu'' and later DKB Group and Fuyo G ...

and

Cisco Cisco Systems, Inc., commonly known as Cisco, is an American-based multinational digital communications technology conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develops, manufactures, and sells networking hardware, ...

. Nine professional

business incubators Business incubator is an organization that helps startup companies and individual entrepreneurs to develop their businesses by providing a fullscale range of services starting with management training and office space and ending with venture c ...

are also located in the area, including the Hi-tech Business Incubator, animation and software incubators, with over 400 companies incubated. Currently, the " Lüshun South Road Software Industry Belt" Plan is proceeding, including Dalian Software Park Phase 3.

's Fab 68 is located in Dalian. The plan was announced on 26 March 2007, and operations started on 26 October 2010. It is Intel's first chip-manufacturing fabrication in

Tourism

Dalian is a popular destination among domestic tourists and foreign visitors, especially from Japan, South Korea and Russia. Its mild climate and multiple beaches as well as its importance in the modern history of China have attracted tourists. Some of the most famous beaches are Jinshitan Golden Coast () beach, Fujiazhuang () beach, Bangchuidao () beach, Xinghai Park () beach, Xinghai Bay () beach, and Xiajiahezi () beach. In 2007, it was one of the three cities named "China's best tourist city", along with

Hangzhou Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, whi ...

and

Chengdu Chengdu (, ; simplified Chinese: 成都; pinyin: ''Chéngdū''; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ), alternatively romanized as Chengtu, is a sub-provincial city which serves as the capital of the Chinese provi ...

, recognized by the National Tourism Administration and the

United Nations World Tourism Organization The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the United Nations specialized agency entrusted with the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. Its headquarters are in Madrid, Spain. UNWTO is the leading internat ...

Four inner-city districts

* Zhongshan Square :Originally designed by Russians in the 19th century, Zhongshan Square () is especially noted for the several classical buildings located around the square built during the first half of the 20th century by the Japanese. * Laohutan Ocean Park: the park contains the Polar Region Marine Animals World, the Coral Aquarium, and the World of Birds. The white whale and dolphin show is a major attraction in the Polar Region Marine Animals World. The Tigers Sculpture Square is nearby, whose tiger sculpture is the symbol of Tiger Beach (). A retired ''Anshan''-class destroyer ''Taiyuan'' is open to visitors. Dalian Laohutan Ocean Park

: situated at the Xinghai Bay, Xinghai Square () was built at the centennial of the City of Dalian (1998) and is the largest city square in the world. * Heishijiao Geological Park and Dalian Natural History Museum * Sunasia Ocean World * Dalian Forest Zoo * Bangchuidao Scenic Area: a well-maintained park used as a State Guesthouse since 1960, the Bangchuidao Scenic Area is now open to the public with upgraded features including lavish greens, Chinese and Western style villas, hot spring, tennis courts, badminton courts, a recreation center, a golf course and the Bangchuidao beach. The Bangchui Island (, named for an

islet An islet is a very small, often unnamed island. Most definitions are not precise, but some suggest that an islet has little or no vegetation and cannot support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/or hard coral; may be permanen ...

in the shape of an ancient washing tool Bangchui) can be seen from the beach. As a State Guesthouse, the scenic area has received numerous Chinese and foreign leaders and high-profile officials, including Zhou Enlai,

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CCP ...

Jiang Zemin Jiang Zemin (17 August 1926 – 30 November 2022) was a Chinese politician who served as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002, as chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to 2004, and as p ...

Hu Jintao Hu Jintao (born 21 December 1942) is a Chinese politician who served as the 16–17th general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 2002 to 2012, the 6th president of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from 2003 to 2013, and ...

Xi Jinping Xi Jinping ( ; ; ; born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and thus as the paramount leader of China, si ...

, Kim Jong-un,

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (; ; born Heinz Alfred Kissinger, May 27, 1923) is a German-born American politician, diplomat, and geopolitical consultant who served as United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor under the presid ...

Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin ( rus, Борис Николаевич Ельцин, p=bɐˈrʲis nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈjelʲtsɨn, a=Ru-Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.ogg; 1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician wh ...

Gerhard Schröder Gerhard Fritz Kurt "Gerd" Schröder (; born 7 April 1944) is a German lobbyist and former politician, who served as the chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. From 1999 to 2004, he was also the Leader of the Social Democratic Party of German ...

Juan Antonio Samaranch Juan Antonio Samaranch y Torelló, 1st Marquess of Samaranch ( Catalan: ''Joan Antoni Samaranch i Torelló'', ; 17 July 1920 – 21 April 2010) was a Spanish sports administrator under the Franco regime (1973–1977) who served as the seventh ...

and so on. * Dalian Sightseeing Tower Dalian Modern History Museum

* Donggang Music Fountain * Fujiazhuang Beach

Jinzhou District and Development Zone (in the northern suburbs)

* Dahei Mountain * Jinshitan National Holiday Resort and the Discoveryland () is composed of eastern peninsula, western peninsula, open ground between two peninsulas and the Golden Coast beach. Major sightseeing points include, Golden Pebble Waxworks Museum, Geological Museum, Coastal National Geopark, International Vehicle Campsite, Tang Dynasty Hot Spring Resort, Golden Rock Park, Wanfuding Park, China Martial Arts Hall, Discoveryland Theme Park, Mao Zedong Badge Exhibition Hall, Model Movie & TV Art Center, Golden Pebble Hunting Club, Golden Pebble Equestrianism Base, Golden Pebble International Convention Center & Resort, Golden Pebble Golf Club, and Golden Gulf Golf Course. Several themed events, such as Dalian International Beach Carnival, International Winter Swimming Festival and Grape Festival, take place in Jinshitan annually. :The Discoveryland Theme Park (, also translated as "the Discovery Kingdom") was built in 2006 and covers an area of . It was designed by Romero Petrilli VanRell Associates who participated in the design of the Disney theme park.

Lüshunkou District (in the southwestern suburbs)

* Lüshun Museum * Lüshun Railway Station * East Jiguan Mountain (), 203 Hill and

Shuishiying Shuishiying () were the camp sites or office buildings of the Naval Forces () during the later days of the Qing Dynasty of China. The most famous Shuishiying was in Lüshunkou District, Dalian, Liaoning, where the ceasefire treaty of the Battle o ...

Meeting Place :The fiercest battle site and the signing site of the ceasefire treaty, of the Battle of Lüshun during the

(1904–05). * Japanese and Russian Prison Site Museum in Lüshun :The prison was built by Russians in 1902 and later expanded by the Japanese. During World War II, the prison was used to detain people of various nationalities who were against the Japanese invasion.

An Jung-geun Ahn Jung-geun, sometimes spelled Ahn Joong-keun (; 2 September 1879 – 26 March 1910; baptismal name: Thomas Ahn ), was a Korean-independence activist, nationalist, and pan-Asianist. He is famous for assassination of Itō Hirobumi, the first ...

, the Korean independence activist who assassinated

Itō Hirobumi was a Japanese politician and statesman who served as the first Prime Minister of Japan. He was also a leading member of the ''genrō'', a group of senior statesmen that dictated Japanese policy during the Meiji era. A London-educated samur ...

, was imprisoned and killed there. * Lüshun Snake Museum, and Lüshun Bird Port and Snake Island Reservation * Hengshan Temple and Longwangtang Cherry Blossom Park :Hengshan Temple () is near Longwangtang Reservoir (). The temple dates back to the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a wa ...

, and was rebuilt in 2003. Hengshan Temple

Pulandian District

* Anbo Hotspring and Ski Course (), in Pulandian District

Wafandian

* Changxing Island International Golf Course, in Wafangdian

Zhuanghe

* Bingyu Valley Scenic Area and Buyun Mountain Hot Spring (), in Zhuanghe

Changhai County

* Islands of Changhai County

Hot Spring and Ski Resorts

There are various hot spring hotels in Dalian. Notable ones include Laotieshan Hot Spring Hotel in Lüshunkou District, Tang Dynasty Hot Spring Resort in Jinshitan, Minghu Hot Spring Hotel in Wafangdian, Chengyuan Hot Spring Villa in Ganjingzi District, and Tianmu Hot Spring Hotel in Lüshunkou District. Skiing has become increasingly popular in Dalian. Famous ski resorts are Linhai Ski Resort in Ganjingzi District, Anbo Ski Resort in Pulandian District, Minghu Ski Resort & Minghu International Skiing Holiday Village in Wafangdian, and Dalian Happy Snow World in Ganjingzi District near the airport.

Environment

Ecological conservation

Despite being in a period of economic and industrial growth, Dalian has placed an emphasis on environmental protection. Dalian's ecological restoration and protection efforts are ongoing and expanding. In 2021, Dalian set a five-year-plan for the marine environment that included targets for conserving populations of the endangered back-faced spoonbill. In 2019, 49 nests were built for the black-faced spoonbill on nearby uninhabited islands. There has also been conservation and rescue efforts targeting spotted seal populations. Dalian also maintains the National Spotted Seal Nature Reserve within Lioadong Bay. This reserve is home to a spotted seal population and is a breeding ground for multiple marine species.

Environmental issues

In 2001, the

United Nations Environment Programme The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is responsible for coordinating responses to environmental issues within the United Nations system. It was established by Maurice Strong, its first director, after the United Nations Conference on ...

awarded the Dalian Municipal Government for its outstanding contribution to the protection of the environment.Dalian Municipal Government of China, one of 18 Individuals and Organizations, to Receive United Nations Environment Award – United Nations Environment Programme
. Unep.org (28 May 2001). Retrieved on 2 January 2013. The average content of the four pollutants in the air reached Class II of National Ambient Air Quality Standards and there were 353 days with

Air Pollution Index The Air Pollution Index (API; ms, Indeks Pencemaran Udara) is a simple and generalized way to describe the air quality, which is used in Malaysia. It is calculated from several sets of air pollution data and was formerly used in mainland China and ...

(API) over Class II (Good), including 108 excellent days with Class I (Superior). Dalian frequently ranks Grade 2 for air pollution according to State Environmental Protection Administration. However, the environmental effects of economic growth are of concern, according to Dalian Environmental Protection Agency, during the first half of 2011, respirable particles in the air increased significantly, with an average 40% higher than 2010. The water quality of offshore marine space remained stable overall. The annual average content of monitoring indicators for water quality met Class-II of the National Seawater Quality Standard, with the exception of Inorganic Nitrogen in Dalian Bay and the city's southern coast. The water quality of drinking water sources is considered good and complies with Class-III of Environmental Quality Standards for Surface Water. Heishijiao Park, Dalian

Recent events have had a major environmental impact on the city. In July 2010, the explosion of two petroleum pipelines released 11,000 barrels of oil into the Yellow Sea, according to official statements. Rick Steiner, an American marine conservationist working with

Greenpeace Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by Irving Stowe and Dorothy Stowe, immigrant environmental activists from the United States. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth ...

, says that the figure could be upwards of 400,000. It was reported as the largest oil spill to occur in China,1st details on China oil spill's cause emerge
. The China Post (24 July 2010). Retrieved on 2 January 2013. and involved 2,000 firefighters. The oil spill stretched for at least . 800 fishing boats were mobilized for the cleanup. The incident caused President

and Premier

Wen Jiabao Wen Jiabao (born 15 September 1942) is a retired Chinese politician who served as the Premier of the State Council from 2003 to 2013. In his capacity as head of government, Wen was regarded as the leading figure behind China's economic policy ...

to intervene, and Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang moved in to help direct the rescue work.China port city cleans up pollution belt after fire – People's Daily Online
. English.peopledaily.com.cn (18 July 2010). Retrieved on 2 January 2013. A researcher with the China Environmental Science Research Institute, said that "the impact on marine life and on humans – as the pollution enters the food chain – could last 10 years."Martin, Dan (22 July 2010
Clean-up crews use bare hands against China oil spill
. AFP via mysinchew.com This has compounded aquatic pollution, affecting the city's fishing industry. In August 2011, a

dike Dyke (UK) or dike (US) may refer to: General uses * Dyke (slang), a slang word meaning "lesbian" * Dike (geology), a subvertical sheet-like intrusion of magma or sediment * Dike (mythology), ''Dikē'', the Greek goddess of moral justice * Dikes, ...

protecting the petrochemical Fujia Factory in Jinzhou District was breached due to a typhoon. Authorities have ordered the plant to be shut down. Around 12,000 residents protested as the factory, which originally was intended to be based in

Xiamen Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong'an, ...

, did not receive official approval to operate in Dalian.Thousands protest against Chinese chemical plant
. BusinessWeek (14 August 2011). Retrieved on 2 January 2013. Municipal authorities ruled that the facility must move, leaving taxpayers to pay the expensive cost of relocation.Tang Hao (6 September 2011
Public storm in Dalian
. chinadialogue. Retrieved on 2 January 2013. Concerns have been raised over mounting traffic due to "bad urban design" and that the growing rate of car ownership is affecting air quality.In Fast-Growing China, a Warning About When Prosperity Isn't Enough – Christina Larson – International
. The Atlantic. Retrieved on 2 January 2013. The United States

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy o ...

have raised concern about rising traffic in Dalian stating that "rapid growth of traffic in Dalian and in similar Chinese cities will repeat the air quality and energy consumption mistakes of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

and other U.S. cities, if not better managed."Energy Futures and Urban Air Pollution: Challenges for China and the United States
. Nap.edu (1 June 2003). Retrieved on 2 January 2013.

Transportation

Dalian Liaoning China Historical-Tramway-01

Local transportation

Cycling is not as popular in Dalian as in other Chinese cities because of the hilly roads. Dalian is also one of the many cities in China where there are few motorcycles in the downtown core, where motorcycle riding is prohibited by the local law. The city has a comprehensive bus system and an efficient metro system. As of November 2015, the

Dalian Metro The Dalian Metro is a rapid transit system in the city of Dalian, Liaoning, China. The metro opened on 1 May 2003. The system currently in operation consists of 5 lines: Line 1, Line 2, Line 3, Line 12, and Line 13. Network Line 1 Line 1, ...

consists of the underground Line 1, Line 2, and the overground Line 12 (Formerly called line R2) and Line 3. New lines and expansion of the metro system are under way. The Dalian Tram system is the second oldest in China. Most of the public transportation in the city can be accessed using the Mingzhu IC Card ().

Domestic and international

In 2005 Dalian expanded the international airport,

Dalian Zhoushuizi International Airport Dalian Zhoushuizi International Airport is the airport serving the city of Dalian in Liaoning Province, China. It is located in Ganjingzi District, about northwest of the city center. In 2018 the airport handled 18,758,171 passengers, making ...

, with direct flights to the most major cities in China, and to cities in South Korea and Japan as well as countries in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...

. In 2014, the airport was the 20th busiest airport in China with 13,551,223 passengers. The airport is the hub of

Dalian Airlines Dalian Airlines Co Ltd is an airline based at Dalian Zhoushuizi International Airport in Dalian, Liaoning, China. It is jointly owned by Air China, investing RMB 800 million in cash to hold an 80% stake in the new company, and Dalian Baoshui Zh ...

. The city's location means that train trips to most Chinese cities outside China's northeastern region require changing trains in

. With the high-speed rail system, trips from Dalian to

can be completed in 1.5 hours, to

2.5 hours and to

3.5 hours. The city has two railway stations, namely Dalian railway station and Dalian North railway station , the latter being part of the

Harbin–Dalian high-speed railway The Harbin–Dalian high-speed railway or Hada High-Speed Railway () is a high-speed rail line connecting Harbin, Heilongjiang and Dalian, Liaoning. Construction work began on August 23, 2007 and the first commercial services began operating in De ...

. In addition to local and express bus services to Beijing and other areas in the northeast, Dalian is connected by passenger ship service to neighboring coastal cities, including

, Penglai and

Dongying Dongying (), a prefecture-level city, lies on the northern (Bohai Sea) coast of Shandong province, People's Republic of China. As of the 2020 census, 2,193,518 people resided within its administrative area of and 1,188,656 in the built-up ar ...

, as well as

Incheon Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...

, South Korea.

Culture

In 2006, Dalian was selected as the most liveable city in China according to ''

''.

Dalian dialect

Standard Mandarin Standard Chinese ()—in linguistics Standard Northern Mandarin or Standard Beijing Mandarin, in common speech simply Mandarin, better qualified as Standard Mandarin, Modern Standard Mandarin or Standard Mandarin Chinese—is a modern standar ...

is usually spoken in Dalian because it is a city with people from various locations. But Dalian natives use Dalian dialect, which belongs to the

Jiaoliao Mandarin Jiaoliao or Jiao–Liao Mandarin () is a primary dialect of Mandarin Chinese, spoken on the Jiaodong Peninsula, from Yantai to Qingdao, Ganyu District in northeastern Jiangsu and the Liaodong Peninsula, from Dalian to Dandong, and in Mish ...

subgroup spoken in parts of

and

Liaoning Liaoning () is a coastal province in Northeast China that is the smallest, southernmost, and most populous province in the region. With its capital at Shenyang, it is located on the northern shore of the Yellow Sea, and is the northernmost ...

provinces. Most of the residents of Dalian were farmers and fishermen who had come from Shandong Province in a large population move, the ''

'', during which era Dalian was occupied by the Japanese as the

. The Dalian dialect incorporates a few loanwords from Japanese and

(very rare in Chinese), reflecting the history of foreign occupation. Dalian dialect is mostly distinguishable from

based on a low-falling Yinping (31), and it is often referred to as being "oyster flavored" () by the locals.

Cuisine

Dalian cuisine is a branch of

Shandong cuisine Shandong cuisine (), more commonly known in Chinese as Lu cuisine, is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of Chinese cuisine and one of the Four Great Traditions (). It is derived from the native cooking style of Shandong Province, a norther ...

, with influence from

Northeastern Chinese cuisine Northeastern Chinese cuisine is a style of Chinese cuisine in Northeast China. While many dishes originated from Shandong cuisine and Manchu cuisine, it is also influenced by the cuisines of Russia, Beijing, Mongolia, and North Korea. It parti ...

, and is widely known for its unique style of seafood dishes. The variety of seafood in Dalian includes fish, prawns, clams, crabs, scallops, sea urchins, oysters, sea cucumbers, mussels, lobsters,

conch Conch () is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-sized sea snails. Conch shells typically have a high spire and a noticeable siphonal canal (in other words, the shell comes to a noticeable point at both ends). In North Ame ...

es,

abalone Abalone ( or ; via Spanish , from Rumsen ''aulón'') is a common name for any of a group of small to very large marine gastropod molluscs in the family Haliotidae. Other common names are ear shells, sea ears, and, rarely, muttonfish or m ...

algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular m ...

razor clams A razor is a bladed tool primarily used in the removal of body hair through the act of shaving. Kinds of razors include straight razors, safety razors, disposable razors, and electric razors. While the razor has been in existence since before ...

, urechis unicinctus, mantis shrimps,

jellyfish Jellyfish and sea jellies are the informal common names given to the medusa-phase of certain gelatinous members of the subphylum Medusozoa, a major part of the phylum Cnidaria. Jellyfish are mainly free-swimming marine animals with umbrel ...

and so on. During the winter, many seafoods such as clams, mussels and abalone gain the most fat. Colorful Snowflake Scallops () is a local seafood dish, where egg white is made into snowflake-shape to embrace the scallops, with seasonal greens, carrot and hot pepper cut into small pieces as decorations on top. Another popular local dish is Salted Fish with Corn Cake (), where steamed or fried corn cake is served with fried salted fish. Legend goes that, in the old days fishermen going out fishing in the morning couldn't return home to have lunch, so they baked fresh fish to eat with corn cakes, and the habit passed down from generation to generation and eventually became a famous food among local people. Dalian-style Grilled Squid () is also a local delicacy. It originated in Dalian, where the squid is produced. It is made by frying the squid on an iron plate, then cutting the squid into sections with a spatula, and sprinkling it with special sauce. Menzi () is a traditional local snack. A protein-rich starch paste coagulated from an extract of potatoes is cut into pieces and fried on a pan to create a crisp cover. A mixed seasoning of smashed garlic, sesame, and sauces is added on eating. Other popular local specialties include seafood noodles, roast full prawns, salt baked conches, lantern-shaped steamed abalone, and so on.

Theaters

Well-known theaters in Dalian are: Dalian People's Culture Club (mainly for

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

), Hongji Grand Stage (for

Beijing Opera Peking opera, or Beijing opera (), is the most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines music, vocal performance, mime, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and became fully developed and recogniz ...

), Working People's Theater-Doudou Grand Stage (, mainly for

Errenzhuan ''Errenzhuan'' or two-people rotation () is a genre of local folk dance and song from Northeast China, usually involving two performers (one male and one female). The dance uses folded fans or square-shaped red handkerchiefs, which are twirled as ...

) and Development Area Grand Theater ().

Sports

Sports play a big role in the local culture. Dalian's former

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, Kick (football), kicking a Football (ball), ball to score a Goal (sport), goal. Unqualified, Football (word), the word ''football'' normally means the form of football tha ...

club,

Dalian Shide Dalian Shide was a professional Chinese football club based in Dalian, Liaoning province, China who played in China's football league system between 1955 and 2012. Their home stadiums were the 55,843 capacity Dalian People's Stadium and then la ...

(formerly known as Dalian Wanda as the club was originally sponsored by the

Dalian Wanda Group Wanda Group (), or the Dalian Wanda Group (), is a Chinese multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in Dalian, Liaoning and headquartered in Beijing. It is a private property developer and owner of ...

), achieved a total of eight titles from China's top-tier football league, the

Chinese Jia-A League The National Football Jia A League (simplified Chinese, commonly known as Jia-A, was the highest tier of professional football in the People's Republic of China, during 1994 through 2003, operating under the auspices of the Chinese Football Associ ...

and the later rebranded

Chinese Super League The Chinese Football Association Super League, commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the China Ping An Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional football in ...

, and was widely considered one of the most successful clubs in Chinese football history. In the

Asian Football Confederation The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal in some countries/territories in Asia and Oceania. It has 47 member countries most of which are located in Asia. Australia, formerly in ...

, the club reached the

1997–98 Asian Club Championship The 1997–98 Asian Club Championship was the 17th edition of the annual international club football competition held in the AFC region (Asia). It determined that year's club champion of association football in Asia. Pohang Steelers of South K ...

and 2000–01 Asian Cup Winners' Cup finals. Several of China's greatest players, including Sun Jihai, Hao Haidong and Li Ming, made their names with

. Dalian also produced many top Chinese football players thanks to its youth training system and grassroots football culture. As of the 2014 season of the

, out of the 448 registered Chinese players, a total of 71 players are from Dalian. Therefore, Dalian earned its nickname of China's "Football City" (), and a giant football statue was placed in the Labor Park near downtown Dalian in its honor. Current football clubs in the city are Dalian Pro playing in the

and Dalian Pro W.F.C. playing in the Chinese Women's Football League. Both of their home stadiums are the Dalian Sports Centre Stadium. The 60,663-capacity Dalian Sports Centre Stadium, the 30,777-capacity Jinzhou Stadium, the 30,000-capacity Puwan Stadium and the 8,000-capacity Dalian Medical University Stadium are notable stadiums in Dalian. Other popular sports enjoyed by the local Dalianese include swimming, skiing, golf, cycling, bowling and billiards. The government organizes various events every year in Dalian, like marathon, tennis and so on. As part of the 2013 National Games of China in

in 2013, Dalian was a host city for 12 events, including

synchronized swimming Synchronized swimming (in British English, synchronised swimming) or artistic swimming is a sport where swimmers perform a synchronized choreographed routine, accompanied by music. The sport is governed internationally by FINA (the ''Fédératio ...

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ...

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, sh ...

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' ( sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' ( iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen ...

and

canoeing Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. Common meanings of the term are limited to when the canoeing is the central purpose of the activity. Broader meanings include when it is combined with other acti ...

. In February 2018,

decided to take over Dalian Pro (then Dalian Yifang), after a lapse of 20 years before Wanda Group decided to reinvest in a Dalianese football club. Wanda Group announced a long-term investment plan to help Dalian build more advanced football infrastructure, improve on youth training, and revitalize local football culture and Chinese football culture as a whole.

City-wide festivals and events

, Dalian Xinghai Convention & Exhibitions Center, the Dalian World Expo Center and the hotels on Renmin Road are the main places where Dalian's major annual events are held. Every year from January to February, the Bingyugou Ice Lantern Festival is held in Bingyugou Scenic Area in Zhuanghe City. The event features a large number of ice sculptures, snow sculptures and colorful ice lanterns. Visitors can also participate in a series of ice-sports including ice-skating, ice hockey and iceboating. From late April to May, the Lüshun International Cherry Blossom Festival is held. The main site is 203 Hill, and the other site is Longwangtang Cherry Blossom Park. It is said that the very first cherry trees were planted by Japanese soldiers stationed in Lüshun during World War II, in order to ease their homesickness. Today, the 203 Hill site has more than 3000 cherry trees, and boasts to be the largest

cherry blossom A cherry blossom, also known as Japanese cherry or sakura, is a flower of many trees of genus ''Prunus'' or ''Prunus'' subg. ''Cerasus''. They are common species in East Asia, including China, Korea and especially in Japan. They generally ...

park in China with the most varieties. Each May, the Dalian International Walking Festival takes place. The purpose of the festival is to foster health and peace for the whole community. It is widely popular among citizens and attracts many foreign participants. Dalian is the only city in China recognized by the IML Walking Association. Four different routes of , , , and are provided for participants, with the longest route going from

along Binhai Road to Laohutan Ocean Park, Bangchuidao Scenic Area and finally reaching Dalian International Conference Center. Starting from 2012, Jinshitan National Holiday Resort also serves as a venue for the festival. Every May, Dalian International Marathon is held. With the first marathon held in 1987, it is one of the four oldest marathon races in China. The main venue is the Jinshitan National Holiday Resort. Every June, the China International Software & Information Service Fair is held in Dalian World Expo Center. Officials from overseas government departments, CEOs of World Top 500, well-known consulting firms and overseas IT associations attend the fair each year. Dalian International Beer Festival takes place in

every year from July to August. It is similar to

Oktoberfest The Oktoberfest (; bar, Wiesn, Oktobafest) is the world's largest Volksfest, featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival. It is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. It is a 16- to 18-day folk festival running from mid- or ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and H ...

and is a widely popular event in the city. Activities of the Beer Festival include exhibitions by beer manufacturers, a beer disco plaza, a beer culture exhibition, a beer drinking contest, a photography contest, the Beer Industry Summit, and a beer quiz. Dalian International Automotive Exhibition is held in August in Dalian Xinghai Convention & Exhibitions Center and Dalian World Expo Center. The annual Dalian International Fashion Festival is held in September in Dalian Xinghai Convention & Exhibitions Center and Dalian World Expo Center. For the past decade, the festival has been attracting the world's top fashion designers, businessmen and models to Dalian. Arrangement for the show includes various theme activities including the Garment Export Fair, fashion exhibitions, fashion competitions and a model contest.

Inter-governmental

Japan maintains a branch office for its

Consulate General A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...

of Japan at Shenyang and a

JETRO is an Independent Administrative Institution established by Japan Export Trade Research Organization as a nonprofit corporation in Osaka in February 1952, reorganized under the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) in 1958 (later the ...

office in Dalian, reflecting a relatively large Japanese population. Japan Chamber of Commerce & Industry has about 700 corporate members. Those Japanese who had lived in Dalian before the War have organized the Dalian Society.

Religion

, Dalian had 29 Christian churches (27 of them Protestant, 2 of them Catholic), 10 mosques, 34 Buddhist temples, and 7 Taoist temples, according to the statistics of the city government. Taoist temples can be found in various districts including downtown Dalian (Hua Temple in Zhongshan Park), in Lüshunkou District (Longwang Temple), and in Jinzhou District (Jinlong Temple in Daweijia, Xiangshui Temple at the foot of Dahei Mountain, and Zhenwu Temple in Liangjiadian). Buddhist temples are in downtown Dalian (Songshan Temple on Tangshan Street and Lianhuashan Temple on Yingchun Road), on the northern side of Anzi Mountain (Anshan Temple), at Daheishi (Thousand-Hand Buddha & 500 Luohan Statues), in Lüshunkou District (Hengshan Temple at Longwangtang), and in Jinzhou District (Guanyinge-Shengshui Temple on Dahei Mountain). Dalian Catholic Church (built in 1926) is in downtown Dalian, west of Dalian Railway Station. Protestant churches are near Zhongshan Square ( Yuguang Street Church, the former Dalian Anglican Church, built in 1928 in the British Consulate General's premises by the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church record ...

and Anglican Church of Japan jointly), on Changjiang Road ( Beijing Street Church, now called Cheng-en Church, originally built in 1914 by the Danish Lutheran Church), on Xi'an Road (Christian Church for Korean Chinese and South Koreans), east of the airport (the newly built Harvest Church, which can seat 4000 people), in Jinzhou (the newly built Jinzhou Church) and in Lüshunkou District (Lüshun Church, a former Danish Lutheran church). Dalian Mosque is on Beijing Street.

Notable people

* Xia Deren (), former mayor from October 2006 to May 2009. *

Li Changchun Li Changchun (born February 1, 1944) is a retired Chinese politician and a former senior leader of the Chinese Communist Party. He served on the Politburo Standing Committee, the Communist Party's top leadership council, and as the top official ...

(), politician, former member of the

Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party The Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), officially the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, is a committee consisting of the top leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Histor ...

. *

(), former mayor (February 1993–August 2000), removed from Politburo under corruption charges. * Lai Yawen (), retired middle blocker, former captain and current team manager of the

China women's national volleyball team The China women's national volleyball team () represents the China, People's Republic of China in international volleyball competitions and friendly matches governed by Chinese Volleyball Association. They are one of the leading and most success ...

. *

Sun Jiadong Sun Jiadong (; born 8 April 1929) is a Chinese aerospace engineer who is an expert in carrier rocket and satellite technology. He has long served as a leader of Chinese satellite projects, and is currently the chief designer for the Chinese Lunar ...

(), aerospace engineer and recipient of the " Two Bombs, One Satellite" Meritorious Award. * Qi Faren (), aerospace engineer and chief designer of the Chinese spacecraft Shenzhou. * Zhao Xiaozhe (), vice admiral of the PLA * Liu Yanan (), retired middle blocker of the

. * Yang Hao (), retired outside spiker of the

. *

Hui Ruoqi Hui Ruoqi (; born 4 March 1991) is a former Chinese volleyball player. She is the Outside Hitter and the fifteenth Captain of China women's national volleyball team, and plays for Jiangsu. She retired in 2018. Early life On March 4, 1991, Hui ...

(), retired outside spiker and former captain of the

. * Li Yongbo (), retired badminton player and former head coach of the China National Badminton Team. * Liu Changchun (), sprinter, first athlete to represent China in competition at the Olympic Games. * Qu Yunxia (), middle-distance athlete. * Zhang Wenxiu (), hammer thrower. * Zhang Enhua (), footballer. * Sun Jihai (), footballer. * Bi Fujian (), director, host and professor. * (), actor. *

Yu Nan Yu Nan (, born 5 September 1978) is a Chinese actress. Born in Dalian, Yu Nan studied at the Beijing Film Academy, where she graduated in 1999. Career Yu Nan started acting at the age of 4, playing role of a little girl with a handkerchief ti ...

(), actress. * Lou Yixiao (), actress. * Dong Jie (), actress. * Lin Peng (), actress. * Yang Hongji (),

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in ...

singer and professor. * Sun Nan (), singer. * Kelly Yu (), singer. * Xue Jiye (), painter and sculptor. * Toshiko Fujita (), Japanese voice actress. * Song Weilong (), actor and model. * Yang Zhuo (), professional Wushu fighter and

kickboxer Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general ...

. * Yu Xiaonan (), Chinese Canadian ballet dancer. * Sun Yu (), badminton player. * Harry Triguboff, Jewish Australian businessman. *

Education

23 general institutions of higher education (and another 7 privately run colleges), 108 secondary vocational schools, 80 ordinary middle high schools, 1,049 schools for nine-year compulsory education and 1,432 kindergartens in Dalian. The students on campus of all levels (including kindergartens) totaled 1108 thousand. There are the following schools of higher education and research centers:

Colleges and universities

* Dalian University of Technology (

Project 985 Project 985 () was a terminated project that was first announced by General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Jiang Zemin at the 100th anniversary of Peking University on May 4, 1998, to promote the development and reputation of the Ch ...

, Project 211, founded in 1949) * Dalian Maritime University (Project 211, founded in 1909) *

Dongbei University of Finance and Economics Dongbei University of Finance & Economics (DUFE; ; ''Dongbei'' means Northeast) is a public university in Dalian, Liaoning province, Northeast China. Home to over 20,000 students, it is one of the oldest and largest modern universities in Dalian ...

(Founded in 1952) * Liaoning Normal University (Founded in 1951) * Dalian University (Founded in 1987) * Dalian Jiaotong University (Founded in 1956) * Dalian Medical University (Founded in 1947) * Dalian Minzu University (Founded in 1997) *

Dalian Ocean University Dalian Ocean University (, Dalian Fisheries University before 2010) is a university in Dalian Dalian () is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the pr ...

(Founded in 1952) * Dalian Polytechnic University (Founded in 1958) * Dalian University of Foreign Languages (Founded in 1964) * Dalian Naval Academy of the

PLA Navy The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN; ), also known as the People's Navy, Chinese Navy, or PLA Navy, is the maritime service branch of the People's Liberation Army. The PLAN traces its lineage to naval units fighting during the Chine ...

(Founded in 1949) * Liaoning Police College (Founded in 1960) * Dalian Neusoft University of Information (Founded in 2000)

Research centers

* Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics of the

High schools

Notable high schools include: * Dalian No. 1 High School () * Dalian No. 8 High School () * Dalian No. 12 High School () * Dalian No. 20 High School () * Dalian No. 23 High School () * Dalian No. 24 High School () * Dalian Yuming Senior High School () * The High School Affiliated to Liaoning Normal University () * Dalian Lüshun Senior High School () * Dalian Jinzhou Senior High School () * Dalian Haiwan Senior High School () * Wafangdian Senior High School () * Zhuanghe Senior High School () * Changhai County Senior High School ()

International schools

* Japanese School of Dalian * * Dalian American International School * Dalian Maple Leaf International School

International relations

Dalian is twinned with: *

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, Australia *

Adjara Adjara ( ka, აჭარა ''Ach’ara'' ) or Achara, officially known as the Autonomous Republic of Adjara ( ka, აჭარის ავტონომიური რესპუბლიკა ''Ach’aris Avt’onomiuri Resp’ublik’a'' ...

, Georgia * Akita, Japan *

Bahía Blanca Bahía Blanca (; English: White Bay) is a city in the southwest of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, by the Atlantic Ocean, and is the seat of government of the Bahía Blanca Partido. It had 301,572 inhabitants according to the . It is th ...

, Argentina *

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populatio ...

, Thailand *

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula ...

, Norway *

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state con ...

, Germany *

Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18. ...

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native E ...

, Canada *

Chuncheon Chuncheon (; ; formerly romanized as Chunchŏn; literally ''spring river'') is the capital of Gangwon Province in South Korea. The city lies in the north of the county, located in a basin formed by the Soyang River and Han River. There are som ...

, South Korea *

Cienfuegos Cienfuegos (), capital of Cienfuegos Province, is a city on the southern coast of Cuba. It is located about from Havana and has a population of 150,000. Since the late 1960s, Cienfuegos has become one of Cuba's main industrial centers, especia ...

, Cuba *

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

, United States * Derry and Strabane, Northern Ireland *

Ehime is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Ehime Prefecture has a population of 1,342,011 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 5,676 km2 (2,191 sq mi). Ehime Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the northeast, Tokushi ...

, Japan *

Enschede Enschede (; known as in the local Twents dialect) is a municipality and city in the eastern Netherlands in the province of Overijssel and in the Twente region. The eastern parts of the urban area reaches the border of the German city of Gron ...

, Netherlands *

Fortaleza Fortaleza (, locally , Portuguese for ''Fortress'') is the state capital of Ceará, located in Northeastern Brazil. It belongs to the Metropolitan mesoregion of Fortaleza and microregion of Fortaleza. It is Brazil's 5th largest city and the tw ...

, Brazil *

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of G ...

, Italy *

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, Scotland * Gwangju, South Korea *

Gwangyang Gwangyang () is a city in South Jeolla Province, South Korea. Gwangyang city is the home of POSCO's Gwangyang Steel Works, the largest facility of its kind in the world. The city is also home to K League Classic football side Jeonnam Dragons. ...

, South Korea *

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

, United States *

Imari, Saga is a city located in Saga Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. Imari is most notable because of Imari porcelain, which is the European collectors' name for Japanese porcelain wares made in the town of Arita, Saga Prefecture. The porcela ...

, Japan *

, South Korea *

Jeju Province Jeju Province, officially Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, is one of the nine provinces of South Korea. The province comprises Jeju Island (; ), formerly transliterated as Cheju or Cheju Do, the country's largest island. It was previously kn ...

, South Korea *

Kanazawa is the capital city of Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 466,029 in 203,271 households, and a population density of 990 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . Overview Cityscape File:もてな� ...

, Ishikawa, Japan *

Kitakyushu is a city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. As of June 1, 2019, Kitakyushu has an estimated population of 940,978, making it the second-largest city in both Fukuoka Prefecture and the island of Kyushu after the city of Fukuoka. It is one o ...

Fukuoka is the List of Japanese cities by population, sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center ...

, Japan *

La Paz La Paz (), officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: ), is the seat of government of the Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the third-most populous city in Bol ...

, Bolivia *

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...

Seine-Maritime Seine-Maritime () is a department of France in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre. Until 1955 it was named Seine-In ...

, France *

Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...

, United States *

Maizuru, Kyoto is a city in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 78,644 in 34817 households and a population density of 230 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Maizuru is located in northern Kyoto Prefe ...

, Japan *

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

, Italy *

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England ...

, England *

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the B ...

, United States *

Ohrid Ohrid ( mk, Охрид ) is a city in North Macedonia and is the seat of the Ohrid Municipality. It is the largest city on Lake Ohrid and the eighth-largest city in the country, with the municipality recording a population of over 42,000 inh ...

, North Macedonia * Ōta, Tokyo, Japan *

Pohang Pohang () is a city in the province of North Gyeongsang, South Korea, and a main seaport in the Daegu-Gyeongbuk region. The built-up area of Pohang is located on the alluvium of the mouth of the Hyeongsan River. The city is divided into two w ...

, South Korea *

Pointe-Noire Pointe-Noire (; kg, Njinji, french: Ndjindji with the letter d following French spelling standards) is the second largest city in the Republic of the Congo, following the capital of Brazzaville, and an autonomous department since 2004. Before t ...

, Republic of the Congo *

Pyeongtaek Pyeongtaek () is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Located in the southwestern part of the province, Pyeongtaek was founded as a union of two districts in 940, during the Goryeo dynasty. It was elevated to city status in 1986 and is home to ...

, South Korea *

Rijeka Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...

, Primorje-Gorski Kotar, Croatia *

Rostock Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, ...

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; nds, Mäkelborg-Vörpommern), also known by its anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern ranks 14th in p ...

, Germany * Sarajevo Canton, Bosnia and Herzegovina * Surin Province, Thailand *

Tomsk Tomsk ( rus, Томск, p=tomsk, sty, Түң-тора) is a city and the administrative center of Tomsk Oblast in Russia, located on the Tom River. Population: Founded in 1604, Tomsk is one of the oldest cities in Siberia. The city is a ...

Tomsk Oblast Tomsk Oblast (russian: То́мская о́бласть, ''Tomskaya oblast'') is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It lies in the southeastern West Siberian Plain, in the southwest of the Siberian Federal District. Its administrative ce ...

, Russia *

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, c ...

Primorsky Krai Primorsky Krai (russian: Приморский край, r=Primorsky kray, p=prʲɪˈmorskʲɪj kraj), informally known as Primorye (, ), is a federal subject (a krai) of Russia, located in the Far East region of the country and is a part of th ...

, Russia *

Wolfsburg Wolfsburg (; Eastphalian: ''Wulfsborg'') is the fifth largest city in the German state of Lower Saxony, located on the river Aller. It lies about east of Hanover and west of Berlin. Wolfsburg is famous as the location of Volkswagen AG's h ...

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

, Germany

References

Bibliography

* Kuramoto, Kazuko. ''Manchurian Legacy: Memoirs of a Japanese Colonist'', 1st edition. Michigan State University Press. 1 October 1999. , , , .

External links

Dalian Government website

{{Authority control Cities in Liaoning Port cities and towns in China Populated coastal places in China Prefecture-level divisions of Liaoning National Forest Cities in China China–Soviet Union relations Kwantung Leased Territory Yellow Sea Articles containing video clips Populated places with period of establishment missing

Etymology

History

Ancient

Qing dynasty

British, Russian, and Japanese occupations

Post-World War II

1990 to present

Geography

Climate

Administration

Municipal government

Administrative divisions

Demographics

Economy

Agriculture and aquaculture

Heavy, light and distribution industries

Industrial zones

Financial and IT industry

Tourism

Four inner-city districts

Jinzhou District and Development Zone (in the northern suburbs)

Lüshunkou District (in the southwestern suburbs)

Pulandian District

Wafandian

Zhuanghe

Changhai County

Hot Spring and Ski Resorts

Environment

Ecological conservation

Environmental issues

Transportation

Local transportation

Domestic and international

Culture

Dalian dialect

Cuisine

Theaters

Sports

City-wide festivals and events

Inter-governmental

Religion

Notable people

Education

Colleges and universities

Research centers

High schools

International schools

International relations

See also

References

Bibliography

Further reading

External links