Huludao (), formerly known as Jinxi () until 1994, is a coastal prefecture-level city in southwestern

Liaoning province Liaoning () is a coastal provinces of China, 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 i ...

, People's Republic of China. Its name literally means "Gourd Island", referring to the

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

-shaped contour of the

peninsula A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...

("half-island" in Chinese), which resembles a bottle gourd, at the city's Longgang District. It has a total area of and as of the 2020 census a population of 2,434,194 of whom 1,252,660 inhabitants lived in the built-up (or metro) area made of the 2 urban districts and Xingcheng City largely being conurbated. Located on the northwestern shore of the Liaodong Bay, Huludao is one of the three principal cities (along with Jinzhou and Hebei province's Qinhuangdao) in the Liaoxi Corridor, and is Northeast China's gateway through the

Shanhai Pass Shanhai Pass or Shanhaiguan () is one of the major passes in the Great Wall of China, being the easternmost stronghold along the Ming Great Wall, and commands the narrowest choke point in the Liaoxi Corridor. It is located in Shanhaiguan Di ...

into

North China North China, or Huabei () is a List of regions of China, geographical region of China, consisting of the provinces of Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shanxi and Inner Mongolia. Part of the larger region of Northern China (''Beifang''), it lies north ...

. It borders Jinzhou to the northeast, Chaoyang to the north, and Qinhuangdao to the southwest, as well as sharing maritime boundaries with Yingkou and

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 provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China. Located on the ...

to the east and southeast across the bay.

History

The area occupied by Huludao city has been settled by the Chinese since ancient times. Archeological evidence indicates that during the

Shang The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and f ...

and Zhou dynasties, the region enjoyed advanced Bronze Age technology, while urban civilization first developed during the Warring States era. The Ming dynasty saw the construction of the Liaoning section of the Great Wall through Huludao. During this time the town of Xingcheng was fortified with a defensive wall which still stands today. In 1906, the county of Jinxi was established. It became an important center for resistance during the Japanese invasion. During 1945–1948, it was a battleground between the Kuomintang and Chinese Communist forces, and over one million Japanese prisoners of war were repatriated from its port. Jinxi county was granted city status in 1982 under the jurisdiction of Jinzhou, before becoming a prefecture-level city in 1989. The city was renamed Huludao, originally the name of the peninsula and port in the city area, in 1994.

Geography

Huludao is a coastal city on the Bohai Sea at 120°38' east longitude and 40°56' north latitude. It lies in the southwest of

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 ...

, at the border with Hebei, forming the Bohai Sea economic rim with such cities as

, Yingkou, Qinhuangdao, and

Qingdao Qingdao (, also spelled Tsingtao; , Mandarin: ) is a major city in eastern Shandong Province. The city's name in Chinese characters literally means " azure island". Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, it is a major nodal city of the One Belt ...

. As the first city outside the

, it serves as the gateway into Northeast China.

Climate

Huludao is in the north temperate zone with a continental monsoon climate that brings cold dry winters and hot humid summers. Annual precipitation averages between while the year round mean temperature is .

Administrative divisions

Huludao has six immediate sub-municipal divisions:

Economy

More than 40 mineral resources have been discovered in the Huludao region, including gold, zinc,

molybdenum Molybdenum is a chemical element with the symbol Mo and atomic number 42 which is located in period 5 and group 6. The name is from Neo-Latin ''molybdaenum'', which is based on Ancient Greek ', meaning lead, since its ores were confused with lea ...

, lime and manganese. As a result, major pollution has been an ongoing issue for Huludao's local residents. West of the city center, the town of Yangjiazhangzi is an important global center for molybdenum mining. Huludao boasts a long coastline of 237 km, and the surrounding waters are rich in fish, shrimp and shellfish, with plentiful reserves of natural gas and oil. With a climate suitable for the cultivation of fruit trees, Suizhong county is home to the Qiansuo orchard, Asia's largest, which grows a wide variety of fruits including apples, pears, nectarines and jujubes. Huludao's economy is dominated by some of China's most important industrial enterprises, providing employment for a large proportion of the population. These include Asia's biggest zinc manufacturing operation, the Huludao Zinc Smelter, the Jinxi oil refinery and Jinhua chemical engineering, as well as Huludao's massive

shipyard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance a ...

, the building site of China's nuclear submarines. The oilfield off the coast of Suizhong county produces 5 million tons of crude oil annually. Electricity generation is set to increase annual capacity to 3.6 million kilowatts. In the city itself are special development areas designed to attract foreign investment to the region, including the Huludao Economic Development Zone and the Huludao Hi-tech Development zone, which is the location for a Siemens turbomachinery plant.

Transport

Huludao is an important link in rail and road networks between Beijing and northern cities such as

Shenyang Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a major China, Chinese sub-provincial city and the List of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Lia ...

and

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 ...

. The newly renovated North Station () serves high-speed passenger trains that cover the to Beijing in about three hours. Public transportation in the city is provided by over 25 bus services and innumerable taxis. Traditional cycle rickshaw and auto rickshaws were banned from the city in 2010 but can be seen in smaller cities and towns in the region. Long-distance buses and trains link the centers in the greater Huludao region.

Tourism

Huludao is endowed with scenic areas and sites of historical interest. It attracts many domestic tourists in summer with its picturesque sandy beaches, including Longwan Beach near the city center and Xingcheng Beach, a traditional resort known as the 'second Beidaihe'. The old town in Xingcheng is a beautifully preserved Ming Dynasty city, with its original walls intact and an interior studded with temples and historical architecture. The hot springs in the Xingcheng region and its uncrowded beaches have contributed to its fame as a health destination for Party cadres across the country, while the stunning Juhua island is a significant tourist attraction. The Great Wall passes through Huludao in spectacular fashion at Jiumenkou on the Hebei border, where the wall spans the Daqing river in nine gates. It is the only section of the Great Wall to be built over water and was listed as a World Heritage site in 2002. Other attractions in the area include the remains of Jieshi palace, built by the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty over 2,000 years ago.

Education

Tertiary institutions of importance in Huludao include: * Liaoning Technical University * Liaoning Finance and Trade College * Bohai Shipbuilding Vocational Collegebr>
* Huludao No.1 High School

Sister cities

* Las Vegas, United States * Miyazaki,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

References

External links

Huludao Government
(in Simplified Chinese)
A brief investment-oriented introduction to Huludao by the municipal government
(in English)
A brief introduction to Huludao
(in English)
Satellite map of Huludao on Google Maps
{{Authority control Cities in Liaoning Prefecture-level divisions of Liaoning