Ji'an (; formerly ) is a

county-level city 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 ...

in the southwestern part of

Jilin Jilin (; alternately romanized as Kirin or Chilin) is one of the three provinces of Northeast China. Its capital and largest city is Changchun. Jilin borders North Korea ( Rasŏn, North Hamgyong, Ryanggang and Chagang) and Russia (Prim ...

province, People's Republic of China. It is administered by the prefecture-level city of Tonghua and is the southernmost

county-level division 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 ...

in the province. Ji'an has an area of and a population of approximately 230,000. The city was given its current status in 1988. Ji'an is separated from Manpo,

Chagang Province Chagang Province (Chagangdo; ) is a province in North Korea; it is bordered by China's Jilin and Liaoning provinces to the north, Ryanggang and South Hamgyong to the east, South Pyongan to the south, and North Pyongan to the west. Chagang wa ...

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 ...

by 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 bet ...

; it has an international border running .

History

Archaeological excavations in the Ji'an area have unearthed several Yemaek sites along the Amnok River and its tributary the Hunjiang, which belong to the regional

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several par ...

and

Bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...

ages. After the fall of

Wiman Joseon Wiman Joseon (194–108 BC) was a dynasty of Gojoseon. It began with Wiman's (Wei Man) seizure of the throne from Gija Joseon's King Jun and ended with the death of King Ugeo who was a grandson of Wiman. Apart from archaeological data, the ...

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 ...

in 108 BCE, Ji'an was part of Goguryeo County under the administration of

Xuantu Commandery Xuantu Commandery (; ko, 현도군) was a commandery of the Chinese Han dynasty. It was one of Four Commanderies of Han, established in 107 BCE in the northern Korean Peninsula and part of the Liaodong Peninsula, after the Han dynasty conquer ...

. In 3 CE, the second ruler 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 ...

, King Yuri, moved the state's capital to Gungnae (modern Ji'an) and established the mountain fortress Hwando nearby to defend it. Hwando was sacked by Wei State in 244 CE during the

Goguryeo–Wei War The Goguryeo–Wei War was a series of invasions of Goguryeo from 244 to 245 launched by Cao Wei. The invasions, a retaliation against a Goguryeo raid in 242, destroyed the Goguryeo capital of Hwando, sent its king fleeing, and broke the tributa ...

. In 342 CE, Hwando was destroyed and thousands of people captured by the Murong Xianbei, after which Goguryeo focussed on expanding south and east. In 427 CE, the eleventh ruler of Goguryeo, King Jangsu, moved the capital to

Pyongyang Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populatio ...

, which saw Gungnae relegated to subsidiary capital status. The Capital Cities and Tombs of the Ancient Koguryo Kingdom, located in Ji'an and Huanren Manchu Autonomous County, Liaoning, have been listed as part of a UNESCO

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

. Ji'an is also dubbed as a "Little

Jiangnan Jiangnan or Jiang Nan (; formerly romanized Kiang-nan, literally "South of the River" meaning "South of the Yangtze") is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, in ...

" of Jilin due to its scenery.

Geography and climate

Ji'an 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 Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author a ...

''Dwa''), with long, very cold winters, and very warm, humid summers. Monthly average temperatures range from in January to in July, and the annual mean is . Though the annual total, at , is generous, precipitation is quite low during the winter and upwards of 60% of annual rainfall occurs from June through August. The frost-free period lasts around 150 days.

Gallery

File:Corner of Gungnae Fortress (GuoNei Fortress).JPG, Ruins of Gungnae city wall File:Hwando Mountain Fortress Guard Tower.JPG, Remains of a guard tower in Hwando File:View of ShanChengXia Nobility Cemetery.JPG,

tombs near Hwando

Administrative divisions

Subdistricts: * Tuanjie Subdistrict (), Liming Subdistrict (), Chengdong Subdistrict (), Tongsheng Subdistrict () Towns: * Qingshi (), Qinghe (), Toudao (), Huadian (), Yulin (), Taishang (), Caiyuan (), Yangcha (), Dalu (), Renao () Townships: * Taiwang Township (), Maxian Township (), Huangbai Township (), Taiping Township (), Tonggou Township (), Shuangcha Township (), Guoshuchang Township (), Liangshui Korean Ethnic Township ()

References

External links

Ji'an Government
{{Authority control Cities in Jilin China–North Korea border crossings