Yongding () is a

district 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, subdivision ...

under the jurisdiction of

Longyan Longyan (; Hakka: ''Liùng-ngàm''; Longyan dialect: ''Lengngia'') is a prefecture-level city in south-western Fujian Province, China, bordering Guangdong to the south and Jiangxi to the west. History In 736 AD, (the Tang dynasty), the prefec ...

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 Chi ...

in the southwest of

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...

Province, People's Republic of China. The district is a center for Hakka culture, including the traditional Hakka ''

tulou A tulou (), or "earthen building", is a traditional communal Hakka people residence found in Fujian, in South China, usually of a circular configuration surrounding a central shrine, and part of Hakka architecture. These vernacular structur ...

'', and a local dialect of the

Hakka Chinese Hakka (, , ) forms a language group of varieties of Chinese, spoken natively by the Hakka people throughout Southern China and Taiwan and throughout the diaspora areas of East Asia, Southeast Asia and in overseas Chinese communities aroun ...

called the . As of 2015, Yongding has a permanent population of about 361,000, of which more than 99% are Hakka, the rest being She people. In December 2014, the Fujian government signed legislation converting Yongding from a

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 ...

to a

. Yongding is the hometown of many overseas Chinese immigrants that came to south-east Asia and Burma during the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...

History

Yongding County was established in the 14th year of Chenghua (AD 1478) in the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

. It was originally part of Shanghang County. The governor of

province proposed to separate this south-eastern part of the Shanghang County to form a new county and name it Yongding, literally meaning peaceful forever, after suppressing a riot in that particular region. On December 13, 2014, the Fujian government passed a law converting Yongding from a

to a

. The law came into effect on February 9, 2015. In March 2015, was upgraded from a

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, ...

to a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an o ...

, and was upgraded from a town to a

subdistrict A subdistrict or sub-district is an administrative division that is generally smaller than a district. Equivalents * Administrative posts of East Timor, formerly Portuguese-language * Kelurahan, in Indonesia * Mukim, a township in Brunei, In ...

Geography

Located in the southwest of

province, Yongding District is situated on the Fujian-

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...

border. Yongding District is bordered by

Nanjing County Nanjing County () is a county under the administration of Zhangzhou City, in the south of Fujian province, People's Republic of China. Administrative division Nanjing County is administratively divided into several towns: * Shancheng () - the cou ...

Zhangzhou Zhangzhou (), alternately romanized as Changchow, is a prefecture-level city in Fujian Province, China. The prefecture around the city proper comprises the southeast corner of the province, facing the Taiwan Strait and surrounding the prefect ...

to the east,

Pinghe County Pinghe County () is a county of the prefecture-level city of Zhangzhou, in southern Fujian province, PRC, bordering Guangdong province to the west. Administrative Division The administrative centre or seat of Pinghe County is Xiaoxi (). Towns ...

in Zhangzhou to the southeast,

Dabu County Dabu County () is a county in Meizhou City, in the east of Guangdong Province, China. A center of Hakka culture, it has a population of 375,000. Famous natives This is the ancestral hometown of 1st Guyana President Arthur Chung even though the ...

and

Meixian District Meixian (, Hakka: Moiyen), formerly Meihsien, is a district of Meizhou City, in northeastern Guangdong Province, China. The county is an important Hakka settlement and is the ancestral home of many Hakka descendants living in Taiwan. History ...

Meizhou Meizhou (, Hakka Chinese: Mòichû) is a prefecture-level city in eastern Guangdong province, China. It has an area of , and a population of 3,873,239 million as of the 2020 census. It comprises Meijiang District, Meixian District, Xingning Cit ...

, Guangdong to the southwest, Shanghang County to the northwest, and Xinluo District to the northeast. Both Dabu and Shanghang are

Hakka The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhej ...

-speaking counties; Longyan Centre, Nanjing and Pinghe are predominantly Minnan-speaking. Yongding District is in area. Like other counties of Fujian province, Yongding is 80% hills and mountains, 10% water or rivers, and 10% fields. Two major rivers run through the district: Yongding River () and Xiayang Creek (). Both are tributaries of the

Ting River The Ting River () flows from Ninghua County in western Fujian south to the port and Special Economic Zone of Shantou, Guangdong. It is a main tributary of the Han River and is also referred to Hakka Mother River (). The former prefecture of ...

(, the name by which it is known in Fujian territory) or Han River (, the name by which it is known in Guangdong province).

Climate

Located in a sub-tropical area and subject to

typhoons A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

, Yongding has high annual precipitation of about per year.

Administrative divisions

Yongding District current administers 1

, 14

towns A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an or ...

, and 9

townships A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...

. divided into twenty-four township-level divisions: one

, twelve

and eleven

Subdistrict

The district executive, legislature and

judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

are in (), formerly the town of Fengcheng (), together with the CPC and PSB branches. Fengcheng Subdistrict is the district's sole subdistrict, and had a population of 48,048 as of 2015.

Towns

The district is home to the following 14 towns:

Townships

The district is home to the following 9 townships: Chengqi-Lou-DSCF3211-DSCF3214

Demographics

As of 2015, Yongding District has a

hukou ''Hukou'' () is a system of household registration used in mainland China. The system itself is more properly called "''huji''" (), and has origins in ancient China; ''hukou'' is the registration of an individual in the system (''kou'' lit ...

population of 504,520, but has approximately just 361,000 permanent residents. 44.3% of the district's permanent residents live in

urban areas An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities, ...

. The district's urban residents have a

per capita ''Per capita'' is a Latin phrase literally meaning "by heads" or "for each head", and idiomatically used to mean "per person". The term is used in a wide variety of social sciences and statistical research contexts, including government statistic ...

disposable income Disposable income is total personal income minus current income taxes. In national accounts definitions, personal income minus personal current taxes equals disposable personal income. Subtracting personal outlays (which includes the major ...

of 29,952

renminbi The renminbi (; symbol: ¥; ISO code: CNY; abbreviation: RMB) is the official currency of the People's Republic of China and one of the world's most traded currencies, ranking as the fifth most traded currency in the world as of April 202 ...

(RMB) as of 2015, a 7.1% increase from 2014. In 2015, this figure stood at 14,136 RMB for the district's rural residents, a 9.8% increase from 2014. The , a part of the Tingzhou dialect of

, is spoken in the district.

Culture

Yongding District is famous for its ''

'', large multi-family adobe buildings. Out of the 10 tulous or tulous clusters inscribed on the

World Heritage List 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 ...

(as Fujian Tulou), 5 are within Yongding District: * Chuxi Tulou cluster, in Chuxi Village (), * Chengqi Lou and adjacent buildings (the ), in Gaobei Village (), Gaotou Township * Hongkeng Tulou cluster including Zhencheng Lou, in Hongkeng Village (), Hukeng * Zhenfu Lou, near Xipian Village (), Hukeng *Yanxiang Lou, in Xinnan Village (), Hukeng

Economy

Yongding District recorded a

gross domestic product Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is of ...

of 19.12 billion

(RMB) in 2015, an 8.2% increase from 2014.

Industry

Yongding District has a sizable

automotive industry The automotive industry comprises a wide range of companies and organizations involved in the design, development, manufacturing, marketing, and selling of motor vehicles. It is one of the world's largest industries by revenue (from 16 % ...

, which achieved an output of 3.151 billion RMB in 2015, a 0.8% increase from 2014.

Fujian Motors Group The Fujian Motors Group is based in the Fujian Province, China and was founded in 1992. Group companies include Fujian Benz (50% joint venture with Daimler AG), Soueast Motors (50%), King Long (a bus manufacturer) (15%) and Higer Bus. Brands ...

has sizable operations in the

, where it produces engines for its New Longma () brand, and multi-purpose vehicles for its Keyton () brand. As a result of abundant precipitation and mountainous terrain,

hydroelectric power Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

is abundant. There are numerous hydro plants in the district, one notable one being the provincial Mianhuatan Hydroelectric Power Station. The plant has a water storage capacity of 2.035 billion cubic meters and is able to generate 1.52 billion kilowatt hours of electricity a year. The Mianhuatan hydrodam contributes greatly to the rapidly growing economy of Fujian and neighboring Guangdong province.

Agriculture

In agriculture,

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...

is the main crop for the district. Most low-lying fields can yield two rice crops per year, while in high land fields, because of the earlier frost, only one harvest can be assured.

Persimmons The persimmon is the edible fruit of a number of species of trees in the genus ''Diospyros''. The most widely cultivated of these is the Oriental persimmon, ''Diospyros kaki'' ''Diospyros'' is in the family Ebenaceae, and a number of non-pers ...

plums A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are called prunes. History Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found i ...

, and tea leaves are grown in the district.

Cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ...

are raised in Yongding District, and various

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantit ...

products are produced in the district. Yongding is an important

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

producer. The cultivation of tobacco started in

Wan Li Wan Li (1 December 1916 – 15 July 2015) was a Chinese Communist revolutionary and politician. During a long administrative career in the People's Republic of China, he served successively as Vice Premier, Chairman of the Standing Committee of ...

era of the

Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

. Yongding was honored as the "home of tobacco" in the early 20th century. Although its significance has declined in recent years, Yongding is still one of the most important tobacco producing areas in the region. Many top brand Chinese cigarettes contain Yongding leaf. During the 2010s, the local government began partnering local farmers with

Taobao Taobao () is a Chinese online shopping platform. It is headquartered in Hangzhou and is owned by Alibaba. According to Alexa rank, it is the eighth most-visited website globally in 2021. Taobao.com was registered on April 21, 2003 by Alibaba ...

, a large Chinese

e-commerce E-commerce (electronic commerce) is the activity of electronically buying or selling of products on online services or over the Internet. E-commerce draws on technologies such as mobile commerce, electronic funds transfer, supply chain manag ...

website, to create a wider market for local agricultural goods. As of 2015, the district is home to 200 million RMB in e-commerce sales.

Mining

Yongding is rich in mineral deposits, most notably

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when ...

. Most of the district's coal is shipped to Guangdong, where economic growth has created huge demand for energy. This in turn has created demand for heavy trucks. As a result, Yongding is one of the top districts for the number of trucks.

Tourism

In 2015 alone, 5.252 million tourists visited Yongding District, generating 4.029 billion RMB in income. Common tourist destinations include the district's many ''

'' clusters, such as Chuxi Tulou cluster, and

hot springs A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...

Transportation

The

Zhangping–Longchuan railway The Zhangping–Longchuan railway (), also known as the Zhanglong railway, is a railway linking Zhangping, Fujian Province, and Longchuan County, Guangdong, in southeastern China. The line has a total length of and combines separately construct ...

runs through Yongding District, stopping at . , , and the are among the many

expressways Expressway may refer to: * Controlled-access highway, the highest-grade type of highway with access ramps, lane markings, etc., for high-speed traffic. *Limited-access road A limited-access road, known by various terms worldwide, including limi ...

in Yongding District.

Notable people

There have been many famous

overseas Chinese Overseas Chinese () refers to people of Chinese birth or ethnicity who reside outside Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. As of 2011, there were over 40.3 million overseas Chinese. Terminology () or ''Hoan-kheh'' () in Hokkien, ref ...

with their roots in Yongding.

Aw Boon-Haw Aw Boon-Haw (; 1882 in Rangoon, British Raj – 1954 in Hawaii), OBE, was a Chinese entrepreneur and philanthropist best known as founder of Tiger Balm. He was a son of Hakka herbalist Aw Chu-Kin, with his ancestral home in Yongding County ...

() was one of the most famous overseas Chinese in the 1930s and 40s.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control County-level divisions of Fujian Longyan