Guangyuan ( zh, s= , t=廣元 , p=Guǎngyuán , w=Kuang-yüan) is a

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

Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...

Province, China, bordering the provinces of

Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...

to the northeast and

Gansu Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...

to the northwest. Guangyuan City is located on the northern edge of the Sichuan Basin, on the upper reaches of the Jialing River, and is the junction of Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces.The city has a population of 2,305,657 as of the 2020 census. Located roughly between the provincial capitals

Chengdu Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...

Lanzhou Lanzhou is the capital and largest city of Gansu province in northwestern China. Located on the banks of the Yellow River, it is a key regional transportation hub, connecting areas further west by rail to the eastern half of the country. His ...

Xi'an Xi'an is the list of capitals in China, capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong plain, the city is the third-most populous city in Western China after Chongqing and Chengdu, as well as the most populou ...

and

Chongqing ChongqingPostal Romanization, Previously romanized as Chungking ();. is a direct-administered municipality in Southwestern China. Chongqing is one of the four direct-administered municipalities under the State Council of the People's Republi ...

municipality, it is considered the northern gateway to Sichuan. It is an ancient city, notable for its relics and tombs.

History

Formerly known as Lizhou (, or Li

prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin word, "''praefectura"'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain inter ...

), Guangyuan was the birthplace of

Wu Zetian Wu Zetian (624 – 16 December 705), personal name Wu Zhao, was List of rulers of China#Tang dynasty, Empress of China from 660 to 705, ruling first through others and later in her own right. She ruled as queen consort , empress consort th ...

, the only woman in

Chinese history The history of China spans several millennia across a wide geographical area. Each region now considered part of the Chinese world has experienced periods of unity, fracture, prosperity, and strife. Chinese civilization first emerged in the Y ...

to rule directly as

emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

. On 12 May 2008, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake occurred. 4,822 people were killed, 28,245 injured, and 125 missing in the city as of 7 June 2008.

Economy

Guangyuan's economy is based on a diverse array of

heavy industry Heavy industry is an industry that involves one or more characteristics such as large and heavy products; large and heavy equipment and facilities (such as heavy equipment, large machine tools, huge buildings and large-scale infrastructure); o ...

, as well as mining and agriculture. Plant 821, a former large

plutonium Plutonium is a chemical element; it has symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is a silvery-gray actinide metal that tarnishes when exposed to air, and forms a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four ...

producing reactor, now used to process

nuclear waste Radioactive waste is a type of hazardous waste that contains radioactive material. It is a result of many activities, including nuclear medicine, nuclear research, nuclear power generation, nuclear decommissioning, rare-earth mining, and nuclear ...

, is located near Guangyuan. The city is an important production center for

traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medicine, alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. A large share of its claims are pseudoscientific, with the majority of treatments having no robust evidence ...

Administrative divisions

As of March 2024, Guangyuan City has jurisdiction over 3 districts and 4 counties.

Climate

Guangyuan has a subtropical humid monsoon climate with distinct four seasons, abundant rainfall, mild and humid weather, with an average annual rainfall of about 1,600 mm and an average annual temperature of 16.1°C.It has the characteristics of large regional differences, significant three-dimensional climate, and prominent seasonal changes.

Transport

Located roughly between the provincial capitals

, Guangyuan is an important traffic hub in northern Sichuan. The city has a port on the Jialing River, which is the closest inland port to Northwest China, and navigable all the way the east coast. * China National Highway 212 * G5 Beijing–Kunming Expressway *G5012 Enguang Expressway * G75 Lanzhou–Haikou Expressway * Baoji–Chengdu railway (part of the main route from Chengdu to Xi'an and Beijing) * Xi'an–Chengdu high-speed railway (completed in December 2017) * Lanzhou–Chongqing high-speed railway It is a north-south railway trunk line starting from Lanzhou in the north and ending in Chongqing in the south, passing through cities such as Lanzhou, Dingxi, Longnan, Tongnan, Tongliang, and Chongqing. The total length of the line is about 800 kilometers. * Guangyuan Panlong Airport Its geographical coordinates are 32°23'28"N 105°42'07"E.

Cuisine

Guangyuan is known for Wangcang noodles. Guangyuan walnut shortbread, also known as walnut cake, tastes crispy, crunchy, fragrant and sweet, with an excellent taste. Tofu pudding: Guangyuan’s tofu pudding is usually savory, with coriander, peanuts and chili oil, and has a unique flavor.

References

External links

Official website of Guangyuan Government
{{authority control Cities in Sichuan Prefecture-level divisions of Sichuan