Heihe–Tengchong Line
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The Heihe–Tengchong Line (), also called the Aihui-Tengchong Line (and internationally as the Hu line), is an imaginary line that divides the area of
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
into two parts with contrasting population densities. It stretches from the city of
Heihe Heihe (; ; Russian language, Russian: Хэйхэ) is a prefecture-level city of northern Heilongjiang province, China, located on the Sino-Russian border, Russian border, on the south bank of the Amur River, Amur (Heilong) River, across the r ...
in the northeast to Tengchong in the south, diagonally across China. The eastern portion, area shown in red in the map, is further subdivided into north and south halves. As of 2015, 43% of the Chinese territory is east of the line and has 94% of the country's population, and 57% of the Chinese territory is west of the line and has only 6% of the country's population.


History

Chinese population geographer Hu Huanyong imagined the line in 1935 and called it a "geo-demographic demacaration line". As this line was proposed in 1935, the map of China at the time included
Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
(whose independence China did not recognise until after
WWII World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
) but excluded
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
(which was a
colony A colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule, which rules the territory and its indigenous peoples separated from the foreign rulers, the colonizer, and their ''metropole'' (or "mother country"). This separated rule was often orga ...
of
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
at the time). The origin of the contrast in population density can be found in the favourable climate for agriculture, fertile land and coastal access in eastern China. The oldest cities in China were located in the southeastern and northeastern regions, such as the
Zhongyuan Zhongyuan (), the Central Plain(s), also known as Zhongtu (, lit. 'central land') and Zhongzhou (, lit. 'central region'), commonly refers to the part of the North China Plain surrounding the lower and middle reaches of the Yellow River, centere ...
(Central Plains) due to proximity to rivers. The presence of
drainage basins A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, th ...
formed by the
Yangtze The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...
and
Yellow River The Yellow River, also known as Huanghe, is the second-longest river in China and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system on Earth, with an estimated length of and a Drainage basin, watershed of . Beginning in the Bayan H ...
improve crop yield, allowing for population increases. Additionally, access to the coast enables overseas trade and allows for economic growth. The most densely populated region, and historical heartland of China is described in the West by the term
China proper China proper, also called Inner China, are terms used primarily in the West in reference to the traditional "core" regions of China centered in the southeast. The term was first used by Westerners during the Manchu people, Manchu-led Qing dyn ...
due to the dominance of Chinese culture and the
Han Chinese The Han Chinese, alternatively the Han people, are an East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the list of contemporary ethnic groups, world's la ...
ethnicity throughout the dynasties in contrast with the outer regions.


Demographic trend


1935 statistics

This imaginary line divides the territory of China as follows (going by 1935 statistics): * West of the line (including
Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...
): 64% of the area, but only 4% of the population (1935) * East of the line: 36% of the area, but 96% of the population (1935)


2002 and 2015 statistics

Despite a large scale urban migration mainly towards coasts but also trending
south South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
, 2002 and 2015 statistics remain nearly identical ''vis-à-vis'' the line: * West of the line: 57% of the area, but only 6% of the population (2002) * East of the line: 43% of the area, but 94% of the population (2002) The major change in area between 1935 and 2015 is attributed to China acknowledging the independence of Mongolia after the
Yalta Conference The Yalta Conference (), held 4–11 February 1945, was the World War II meeting of the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union to discuss the postwar reorganization of Germany and Europe. The three sta ...
. The minor change in total population percent from 1935 to 2015 is attributed to
Han Chinese The Han Chinese, alternatively the Han people, are an East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Greater China. With a global population of over 1.4 billion, the Han Chinese are the list of contemporary ethnic groups, world's la ...
migration to urban areas west of the line, as well as
one-child policy The one-child policy ( zh, c=一孩政策, p=yī hái zhèngcè) was a population planning initiative in China implemented between 1979 and 2015 to curb the country's population growth by restricting many families to a single child. The progr ...
restrictions on the majority, with exceptions for largely-minority groups west of the line. However, during the 2000-2015 period, population in the west of the line indeed grew faster than the east, but the growth was not sufficient to budge the rounded percentages. Most of this growth was contained in the cities of
Ürümqi Ürümqi, , is the capital of the Xinjiang, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in Northwestern China. With a census population of 4 million in 2020, Ürümqi is the second-largest city in China's northwestern interior after Xi'an, also the ...
,
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 ...
, Ordos, and
Yinchuan Yinchuan is the capital of the Ningxia, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China, and was the capital of the Tangut people, Tangut-led Western Xia, Western Xia dynasty. It has an area of and a total population of 2,859,074 according to the 2020 C ...
, although some tribal non-city areas also registered high growth.


Present statistics


See also

*
Qinling–Huaihe Line The Qinling–Huaihe Line () is a reference line used by geographers to distinguish between northern and southern China, corresponding roughly to the 33rd parallel. Qinling refers to the Qin Mountains, and Huaihe refers to the Huai River. Running ...
, further subdivides eastern China in northern and southern halves *
Physiographic macroregions of China Physiographic macroregions of China is a term suggested by an American anthropologist G. William Skinner as a subdivision of China Proper into nine areas according to the drainage basins of the major rivers and other travel-constraining geomorphol ...
*
China proper China proper, also called Inner China, are terms used primarily in the West in reference to the traditional "core" regions of China centered in the southeast. The term was first used by Westerners during the Manchu people, Manchu-led Qing dyn ...
*
100th Meridian West The meridian 100° west of the Prime Meridian of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, North America, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole. The 100th meridi ...
, similar dividing line in the United States *
Administrative divisions of China The administrative divisions of China have consisted of several levels since 1412, due to mainland China's large population and geographical area. In the People's Republic of China, the constitution provides for three levels of government. H ...
* Template:PRC provinces big imagemap *
Autonomous administrative divisions of China Chinese autonomous administrative divisions are associated with one or more ethnic minorities that are designated as autonomous within the People's Republic of China. These areas are recognized in the Constitution of the People's Republic of ...
*
Autonomous regions of China The autonomous regions ( zh, s=自治区, p=Zìzhìqū) are one of four types of province-level divisions of China, province-level divisions of the People's Republic of China. Like provinces of China, Chinese provinces, an autonomous regio ...


References


External links


Great Circle Mapper

Numerical Simulation of Population Distribution in China


{{DEFAULTSORT:Heihe-Tengchong Line Cultural boundaries Geography of China Demographics of China