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Ning'an () is a city located approximately southwest of
Mudanjiang Mudanjiang (; Manchu language, Manchu: ''Mudan bira''), postal romanization, alternately romanized as Mutankiang, is a prefecture-level city in the southeast part of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China. It was called ''Botankou'' un ...
, in the southeast of
Heilongjiang Heilongjiang is a province in northeast China. It is the northernmost and easternmost province of the country and contains China's northernmost point (in Mohe City along the Amur) and easternmost point (at the confluence of the Amur and Us ...
province, China, bordering
Jilin ) , image_skyline = Changbaishan Tianchi from western rim.jpg , image_alt = , image_caption = View of Heaven Lake , image_map = Jilin in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_al ...
province to the south. It is located on the Mudanjiang River (formerly known as Hurka River), which flows north, eventually falling into the Sungari River near Sanxing. Administratively, Ning'an is now a
county-level city A county-level city () is a County-level divisions of China, county-level administrative division of the China, People's Republic of China. County-level cities have judiciary, judicial but no legislature, legislative rights over their own local or ...
, and a constituent part of the
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 ...
of
Mudanjiang Mudanjiang (; Manchu language, Manchu: ''Mudan bira''), postal romanization, alternately romanized as Mutankiang, is a prefecture-level city in the southeast part of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China. It was called ''Botankou'' un ...
. The land area of the entire county-level city of Ning'an is ; the reported population count, as of 2004, stood at 440,000. The government of the "county-level city" is located in the town of the same name (). Notable geographic features of the
county-level city A county-level city () is a County-level divisions of China, county-level administrative division of the China, People's Republic of China. County-level cities have judiciary, judicial but no legislature, legislative rights over their own local or ...
of Ning'an include Lake Jingpo and a crater underground forest (). Lake Jingpo is a natural reservoir on the Mudanjiang River upstream (about southwest, straight-line distance) from Ning'an central urban area, result of the volcanic eruptions about 10,000 years ago.


History


Balhae

Shangjing Longquanfu Shangjing Longquanfu () or Sanggyeong Yongcheonbu (), also known as Shangjing/Sanggyeong (上京, 상경), Huhan/Holhan Fortress (忽汗城, 홀한성), is an archaeological site in Ning'an, Heilongjiang, China. It was the capital of the Balhae ( ...
, one of the capitals of the
Balhae Balhae,, , ) also rendered as Bohai or Bohea, and called Jin (; ) early on, was a multiethnic kingdom established in 698 by Dae Joyeong (Da Zuorong). It was originally known as the Kingdom of Jin (震, Zhen) until 713 when its name was changed ...
kingdom (between 756 and 785, and between 793 and 926), was located within today's
county-level city A county-level city () is a County-level divisions of China, county-level administrative division of the China, People's Republic of China. County-level cities have judiciary, judicial but no legislature, legislative rights over their own local or ...
of Ning'an. Its site was near today's small
towns A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
of () and (; ), about upstream (southwest) from the Ning'an main urban area.


Qing dynasty

During the early
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...
, the town of Ning'an, known then under the
Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic peoples, Tungusic East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized Ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minority in China and the people from wh ...
name (Ningguta) (transcribed into Chinese as 宁古塔, ''Ningguta''), was one of the most important towns in the entire
Manchuria Manchuria is a historical region in northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day northeast China and parts of the modern-day Russian Far East south of the Uda (Khabarovsk Krai), Uda River and the Tukuringra-Dzhagdy Ranges. The exact ...
beyond the " Willow Palisade". The name "Ningguta" literally means "six" in Manchu language because it was once guarded by six grandsons of Möngke Temür (). The Hurka River valley, where Ningguta was located, was the traditional homeland of the
Jianzhou Jurchens The Jianzhou Jurchens () were one of the three major groups of Jurchens as identified by the Ming dynasty. Although the geographic location of the Jianzhou Jurchens changed throughout history, during the 14th century they were located south of ...
(who later started calling themselves
Manchus The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized ethnic minority in China and the people from whom Manchuria derives its name. The Later Jin (1616–1636) an ...
), Ningguta and Sanxing being the two oldest centers of the incipient Manchu state. After the Manchus conquered all of China in 1644, the Ningguta area continued to be considered by the Qing dynasty ruling family as the place of its origin. Already in 1652 the Qing government sent 2000 horsemen, armed with bows,
matchlock A matchlock or firelock is a historical type of firearm wherein the gunpowder is ignited by a burning piece of flammable cord or twine that is in contact with the gunpowder through a mechanism that the musketeer activates by pulling a lever or Tri ...
firearms, and iron cannons, commanded by Sarhuda to set a garrison at Ningguta, which was the first Qing garrison beyond the Willow Palisade.. When quoting Du Halde, Reardon-Anderson implies that the Jesuit went to the region personally in the 1730s. That wasn't actually the case, as du Halde was merely the editor of a report by the Jesuits who had travelled down the Amur in 1709, one of many reports from which his multi-volume work was compiled. In June 1653 Sarhuda's position became styled "military deputy-lieutenant governor" (, or ''
amban Amban (Manchu language, Manchu and Mongolian language, Mongol: ''Amban'', Standard Tibetan, Tibetan: ་''am ben'', zh, t=昂邦, Uyghur language, Uighur:''am ben'') is a Manchu language term meaning "high official" ( zh, t=大臣, p=dàchén ...
-jianggin'' in Manchu) . There is als
same article converted to HTML by Google
/ref> and a deputy lieutenant general () were appointed to command the Ningguta garrison. The suitability of Ningguta as an administrative center was in part due to its location on the Hurka River (or, for the original site, on the Hurka's tributary Hailang), which provided a convenient transportation route connecting Ningguta with the lower Sungari and the lower
Amur River The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ''proper'' is ...
. Early on, a great dockyard operated in Ningguta, building boats for the Mudanjiang/Sungari/Amur river system, although it was later relocated to Jilin City. In 1658 Sarhuda, in charge of a Manchu fleet of several dozen ships, and including also General Shin Ryu's Korean force, sailed from Ningguta down the Hurka and the Sungari, to defeat the smaller fleet of the Russian Cossack Onufriy Stepanov near the fall of the Sungari into the
Amur The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer Manchuria, Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ...
. After the death of Sarhuda in 1659, his son Bahai () was appointed to occupy Sarhuda's position. In 1662, the title of the military deputy-lieutenant governor (''amban-jianggin'') position was changed to the Ningguta Military Governor (), Bahai being the first occupant of this post, while the office of the deputy lieutenant general was relocated to
Jilin City Jilin City, Mandarin pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Kirin (, International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA:/ki.rin/) is the second-largest city and former capital of Jilin province in northeast China. As of th ...
. The early location of the Ningguta fortress was not at today's Ning'an, but some to the northwest, on the Hailang River (a tributary of the Mudanjiang River). That site is located near the present-day Gucheng village (), part of the small
town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
of Changting (; ). That site is not within the modern county-level city of Ning'an, but in the neighboring county-level city of Hailin. Growth of the more conveniently located
Jilin City Jilin City, Mandarin pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Kirin (, International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA:/ki.rin/) is the second-largest city and former capital of Jilin province in northeast China. As of th ...
resulted in the decrease of the relative importance of Ningguta. Still, Ningguta was the main seat of government of the eastern half of the beyond-the-palisade Manchuria until 1676, when the Military Governor (''jiangjun'') moved from Ningguta to
Jilin City Jilin City, Mandarin pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Kirin (, International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA:/ki.rin/) is the second-largest city and former capital of Jilin province in northeast China. As of th ...
(then called Jilin Ula Cheng, i.e. Jilin River City), and the Deputy Lieutenant-General () was transferred in the opposite direction (from Jilin City to Ningguta). Although now lower-ranked than Jilin City, Ningguta retained its importance into the 18th and 19th century as one of the few cities existing beyond the Willow Palisade. The Deputy Lieutenant-General stationed there was the top government official for the entire region stretching east to the
Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it ...
and populated primarily by a variety of
Tungusic peoples Tungusic peoples are an ethnolinguistic group formed by the speakers of Tungusic languages (or Manchu–Tungus languages). They are native to Siberia, Mongolia and China. The Tungusic language family is divided into two main branches, Northern ...
, such as the Nanais. According to the evidence of the
Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
who visited the area in 1709 along with a government-sponsored
ginseng Ginseng () is the root of plants in the genus ''Panax'', such as South China ginseng (''Panax notoginseng, P. notoginseng''), Korean ginseng (''Panax ginseng, P. ginseng''), and American ginseng (''American ginseng, P. quinquefol ...
-harvesting expedition, by the early 18th century Ningguta had become an important center of trade in local forest products, namely
ginseng Ginseng () is the root of plants in the genus ''Panax'', such as South China ginseng (''Panax notoginseng, P. notoginseng''), Korean ginseng (''Panax ginseng, P. ginseng''), and American ginseng (''American ginseng, P. quinquefol ...
harvested in the region and
sable The sable (''Martes zibellina'') is a species of marten, a small omnivorous mammal primarily inhabiting the forest environments of Russia, from the Ural Mountains throughout Siberia, and northern Mongolia. Its habitat also borders eastern Kaz ...
pelts, collected as tax from the Nanai natives. Therefore, besides the Manchu garrison and the officials, Ningguta was home to numerous
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 ...
civilians, some of whom had come to Ningguta from faraway provinces in order to participate in the profitable commerce. There were already numerous peasant villages around the town, some at quite a distance from it, populated both by Manchus and by Han Chinese exiled to this area for various offenses against the law. (Convicts started being sent to Ningguta area as early as 1660; anti-Qing rebels, captured in southern China, followed in 1661Reardon-Anderson (2005), p. 26) A variety of cereal crops, such as
millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most millets belong to the tribe Paniceae. Millets are important crops in the Semi-arid climate, ...
and
oats The oat (''Avena sativa''), sometimes called the common oat, is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name (usually in the plural). Oats appear to have been domesticated as a secondary crop, as their seed ...
were grown there. In May 1910, the area was re-organized as .


Republic of China

Following the fall of the Qing dynasty, Ning'an underwent a series of administrative changes. In March 1913, Ning'an Fu was re-organized as Ning'an County (). In June 1914, Ning'an County was placed under the jurisdiction of in Jilin province. In February 1929, circuits were abolished, and Ning'an was administered directly by the province. At this time, Ning'an had a population of more than 170,000.


Japanese occupation

Upon the formation of the
puppet state A puppet state, puppet régime, puppet government or dummy government is a State (polity), state that is ''de jure'' independent but ''de facto'' completely dependent upon an outside Power (international relations), power and subject to its ord ...
of
Manchukuo Manchukuo, officially known as the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of Great Manchuria thereafter, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China that existed from 1932 until its dissolution in 1945. It was ostens ...
, Ning'an remained within Jilin province until December 1934, when it became part of the newly formed
Binjiang province Binjiang Province (Chinese language, Chinese: 濱江省) was one of the provinces of Manchukuo. Binjiang was founded on December 1, 1934 and was dissolved in August 1945. Binjiang had a mix of Chinese people, Chinese, Koreans, Korean, Japanese pe ...
. In July 1937, it was placed under .


After occupation

In April 1946, the area was placed under the jurisdiction of , but this was changed to the newly formed . In July 1948, the area was once again adjusted, this time falling under the jurisdiction of Songjiang province. In August 1954, Songjiang province was abolished and merged into
Heilongjiang Heilongjiang is a province in northeast China. It is the northernmost and easternmost province of the country and contains China's northernmost point (in Mohe City along the Amur) and easternmost point (at the confluence of the Amur and Us ...
province. In March 1956, Ning'an, still a
county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
, was placed under the then-
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 ...
of
Mudanjiang Mudanjiang (; Manchu language, Manchu: ''Mudan bira''), postal romanization, alternately romanized as Mutankiang, is a prefecture-level city in the southeast part of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China. It was called ''Botankou'' un ...
. From 1956 to 1962, Ning'an's borders were changed multiple times, until finally reaching their current iteration. In 1993, Ning'an was upgraded from a county to a
county-level city A county-level city () is a County-level divisions of China, county-level administrative division of the China, People's Republic of China. County-level cities have judiciary, judicial but no legislature, legislative rights over their own local or ...
.


Geography

Ning'an is located in the southeast of
Heilongjiang Heilongjiang is a province in northeast China. It is the northernmost and easternmost province of the country and contains China's northernmost point (in Mohe City along the Amur) and easternmost point (at the confluence of the Amur and Us ...
province, on the shores of Jingpo Lake and Mudan River. The terrain is largely hilly, and the Changbai Mountains run through the city. Ning'an is bordered by Muling to the east, Hailin to the west, Wangqing County and Dunhua of
Jilin ) , image_skyline = Changbaishan Tianchi from western rim.jpg , image_alt = , image_caption = View of Heaven Lake , image_map = Jilin in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_al ...
province to the south, and Mudanjiang's urban core to the north. Ning'an is approximately away from Mudanjiang's urban core, away from both Suifenhe and
Hunchun Hunchun is a county-level city in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture within Jilin province to the far east. It borders North Hamgyong Province in North Korea and Primorsky Krai in Russia, has over 250,000 inhabitants, and covers 5,145&nbs ...
, and away from the provincial capital of
Harbin Harbin, ; zh, , s=哈尔滨, t=哈爾濱, p=Hā'ěrbīn; IPA: . is the capital of Heilongjiang, China. It is the largest city of Heilongjiang, as well as being the city with the second-largest urban area, urban population (after Shenyang, Lia ...
.


Flora and fauna

112 species of plants used for Chinese herbal medicines can be found in Ning'an. Ning'an is home to a number of protected animal species, such as the
Siberian tiger The Siberian tiger or Amur tiger is a population of the tiger subspecies ''Panthera tigris tigris'' native to Northeast China, the Russian Far East, and possibly North Korea. It once ranged throughout the Korea, Korean Peninsula, but currently ...
,
sika deer The sika deer (''Cervus nippon''), also known as the northern spotted deer or the Japanese deer, is a species of deer native to much of East Asia and introduced to other parts of the world. Previously found from northern Vietnam in the south t ...
, elk, and
sable The sable (''Martes zibellina'') is a species of marten, a small omnivorous mammal primarily inhabiting the forest environments of Russia, from the Ural Mountains throughout Siberia, and northern Mongolia. Its habitat also borders eastern Kaz ...
. There are over 300 species of birds which have habitats in the city, including
Siberian crane The Siberian crane (''Leucogeranus leucogeranus''), also known as the Siberian white crane or the snow crane, is a bird of the family Gruidae, the crane (bird), cranes. They are distinctive among the cranes: adults are nearly all White, snowy whi ...
s,
Mandarin duck The mandarin duck (''Aix galericulata'') is a perching duck species native to the East Palearctic. It is Sexual dimorphism, sexually dimorphic – the males are elaborately coloured, while the females have more subdued colours. It is a medium- ...
s, Chinese merganser, white-bellied sea eagles, and
Steller's sea eagle Steller's sea eagle (''Haliaeetus pelagicus''), also known as the Pacific sea eagle or white-shouldered eagle, is a very large Diurnality, diurnal bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It was described first by Peter Simon Pallas in 1811. No ...
s.


Climate

The city experiences an average annual temperature of , with the hottest recorded temperature in the city being , and the coldest record temperature being . Annual precipitation in Ning'an typically ranges from to . Ning'an typically experiences 130 to 135
frost Frost is a thin layer of ice on a solid surface, which forms from water vapor that deposits onto a freezing surface. Frost forms when the air contains more water vapor than it can normally hold at a specific temperature. The process is simila ...
-free days per year.


Administrative divisions

Ning'an administers one
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, Ind ...
, eight
towns A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
, two townships, two ethnic townships, and two other
township-level divisions 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. Ho ...
. The city's sole subdistrict is . The city's eight towns are , , , , , , , and . The city's two townships are and . The city's two ethnic townships are and . The city also administers and as township-level divisions.


Demographics


Economy

Ning'an produces a large amount of edible mushrooms, totaling 10,000 tons per year.


Transportation

The G11 Hegang–Dalian Expressway runs through the city, as does the . The city is located away from the Mudanjiang Hailang International Airport.


See also

* List of provinces of Balhae


References


External links


Ning'an City Government
{{Authority control Cities in Heilongjiang County level divisions of Heilongjiang