'' () is a
northeastern province of the
People's Republic of China. Its one-
character abbreviation is ''Liao'' (辽 pinyin: liáo).
"Liáo" is an ancient name for this region, which was adopted by the
Liao Dynasty (Khitan Empire) which ruled this area between
907 and
1125. "Níng" means "peacefulness". The modern province was established in 1907 as 'Fengtian' province (奉天
pinyin: Fèngtiān;
Postal map spelling: Fengtien) and the name was changed to Liaoning in 1929. Under the Japanese puppet
Manchukuo regime, the province reverted to its old name, but the name Liaoning was restored in 1945.
Liaoning is located in the southern part of China's Northeast. Liaoning borders the
Yellow Sea (
Korea Bay) and the
Bohai Gulf in the south,
North Korea in the southeast,
Jilin Province to the northeast,
Hebei Province to the west, and
Inner Mongolia to the northwest.
The
Yalu River marks the border between
North Korea and the Chinese provinces of
Jilin and Liaoning. It empties into the Korea Bay between
Dandong (Liaoning) and
Sinŭiju (North Korea).
History
Liaoning is located in the southern part of
China's Northeast. The
Qin and
Han dynasties were able to establish rule over much of what is Liaoning; later on governments headed by various people such as the
Gojoseon,
Xianbei,
Goguryeo,
Khitan and
Jurchen ruled Liaoning. In the
seventeenth century, the
Manchus established their
capital in modern
Shenyang, Liaoning, before they conquered the rest of China and set up the
Qing Dynasty in
1644. In the last half of the seventeenth century the imperial government recruited migrants from
Shandong to settle the relatively sparsely populated area. Many of the current residents of Liaoning trace their ancestry to these seventeenth century settlers. For the rest of the Manchu era, China's Northeast was off-limits to
Han Chinese, and was ruled by three generals, one of whom, the General of
Shengjing, ruled much of modern Liaoning.
In
1860, the Manchu government began to reopen the region to migration, which quickly resulted in
Han Chinese becoming the dominant ethnic group in the region. In the
twentieth century, the province of Fengtian was set up in what is Liaoning today. When
Japan and
Russia fought the Russo-Japanese War in 1904-1905, many key battles took place in Liaoning, including the
Battle of Port Arthur and the
Battle of Mukden, which was, to that point, the largest land battle ever fought. During the Warlord Era in the early twentieth century, Liaoning was under the
Fengtian Clique, including
Zhang Zuolin and his son
Zhang Xueliang; in 1931, Japan invaded and the area came under the rule of the
Japanese-controlled
puppet state of
Manchukuo. The
Chinese Civil War that took place following Japanese defeat in
1945 had its first major battles (the
Liaoshen Campaign) in and around Liaoning.
At the founding of the
People's Republic of China in
1949, Liaoning did not exist; instead there were two provinces,
Liaodong and
Liaoxi, as well as five
municipalities, Shenyang,
Luda,
Anshan,
Fushun, and
Benxi. These were all merged together into "Liaoning" in
1954, and parts of former
Rehe province were merged into Liaoning in
1955. During the
Cultural Revolution Liaoning also took in a part of
Inner Mongolia, though this was reversed later.
Liaoning was one of the first provinces in China to industrialize, first under Japanese occupation, and then even more in the 1950s and 1960s. The city of Anshan, for example, is home to one of the largest iron and steel complexes in China. In recent years this early focus on
heavy industry has become a liability, as many of the large state-run enterprises have experienced economic difficulties. Recognizing the special difficulties faced by Liaoning and other provinces in Northeast China because of their heritage of heavy industry, the Chinese central government recently launched a "
Revitalize the Northeast" Campaign.
Partial list of provincial governors:
★
Chen Puru (1980-1983)
★
Quan Shuren (1983-1986)
★
Li Changchun (1986-1990)
★
Yue Qifeng (1990-1994)
★
Wen Shizhen (1994-1998)
★
Zhang Guoguang (1998-2001)
★
Bo Xilai (2001-2004)
★
Zhang Wenyue (since 2004)
Geography
It is possible to think of Liaoning as three approximate geographical regions: the highlands in the west,
plains in the middle, and hills in the east.
The highlands in the west are dominated by the
Nulu'erhu Mountains, which roughly follow the border between Liaoning and
Inner Mongolia. The entire region is dominated by low hills.
The central part of Liaoning consists of the
watersheds of rivers such as the
Liao,
Daliao, and their tributaries. This region is mostly flat and at low altitudes.
The eastern part of Liaoning is dominated by the
Changbai Shan and
Qian Shan ranges, which extends into the sea to form the
Liaodong Peninsula. The highest point in Liaoning,
Mount Huabozi (1336 m), is found in this region.
Liaoning has a
continental monsoon climate, and
rainfall averages to about 440 to 1130 mm annually. Summer is rainy while the other seasons are dry.
Major cities:
★
Shenyang
★
Dalian
★
Anshan
★
Liaoyang
★
Fushun
★
Dandong
★
Jinzhou
★
Yingkou
Central Liaoning city cluster
The Central Liaoning city cluster is a
Megalopolis centering at
Shenyang (urban population 4 million). Within its 150km radius, it has
Anshan (urban population 1.3 million),
Fushun (1.3 million),
Yingkou (1.1 million),
Benxi (0.95 million),
Liaoyang (0.7 million), and
Tieling (0.4 million).
Administrative divisions
Dalian city in Liaoning Province.
Liaoning is composed of fourteen
prefecture-level cities:
★
Shenyang (沈阳市 : Shěnyáng shì)
★
Dalian (大连市 : Dàlián shì)
★
Anshan (鞍山市 : Ānshān shì)
★
Fushun (抚顺市 : Fǔshùn shì)
★
Benxi (本溪市 : Běnxī shì)
★
Dandong (丹东市 : Dāndōng shì)
★
Jinzhou (锦州市 : Jǐnzhōu shì)
★
Huludao (葫芦岛市 : Húludǎo shì)
★
Yingkou (营口市 : Yíngkǒu shì)
★
Panjin (盘锦市 : Pánjǐn shì)
★
Fuxin (阜新市 : Fùxīn shì)
★
Liaoyang (辽阳市 : Liáoyáng shì)
★
Tieling (铁岭市 : Tiělǐng shì)
★
Chaoyang (朝阳市 : Cháoyáng shì)
These prefecture-level cities are in turn divided into 100
county-level divisions (17
county-level cities, 19
counties, eight
autonomous counties, and 56
districts), which are then further subdivided into 1511
township-level divisions (613
towns, 301
townships, 77
ethnic townships, and 520
subdistricts).
See
List of administrative divisions of Liaoning for a complete list of
county-level divisions.
Agriculture
Main
agricultural products of Liaoning include
maize,
sorghum, and
soybeans. The region around
Dalian produces three-quarters of China's exported
apples and
peaches.
Cotton is also produced.
Liaoning's fruits include apples from Dalian and
Yingkou, golden peaches from Dalian,
pears from Beizhen of
Jinzhou, white pears from
Huludao and Suizhong, and
apricots and
plums from Gushan of
Dandong.
Mining
Liaoning has the most
iron,
magnesite,
diamond, and
boron deposits among all province-level subdivisions of China. Liaoning is also an important source of
petroleum and
natural gas.
Salt is produced along the coast.
Industry
Liaoning is one of China's most important
industrial bases, covering a wide range of industries, such as
machinery,
electronics,
metal refining,
petroleum,
chemical industries,
construction materials,
coal, and so on.
The sea off
Dalian abounds with quality
seafood, such as
abalones,
sea cucumbers,
scallops,
prawns,
crabs, and
sea urchins. The big fish of
Dandong, the
jellyfish of
Yingkou, and the
clams of
Panjin are known worldwide for their good tastes right from the sea and in products made in Liaoning for export domestically and internationally.
Trade
The cities of
Dalian and
Yingkou have been developed as major ports and economic gateways to all of
northeast China.
Five Points, One Line
The Party Secretary of the Liaoning Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China, Li Keqiang, initiated the development of a strategy entitled “5 Points and One Line”, which he first proposed on a visit to
Yingkou in late 2005. Liaoning Province formally launched the development strategy for the entire Liaoning coastline in early 2006, so as to re-invigorate the provincial economy from its traditional status as the “rustbelt” of Chinese State Owned Enterprises.
The "Five Points" indicate five key development areas in the province and cover seven zones: the Changxing Island Harbor Industrial Zone in
Dalian;
Yingkou Coastal Industrial Base; Liaoxi
Jinzhou Bay Coastal Economic Zone;
Dandong, and the Zhuanghe Huayuankou Industrial Zone.
The five zones together cover a planned area of nearly 500 square kilometres.
The "One Line" mentioned in the strategy represents a new motorway along the coast. The coastline of 1,433 kilometers will become the connection
between the five above zones, through which 6 provincial cities, 21 counties and 113 towns will be interlinked. The new coastal motorway will directly connect the entire rim of five zones around the Bohai sea, and will be completed by 2009.
Demographics
The population of Liaoning is mostly
Han Chinese with
minorities of
Manchus,
Mongols,
Hui,
Koreans and
Xibe.
| Ethnic groups in Liaoning, 2000 census |
|---|
| Nationality | Population | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Han Chinese | 35,105,991 | 83.94% |
| Manchu | 5,385,287 | 12.88% |
| Mongol | 669,972 | 1.60% |
| Hui | 264,407 | 0.632% |
| Koreans | 241,052 | 0.576% |
| Xibe | 132,615 | 0.317% |
Excludes members of the
People's Liberation Army in active service.
Source: Department of Population, Social, Science and Technology Statistics of the National Bureau of Statistics of China (国家统计局人口和社会科技统计司) and Department of Economic Development of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission of China (国家民族事务委员会经济发展司), eds. ''Tabulation on Nationalities of 2000 Population Census of China'' (《2000年人口普查中国民族人口资料》). 2 vols. Beijing: Nationalities Publishing House (民族出版社), 2003. (ISBN 7-105-05425-5)
Culture
Liaoning's culture is part of a
culture of Northeast China that is quite homogeneous across all of the northeastern China. See
Manchuria#Culture for a detailed description.
In
paleontology, Liaoning is well known for its extraordinary
fossils from the Lower
Cretaceous period; e.g., the early 'placental'
mammal known as ''
Eomaia''. The first widely acknowledged feathered
dinosaur, ''
Sinosauropteryx prima'', was discovered in Liaoning and unveiled at a scientific meeting in 1996. Other notable discoveries have been an intact
embryo of a
pterosaur, ''
Repenomamus robustus''—a cat-sized mammal who ate dinosaurs, and ''
Sinornithosaurus millennii'', nicknamed "Dave the Fuzzy Raptor".
Tourism
Chongzheng Hall in the Mukden Palace.
The
Mukden Palace was the palace of the
Qing Dynasty emperors before they conquered the rest of China and moved their capital to
Beijing. Though not as large nor as famous as its counterpart (the
Forbidden City) in Beijing, the Mukden palace is significant for its representation of palace architecture at the time, and has recently been included on the
UNESCO World Heritage Site as an extension of the Imperial Palace site in Beijing.
In addition, three imperial tombs dating from the Qing Dynasty are located in Liaoning. These tomb sites have been grouped with other
Ming and Qing Dynasties tombs (such as the
Ming Dynasty Tombs in Beijing, and the
Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum in
Nanjing) as a combined UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Wunu Mountain City, a
Goguryeo site found in
Huanren Manchu Autonomous County, is part of a combined
UNESCO World Heritage Site that also includes sites in
Ji'an,
Jilin.
Benxi offers a boat ride though a stalagmite filled cave and underground river.
Anshan boasts the
Anshan Jade Buddha, the largest
Buddha statue made of
jade in the world.
Liaoyang, one of the oldest continuously-inhabited cities in northeast China, has a number of historical sites, including the White Pagoda (Baita), that dates to the
Yuan Dynasty.
The port city of
Dalian, located on the tip of the
Liaodong Peninsula, is a tourist destination in its own right, with
beaches,
resorts,
zoos,
seafood,
shopping,
Russian- and
Japanese-era
architecture, and
streetcars, a rare sight in China.
Dandong, on the border with
North Korea, is a medium-sized city that offers a cross-river view of the North Korean city of
Sinŭiju.
Bijia Mountain is a curious island which joins to the mainland at low tide by a land bridge.
Education
Colleges and universities
Under the national Ministry of Education:
★
Dalian University of Technology (大连理工大学)
★
Northeastern University (东北大学)
Under various other national agencies:
★
China Criminal Police College (中国刑警学院)
★
Dalian Maritime University (大连海事大学)
★
Dalian Nationalities University (大连民族大学)
Under the provincial government:
★
Anshan University of Science and Technology (鞍山科技大学)
★
Anshan Normal University (鞍山师范学院)
★
China Medical University (中国医科大学)
★
Dalian Jiaotong University (大连交通大学)
★
Dalian Medical University (大连医科大学)
★
Dalian University (大连大学)
★
Dongbei University of Finance and Economics (东北财经大学)
★
Liaoning Institute of Technology (辽宁工学院)
★
Liaoning Normal University (辽宁师范大学)
★
Liaoning Technical University (辽宁工程技术大学)
★
Liaoning University (辽宁大学)
★
Liaoning University of Petroleum and Chemical Technology (辽宁石油化工大学)
★
Shenyang Agricultural University (沈阳农业大学)
★
Shenyang Institute of Chemical Technology (沈阳化工学院)
★
Shenyang Jianzhu University (沈阳建筑大学)
★
Shenyang Ligong University (沈阳理工大学)
★
Shenyang Pharmaceutical University (沈阳药科大学)
★
Shenyang University (沈阳大学)
★
Shenyang University of Technology (沈阳工业大学)
Paleontology
Liaoning contains one of the foremost paleontological sites in the world since the discovery of
Sinosauropteryx, a small feathered meat-eating dinosaur, from the
Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation. Since the 1990s dozens of groundbreaking finds have been discovered there, including the earliest flower,
placental mammal, and
marsupial, as well as several birds and
feathered dinosaurs. These have added further evidence that birds and dinosaurs may be directly related.
Sports
Professional sports teams based in Liaoning include:
★
Chinese Football Association Super League
★
★
Liaoning FC
★
★
Shenyang Jinde
★
★
Dalian Shide
★
Chinese Football Association Jia League
★
★
Dalian Changbo
★
Chinese Basketball Association
★
★
Liaoning Panpan Hunters
External links
★
中国辽宁 The Provincial Government of Liaoning
★
Large map of Liaoning
★
Discover Dalian
★
Yingkou Coastal Base Development project
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