Kaifeng

For other uses, see Kaifeng (disambiguation).

Kaifeng 开封
—  Prefecture-level city  —
开封市
Kaifeng Location in China
Coordinates: 34°48′N 114°18′E
Country	People's Republic of China
Province	Henan
Area
• Prefecture-level city	6,247 km2 (2,412 sq mi)
• Urban	546.4 km2 (211.0 sq mi)
• Metro	546.4 km2 (211.0 sq mi)
Elevation	75 m (245 ft)
Population (2010 census)
• Prefecture-level city	4,676,159
• Density	748.54/km2 (1,938.72/sq mi)
• Urban	826,961
• Urban density	1,513.47/km2 (3,919.9/sq mi)
• Metro	826,961
• Metro density	1,513.47/km2 (3,919.9/sq mi)
Time zone	China Standard (UTC+8)
Area code(s)	378
GDP	¥7,250 per capita (2004)
Major Nationalities	Han, Hui
County-level divisions	5
Township-level divisions	5
License plate prefixes	豫B
Website	http://www.kaifeng.gov.cn

Kaifeng (simplified Chinese: 开封; traditional Chinese: 開封; pinyin: Kāifēng; Wade–Giles: K'aifeng), known previously by several names (see below), is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, Central China. Nearly 5 million people live in the metropolitan area. Located along the southern bank of the Yellow River, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the west, Xinxiang to the northwest, Shangqiu to the east, Zhoukou to the southeast, Xuchang to the southwest, and the province of Shandong to the northeast.

Names

The Chinese Postal Map Romanisation for the city is Kaifeng whilst its abbreviation is biàn (汴). Historically it has also been known as:

• Dàliáng (Chinese: 大梁)
• Biànzhōu(Chinese: 汴州)
• Dōngjīng (Chinese: 東京)
• Biànjīng (Chinese: 汴京)

The name "Kaifeng" first appeared as the area's name after the Qin Dynasty's conquering of China in the 2nd century BC, and literally means "expand the borders".

Administration

The prefecture-level city of Kaifeng administers five districts and five counties.

• Gulou District (鼓楼区)
• Longting District (龙亭区)
• Yuwangtai District (禹王台区)
• Jinming District (金明区)
• Shunhe Hui District (顺河回族区)
• Weishi County (尉氏县)
• Qi County (杞县)
• Tongxu County (通许县)
• Lankao County (兰考县)
• Kaifeng County (开封县)

History

The famous painting Qingming Scroll is believed by some to portray life in Kaifeng on a Qingming Festival day. The painting, of which several versions are extant (the above is an 18th century copy), is attributed to the Song Dynasty (960–1279) artist Zhang Zeduan.

Kaifeng is one of the Seven Ancient Capitals of China. As with Beijing, there have been many reconstructions during its history.

In 364 BC during the Warring States Period, the State of Wei founded a city called Daliang (大梁）as its capital in this area. During this period, the first of many canals in the area was constructed linking a local river to the Yellow River. When the State of Wei was conquered by the State of Qin, Kaifeng was destroyed and abandoned except for a mid-sized market town, which remained in place.

Early in the 7th century, Kaifeng was transformed into a major commercial hub when it was connected to the Grand Canal as well as through the construction of a canal running to western Shandong Province.

In 781 during the Tang Dynasty, a new city was reconstructed and named Bian (汴). Bian was the capital of the Later Jin (936–946), Later Han (947–950), and Later Zhou (951–960) of the Five Dynasties Period. The Song Dynasty made Bian its capital when it overthrew the Later Zhou in 960. Shortly afterwards the city underwent further expansion.

During the Song Dynasty when it was known as Dongjing or Bianjing, Kaifeng was the Chinese capital with a population of over 400,000, living both inside and outside the city wall. Typhus was an acute problem in the city.

In 1049, the Youguosi Pagoda (佑国寺塔), or Iron Pagoda (铁塔) as it is called today was constructed measuring 54.7 metres (179 ft) in height. It has survived the vicissitudes of war and floods to become the oldest landmark in this ancient city. Another Song Dynasty pagoda, Bo Ta (繁塔), dating from 974 has been partially destroyed.

Games in the Jinming Pool, an early 12th century painting depicting Kaifeng, by Zhang Zeduan.

Another well-known sight was the astronomical clock tower of the engineer, scientist, and statesman Su Song (1020–1101 AD). It was crowned with a rotating armillary sphere that was hydraulically powered (i.e. by waterwheel and a clepsydra clock), yet it incorporated an escapement mechanism two hundred years before they were found in the clockworks of Europe and featured the first known endless power-transmitting chain drive.

Kaifeng reached its peak importance in the 11th century when it was a commercial and industrial center at the intersection of four major canals. During this time, the city was surrounded by three rings of city walls and probably had a population of between 600,000 and 700,000.

It is believed that Kaifeng was the largest city in the world from 1013 to 1127.

This period ended in 1127 when the city fell to Jurchen invaders (see Jingkang Incident) and subsequently came under the rule of the Jin Dynasty. While it remained an important administrative center, only the city area inside the inner city wall of the early Song Dynasty remained settled and the two outer rings were abandoned.

One major problem associated with Kaifeng as the imperial capital of the Song Dynasty was its location. While it was conveniently situated along the Grand Canal for logistic supply, Kaifeng was militarily vulnerable due to its position on the flood plains of the Yellow River.

Kaifeng served as the Jurchen "southern capital" from 1157 (other sources say 1161) and was reconstructed during this time. The Jurchen kept their main capital further north until 1214 when they were forced to move the imperial court southwards to Kaifeng in order to flee from the Mongol onslaught. In 1234 they succumbed to the combined Mongol and Song Dynasty forces. Mongols took control, and in 1279 they conquered all of China.

Earth Market Street, Kaifeng, 1910. The synagogue of the Kaifeng Jews lay beyond the row of stores on the right

At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty in 1368, Kaifeng was made the capital of Henan province.

In 1642, Kaifeng was flooded by the Ming army with water from the Yellow River to prevent the peasant rebel Li Zicheng from taking over. After this disaster the city was abandoned again.

Under the celebrated Qing emperor Kangxi (1662), Kaifeng was rebuilt. However, further flooding occurred in 1841 followed by another reconstruction in 1843, which produced the contemporary Kaifeng as it stands today.

Kaifeng is also known for having the oldest extant Jewish community in China, the Kaifeng Jews.

It was here too that in 1969, the former Chairman of the People's Republic of China Liu Shaoqi, died in prison from medical neglect.

Climate

Kaifeng has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cwa), with four distinct seasons. Winters are cool and mostly dry while summers are hot and humid; spring is warm and sees some, but not much rainfall, while autumn weather is crisp and drier. Precipitation mainly occurs from June to September.

Climate data for Kaifeng (1971−2000)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	5.1 (41.2)	8.4 (47.1)	13.7 (56.7)	21.5 (70.7)	26.9 (80.4)	31.3 (88.3)	31.7 (89.1)	30.5 (86.9)	26.7 (80.1)	21.3 (70.3)	13.7 (56.7)	7.3 (45.1)	19.8 (67.6)
Average low °C (°F)	−4.1 (24.6)	−1.7 (28.9)	2.9 (37.2)	9.6 (49.3)	14.8 (58.6)	19.8 (67.6)	22.9 (73.2)	22.0 (71.6)	16.5 (61.7)	10.1 (50.2)	3.1 (37.6)	−2.3 (27.9)	9.5 (49.1)
Precipitation mm (inches)	8.1 (0.319)	11.2 (0.441)	28.2 (1.11)	35.4 (1.394)	55.0 (2.165)	73.4 (2.89)	174.9 (6.886)	109.7 (4.319)	69.5 (2.736)	41.5 (1.634)	20.4 (0.803)	9.9 (0.39)	637.2 (25.087)
Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm)	2.9	3.9	5.9	6.2	6.8	7.8	11.3	9.0	7.6	6.6	4.5	3.0	75.5
Source: Weather China

The best time of the year to visit Kaifeng is Spring (March to May) and Autumn (September to November), when the weather is warm and the chance of precipitation is low.

Transportation

Air

Kaifeng city centre is about 55km away from Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport – which has domestic connections to more than 20 Chinese cities, including Beijing Capital, Chengdu, Shanghai Hongqiao, Shanghai Pudong, Shenyang, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Xiamen, Hangzhou, Fuzhou, Harbin etc. China Eastern and China Southern Airlines also provide some international connections directly from Zhengzhou.

Access and journey time

• Journey time by car is about 1 hour.
• Taxi one way fare is about RMB 200 – by negotiation usually.
• An Airport shuttle service is available between Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport and Kaifeng Grand Yuxiang Hotel (玉祥大酒店) in downtown Kaifeng.
  • Single fare RMB 40 and it takes about 1 hour and 15mins. The pick up point at the airport is outside the Arrival Hall, bus bay 6, and the set down point is right in front of the Grand Yuxiang Hotel in downtown Kaifeng.
  • Single fare can be bought from airport shuttle kiosk outside the Arrival hall at the airport and ticket office on the ground floor of Grand Yuxiang Hotel in Kaifeng.
  • Current daily departures from the airport are: 10:30, 11:30, 12:30, 13:30, 14:30, 16:00, 17:30, 19:00, 20:30 and 22:00 and from Kaifeng city: 5:30, 7:00, 8:30, 10:00, 11:30, 13:00, 14:30, 16:00, 17:00 and 18:00.

Rail

Kaifeng Railway Station is on the East-West Longhai Railway mainline and provides convenient access to many cities around China.

Access and journey time

• Kaifeng Railway Station (开封火车站) is situated at the southern tip of the city.
• Taxi is the best and most efficient transportation to and from the railway station.
• Many local buses terminate or call at the railway station. These include route 1, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12, 17, 18, 29, 31 and 35 etc. Uniform fare of RMB 1 is payable onboard.

Coach

• There are 4 main coach stations in Kaifeng.
  • Kaifeng West Coach Station (开封客运西站）
  • Kaifeng Long Distance Coach Station （开封长途汽车站）
  • Kaifeng Jinming Coach Station (开封金明汽车站）
  • Kaifeng Xiangguosi Coach Station （开封相国寺汽车站）

There are frequent services to many neighbouring counties, other provincial cities and longer distance services to other provinces.

Regular commuter bus services to provincial capital Zhengzhou run daily from about 6am to 22pm, departing from all above coach stations, at a peak frequency of about every 7-10mins and off peak frequency of about every 15mins. The journey time is about 1 hour and a half to 2 hours. Most of these services will pick up passengers en route at designated bus stops. Buy ticket onboard, single trip fare is RMB 7 for the 72km between the 2 cities. As such, passenger demand is fierce.

Local Public Transport

• Buses

There are currently 40 bus routes serving the city of Kaifeng. Uniform fare of RMB 1 per trip applies to all local buses in the city. Use the front door to board and back door to get off. Pay when you board by inserting your RMB 1 coin or note in the onboard farebox.

• Taxis

With fare starts at only RMB 5 for 2km and RMB 1 for each additional kilometre thereafter, taxis are the most economical and efficient mode of transport in Kaifeng. Make sure the meter is on and do insist if it is not.

• China National Highway 220

Military

Kaifeng is headquarters of the 20th Group Army of the People's Liberation Army, one of the three group armies that comprise the Jinan Military Region responsible for defence of the Yellow River Plain.

Culture

Kaifeng offers a wide range of food specialities such as steaming pie and Chinese dumplings. In the evening, Kaifeng's streets turn into restaurants while hundreds open their stands and begin selling their food in the famous night market. Often people from the nearby Zhengzhou come to Kaifeng to spend an evening with their family as the atmosphere is very appealing. Less adventurous Western tourists may prefer to eat inside the restaurants and just have their drinks outside because they might not want to try chicken feet, pork feet or bucks. Particularly famous is Kaifeng's five-spice bread (wǔxiāng shāobǐng), which, like pita, can be opened and filled.

Gallery

The Iron Pagoda of Kaifeng  Qingming Riverside Landscape Garden  Reconstructed Bianjing Inner City gate  Henan University

International relations

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in China

Twin towns — Sister cities

Kaifeng is twinned with:

City	Region	Country
Wichita	Kansas	United States
Kiryat Motzkin	Haifa	Israel
Toda	Saitama	Japan
Omsk	Omsk Oblast	Russia

Colleges and universities

Public

• Henan University (河南大学) (founded 1912)
• Kaifeng University (开封大学) (founded 1980)
• Kaifeng Institute of Education (开封教育学院)
• Yellow River Conservancy Technical Institute (黄河水利职业技术学院) (founded 1929)

See also

• 1642 Kaifeng Flood
• Kaifeng Jews
• Kaifeng International Youth Hostel

Further reading

• Cotterell, Arthur. (2007). The Imperial Capitals of China – An Inside View of the Celestial Empire. London: Pimlico. pp. 304 pages.. ISBN 9781845950095. 
• The Origin of the Kaifeng Jews, in S. Shaked, ed., Irano-Judaica, Jerusalem, 1982, pp. 101–11

External links

• Government website of Kaifeng (in Simplified Chinese)
• Kaifeng City Portal (in Simplified Chinese)
• About Kaifeng's Judaeo-Persian community

Preceded by Chang'an

Capital of China (as Kaifeng) 960-1127

Succeeded by Lin'an