Beihai
Beihai
北海 | |
|---|---|
| 北海市 | |
 Beihai Silver Beach | |
.png) Location of Beihai Prefecture within China | |
| Country | China |
| Province | Guangxi |
| Area | |
| • Prefecture-level city | 1,288 sq mi (3,337 km2) |
| Population (2010 census) | |
| • Prefecture-level city | 1,539,300 |
| • Density | 1,200/sq mi (460/km2) |
| • Urban | 572,000 |
| • Metro | 405,600 |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (China standard time) |
| Postal code | 536000 |
| Area code | 779 |
| Website | http://www.beihai.gov.cn/ |
| Beihai | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese | 北海 | ||||||||||||
| Postal | Pakhoi | ||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | north of the sea | ||||||||||||
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Beihai (Chinese: 北海) is a prefecture-level city of Guangxi, China. Beihai means "north of the sea" in Chinese, signifying its status as a seaport on the north shore of the Gulf of Tonkin. Between the years 2006 and 2020, Beihai is predicted to be the world's fastest growing city.[1] Beihai has a large shipyard, but most of the money generated in the city is derived from trade.
The dialect spoken throughout Beihai is "Baihua" a Cantonese dialect; Mandarin is not often used or spoken by the population (Mandarin is the official language used in government, business and education above elementary level throughout mainland China).
- Area: 3337 km², 957 km² urban districts and 563 km² for built up area.
- Population: 1,539,300 at the 2010 census whom 405,600 live in the built up area made of 2 urban districts Haicheng and Yinhai.
- Municipal seat: Haicheng District
- Geographic coordinates: 108°50′45″ - 109°47′28″ East, 21°29′ - 21°55′34″ North
It governs the small islands of Weizhou and Xieyang, and is north of Hainan Island.
Subdivision
Beihai contains three districts and one county, which are subdivided into five urban sub-districts, 23 towns, 3 townships, 87 neighborhood committees, 343 village committees. (see also Administrative divisions of the People's Republic of China#Levels)
- Haicheng District (Cantonese: Hoi Shing)
- Yinhai District (Cantonese: Ngan Hoi)
- Tieshangang District (Cantonese: Tit San Gang)
- Hepu County
History
After the 1876 Sino-British Treaty of Yantai, eight Western nations (UK, US, Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Italy, Portugal, and Belgium) set up embassies, hospitals, churches, schools, and maritime customs. Today, 15 of these western buildings remain in Beihai. It officially became an international tourist spot (旅遊對外開放城市) in 1982.
City timeline
- December 4, 1949: Beihai became a town of Hepu County under the Communist Party of China .
- January 1951: a province-administered city of Guangdong
- May 1951: entrusted to Guangxi
- March 1952: officially administered by Guangxi
- May 1955: Administered by Guangdong again
- 1956: reduced to a county-level city
- 1958: reduced to Beihai People's Commune of Hepu County
- 1959: county-class town
- 1964: restored to county-class city
- June 1965: Administered by Guangxi again
- October 1983: restored to prefecture-level city
Climate
| Climate data for Beihai (1971−2000) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 18.6 (65.5) |
19.2 (66.6) |
22.4 (72.3) |
26.9 (80.4) |
30.3 (86.5) |
31.5 (88.7) |
31.9 (89.4) |
31.6 (88.9) |
31.1 (88.0) |
28.7 (83.7) |
26.0 (78.8) |
21.2 (70.2) |
26.6 (79.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 11.7 (53.1) |
12.9 (55.2) |
16.2 (61.2) |
20.7 (69.3) |
24.0 (75.2) |
25.9 (78.6) |
26.2 (79.2) |
25.6 (78.1) |
24.5 (76.1) |
21.4 (70.5) |
17.2 (63.0) |
13.5 (56.3) |
20.0 (68.0) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 34.1 (1.34) |
41.6 (1.64) |
58.5 (2.30) |
92.8 (3.65) |
156.7 (6.17) |
296.6 (11.68) |
378.6 (14.91) |
393.9 (15.51) |
196.9 (7.75) |
95.4 (3.76) |
38.3 (1.51) |
20.4 (0.80) |
1,803.8 (71.02) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) | 8.5 | 11.6 | 12.3 | 11.4 | 11.7 | 14.0 | 14.9 | 18.2 | 13.3 | 8.5 | 5.3 | 5.3 | 135 |
| Source: Weather China | |||||||||||||
Demographics
Beihai is dominated by Han Chinese, with a few minorities such as ethnic Zhuang.
Beihai is projected to be the fastest growing city in the world from now until 2020, with an estimated population increase of 10.58% per year. This would take the population of the city itself in 2020 to an estimated 1,250,000 (from just 306,000 in 2006)
Transport
- The Beihai Airport has scheduled flights to major airports in China.
- China National Highway 209
International relations
Twin towns — Sister cities
Beihai is twinned with:
Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
Suva, Fiji
Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States
Yatsushiro, Kumamoto, Kyushu, Japan
Culture
Cuisine
One of the local dishes that is unique to Beihai is Sachong, otherwise known locally as "sandworms". This Beihai delicacy can be eaten deep fried, steamed or broiled in soup. When deep fried, the fried crispy outside taste like a fried onion ring while the inside has a chewy center.
Beihai is also known for its variety of noodles. When visiting Beihai, one must pay a visit to one of the many local noodle shops. Some noodle dishes in the area include Luo si fen (escargot noodle soup), Zhu jiao fen (pig's feet noodle soup), niu ruo fen (Vietnamese styled beef noodle soup)and many more. Beihai lies in the tropical areas of China. The city has tropical fruits such as lychee, longgan and coconuts.
Miscellaneous
Beihai has greatest high tides at September 1, with the tides being 5 meters (16 feet) high.
References
External links
| Special Economic Zones |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Open Coastal Cities | ||