Xingtai
Xingtai
邢台 | |
|---|---|
| 邢台市 | |
.png) Location of Xingtai within Hebei | |
| Country | People's Republic of China |
| Province | Hebei |
| Area | |
| • Prefecture-level city | 12,486 km2 (4,821 sq mi) |
| Population (2004) | |
| • Prefecture-level city | 6,730,000 |
| • Metro | 561,000 |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (China standard time) |
| Licence Plate Prefix | 冀E |
| Website | http://www.xingtai.gov.cn/ |
Xingtai (simplified Chinese: 邢台; traditional Chinese: 邢臺 or 邢台; pinyin: Xíngtái; Wade–Giles: Hsingtai) is a city in southern Hebei province, North China. The prefecture-level city of Xingtai, with a total area of 12,486 square kilometres (4,821 sq mi), administers 2 districts, 2 county-level cities and 15 counties. In 2004 it had an urban population of 561,400 and a total population of 6.73 million. It borders Shijiazhuang and Hengshui in the north, Handan in the south, and the provinces of Shandong and Shanxi in the east and west respectively.
History
Xingtai is the oldest city in North China.[citation needed] The history of Xingtai can be traced back 3500 years ago. During the Shang Dynasty, Xingtai functioned as a capital city. During the Zhou Dynasty, the State of Xing–from which the present name derives–was founded in the city. During the Warring States Period, the state of Zhao made Xingtai its provisional capital. The city was known as Xindu for most of the Qin Dynasty, but after the 207 BC Battle of Julu (within modern Xingtai), it became known as Xiangguo. During the Sixteen Kingdoms Period, when the Later Zhao was founded by Shi Le of the Jie, the capital was again at Xiangguo. During the Sui and Tang dynasties, the city was known as Xingzhou. During the Yuan Dynasty, Ming, and Qing dynasties, Xingtai was called Shunteh (Shundefu) and functioned as a prefecture in China.
Geography and climate
Xingtai has a continental, monsoon-influenced semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk),[1] characterised by hot, humid summers due to the East Asian monsoon, and generally cold, windy, very dry winters that reflect the influence of the vast Siberian anticyclone. Spring can bear witness to sandstorms blowing in from the Mongolian steppe, accompanied by rapidly warming, but generally dry, conditions. Autumn is similar to spring in temperature and lack of rainfall. The annual rainfall, more than half of which falls in July and August alone, is highly variable and not reliable. In the city itself, this amount has averaged to a meagre 493 millimetres (19.4 in) per annum.
| Climate data for Xingtai (1971−2000) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 3.9 (39.0) |
7.3 (45.1) |
13.6 (56.5) |
21.9 (71.4) |
27.5 (81.5) |
32.1 (89.8) |
31.9 (89.4) |
30.3 (86.5) |
26.9 (80.4) |
21.1 (70.0) |
12.4 (54.3) |
5.9 (42.6) |
19.6 (67.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −6.1 (21.0) |
−3.1 (26.4) |
2.5 (36.5) |
9.8 (49.6) |
15.1 (59.2) |
20.2 (68.4) |
22.6 (72.7) |
21.6 (70.9) |
16.1 (61.0) |
9.4 (48.9) |
1.8 (35.2) |
−3.8 (25.2) |
8.8 (47.8) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 3.6 (0.14) |
7.0 (0.28) |
13.0 (0.51) |
18.2 (0.72) |
30.8 (1.21) |
53.3 (2.10) |
151.9 (5.98) |
120.2 (4.73) |
49.5 (1.95) |
29.6 (1.17) |
12.2 (0.48) |
4.1 (0.16) |
493.4 (19.43) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) | 2.3 | 2.9 | 3.8 | 4.0 | 6.1 | 8.0 | 12.9 | 11.1 | 7.3 | 5.3 | 3.9 | 2.1 | 69.7 |
| Source: Weather China | |||||||||||||
Xingtai earthquake
A major earthquake, known as the Xingtai Earthquake, with magnitude 6.8 on the Richter scale and epicenter in Longyao County occurred in the early morning of March 8, 1966. It was followed by 5 earthquakes above magnitude 6 on the Richter scale that lasted until March 29, 1966. The strongest of these quakes had a magnitude of 7.2 and took place in the southeastern part of Ningjin County on March 22. The earthquake damage included 8,064 dead, 38,000 injured and more than 5 million destroyed houses.[2]
Administrative divisions
| Map | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||
| # | Name | Hanzi | Hanyu Pinyin | Population (2004 est.) | Area (km²) | Density (/km²) |
| 1 | Qiaodong District | 桥东区 | Qiáodōng Qū | 230,000 | 37 | 6,216 |
| 2 | Qiaoxi District | 桥西区 | Qiáoxī Qū | 330,000 | 96 | 3,438 |
| 3 | Nangong City | 南宫市 | Nángōng Shì | 450,000 | 854 | 527 |
| 4 | Shahe City | 沙河市 | Shāhé Shì | 470,000 | 999 | 470 |
| 5 | Xingtai County | 邢台县 | Xíngtái Xiàn | 450,000 | 1,983 | 227 |
| 6 | Lincheng County | 临城县 | Línchéng Xiàn | 190,000 | 797 | 238 |
| 7 | Neiqiu County | 内丘县 | Nèiqiū Xiàn | 260,000 | 775 | 335 |
| 8 | Baixiang County | 柏乡县 | Bǎixiāng Xiàn | 180,000 | 268 | 672 |
| 9 | Longyao County | 隆尧县 | Lóngyáo Xiàn | 490,000 | 749 | 654 |
| 10 | Ren County | 任县 | Rén Xiàn | 320,000 | 431 | 742 |
| 11 | Nanhe County | 南和县 | Nánhé Xiàn | 320,000 | 418 | 766 |
| 12 | Ningjin County | 宁晋县 | Níngjìn Xiàn | 730,000 | 1,107 | 659 |
| 13 | Julu County | 巨鹿县 | Jùlù Xiàn | 360,000 | 623 | 578 |
| 14 | Xinhe County | 新河县 | Xīnhé Xiàn | 160,000 | 366 | 437 |
| 15 | Guangzong County | 广宗县 | Guǎngzōng Xiàn | 270,000 | 493 | 548 |
| 16 | Pingxiang County | 平乡县 | Píngxiāng Xiàn | 280,000 | 406 | 670 |
| 17 | Wei County | 威县 | Wēi Xiàn | 540,000 | 994 | 543 |
| 18 | Qinghe County | 清河县 | Qīnghé Xiàn | 360,000 | 501 | 719 |
| 19 | Linxi County | 临西县 | Línxī Xiàn | 330,000 | 542 | 609 |
Economy
Xingtai is the most important base for natural resources in North China, producing 20 million metric tonnes of coal annually. It also features the largest power plant in the southern part of this region of China, with an output of 2.06 MW.[3]
Transport
Located on the Beijing−Guangzhou and the Beijing−Kowloon Railways, as well as the Beijing−Shenzhen, Qingdao−Yinchuan ( , and Xingtai−Linqing Expressways, Xingtai is a transport hub connecting the Eastern, Northern, and Central China.
References
- ^ Peel, M. C. and Finlayson, B. L. and McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen-Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11: 1633-1644. ISSN 1027-5606.
- ^ "Major earthquakes on Chinese mainland since 1966" by the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Houston
- ^ "邢台市情介绍" (in Simplified Chinese). Xingtai People's Government. Retrieved 2011-05-20.
External links
