Changsha
203299
224522730
2008-07-09T06:26:52Z
202.104.30.118
change mayor to Zhang Jiangfei
{{Otheruses}}
{{Infobox Settlement
|name = Changsha
|official_name =
|other_name =
|native_name = 长沙
|nickname =
|settlement_type = [[Prefecture-level city]]
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|image_skyline = PICT0001xiao.jpg
|imagesize = 250px
|image_caption = Street view of Changsha
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|image_map = Location of Changsha Prefecture within Hunan (China).png
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|map_caption = Location within Hunan Province
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|pushpin_map_caption =Location in China
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|subdivision_type = Country
|subdivision_name = [[People's Republic of China]]
|subdivision_type1 = [[Political divisions of China#County level|County-level divisions]]
|subdivision_name1 = 8
|subdivision_type2 = [[Political divisions of China#Township level|Township divisions]]
|subdivision_name2 = 172
|subdivision_type3 =
|subdivision_name3 =
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|government_footnotes =
|government_type =
|leader_title =[[Mayor]]
|leader_name =[[Zhang Jiangfei]]
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|established_title2 = <!-- Incorporated (town) -->
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|area_magnitude =
|unit_pref = <!--Enter: Imperial, if Imperial (metric) is desired-->
|area_footnotes = ([[List of China major cities by area|ranked ??th]])
|area_total_km2 = 11819<!-- ALL fields dealing with a measurements are subject to automatic unit conversion-->
|area_land_km2 = <!--See table @ Template:Infobox Settlement for details on automatic unit conversion-->
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|population_as_of = 2000
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|population_total = 6138719
|population_density_km2 =auto
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|population_urban =2743826
|population_density_urban_km2 =
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|population_blank1_title = Rank in China
|population_blank1 =[[List of cities in the People's Republic of China by population|19th]]
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|population_blank2_title =Major [[Nationalities of China|nationalities]]
|population_blank2= [[Han Chinese|Han]] - 99.22%<br>[[Minorities]] - 0.78%
|timezone = [[China Standard Time]]
|utc_offset = +8
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|latd=28 |latm=11 |lats=46 |latNS=N
|longd=112 |longm=58 |longs=20 |longEW=E
|elevation_footnotes = <!--for references: use<ref> </ref> tags-->
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|postal_code_type = [[Postal codes in China|Postal code]]
|postal_code ='''4100'''00
|area_code =+86/731
|blank_name =[[License Plate (China)|License plate prefixes]]
|blank_info =湘A<br> 湘O (police and authorities)
|blank1_name =[[ISO 3166-2]]
|blank1_info =cn-??
|blank2_name =[[Gross domestic product|GDP]] (2006)
|blank2_info =[[Renminbi|CNY]] 179.066 billion ([[List of China major cities by gross domestic product|16th]])
|blank3_name = - per capita
|blank3_info =[[Renminbi|CNY]] 27,853 ([[List of China major cities by GDP per capita|?nd]])
|blank4_name =[[Human Development Index|HDI]] (2005)
|blank4_info = ? ([[List of China administrative divisions by HDI|?nd]]) — <font color="#009900">high</font>
|website = http://www.changsha.gov.cn
|footnotes = <center>'''City tree''': [[Camphor]]; '''City flower''': [[Azalea]] </center>
}}
'''Changsha''' ({{zh-stpw |t=長沙 |s=长沙 |p=Chángshā |w=Chang-sha}}) is the [[capital city]] of [[Hunan]], a province of Southcentral [[China]], located on the lower reaches of [[Xiangjiang]] river, a branch of the [[Yangtze River]]. It covers an area of 11,819 sq. kilometers and has a population of 6,017,600 (2003 population census).
Changsha was important from the time of the [[Qin dynasty]] (221–207 BC). In AD 750–1100 Changsha was an important commercial city, and its population increased greatly. Under the [[Qing dynasty]], from 1664, it was the capital of Hunan province, and it was a major [[rice]] market. It was besieged during the [[Taiping Rebellion]] but never fell. Changsha was the site of [[Mao Zedong]]'s conversion to [[communism]]. It was the scene of major battles in the [[Second Sino-Japanese War|Sino-Japanese War of 1937–45]] and was briefly occupied by the [[Japan]]ese. Rebuilt since 1949, the city is now a major port and a commercial and industrial center.
==Administration==
Changsha has jurisdiction over five [[district]]s ([[Furong District|Furong]], [[Tianxin District|Tianxin]], [[Yuelu District|Yuelu]], [[Kaifu District|Kaifu]], [[Yuhua District|Yuhua]] districts), three [[county|counties]] ([[Changsha county|Changsha]], [[Wangcheng]], [[Ningxiang]] counties) and [[Liuyang]] [[city]].
==History==
During the 1st millennium BC, it was the centre of the southern part of the Yangtze River valley state of [[Chu (state)|Chu]]. In 1935–36 some Chu graves excavated nearby produced important evidences of Chu culture. The city's most ancient name was ''Qingyang''.
[[Image:Changshadragon.jpg|left|thumb|Portrait of riding a [[dragon]], found in a tomb dated back to the [[Warring States Period]].]]
Under the [[Qin dynasty]] (221–206 BC) it became a staging post for Qin expeditions into [[Guangdong]] province. By [[202 BC]] it was already a fortified city. During the [[Han Dynasty]] it was also the capital of Changsha kingdom.
From Han times (206 BC–AD 220) it was named Linxiang county and was the seat of the Changsha commandery. The county was renamed Changsha in 589, when it became the administrative seat of Tan prefecture. It lost some importance at this period, however, because traffic from Guangdong was mostly diverted up the [[Gan River]] valley in [[Jiangxi]].
The celebrated [[Mawangdui]] Tombs of the Han Dynasty were constructed between [[186 BC|186]] and [[165 BC]]. The earliest tomb (no. 2), when excavated in the 1970s, had preserved the corpse of Lady [[Xin Zhui]] in a surprisingly good condition. Also found in the tomb were the earliest versions of [[Tao Te Ching|Dao De Jing]] (道德经), the main text of [[Taoism]], among many other historical documents.
During the [[Three Kingdoms]] period, Changsha was a much-fought-over territory. During the [[Sui Dynasty]], Changsha was a county.
After the fall of the [[Tang dynasty]] (618–907), it became the capital of the independent Chu state and later fell to the Later [[Tang dynasty]] (923–937). Between 750 and 1100, as Changsha became an important commercial city, the population of the area increased tenfold.
Under the [[Ming dynasty|Ming]] (1368–1644) and [[Qing dynasty|Qing]] (1644–1911/12) dynasties it was made a superior prefecture and from 1664 onward was the capital of Hunan and prospered as one of China's chief rice markets. During the [[Taiping Rebellion]] the city was besieged by the rebels (1854) but never fell; it then became the principal base for the suppression of the rebellion. Changsha was opened to foreign trade in 1904. Further development followed the opening of the railway to [[Hankou]] in [[Hubei]] province in 1918, which was extended to [[Guangzhou]] in [[Guangdong]] province in 1936. Although Changsha's population grew, the city remained primarily commercial in character and before 1937 had little industry, apart from some small [[cotton]]-[[textile]], glass, and [[nonferrous]]-metal plants and [[handicraft]] enterprises.
[[Yuelu Academy]] (岳麓书院) was founded in [[976|AD 976]] ([[Song Dynasty]]), destroyed by war in [[1127]], and rebuilt in [[1165]] ([[Southern Song Dynasty]]). The celebrated philosopher [[Zhu Xi]] (朱熹) taught at the Academy in [[1165]]. It was destroyed by the [[Mongols]] but was restored in the late 15th century ([[Ming Dynasty]]). In [[1903]] it became Hunan High School. The modern day [[Hunan University]] is a descendant of the academy. The architecture of some of the buildings was restored from [[1981]]–[[1986]], presumably according to the Song design.
In 1852 the [[Taiping]] forces laid a siege on Changsha.
The [[1903]] Treaty of [[Shanghai]] between [[China]] and [[Japan]] opened the city to foreign trade. Consequently, factories, churches and schools were built. A college was started by [[Yale University]] bachelors, and later became a medical center named Xiangya and a secondary school named the [[Yali School]].
[[Image:文夕大火6.jpg|thumb|[[1938 Changsha Fire]]]]
[[Mao Zedong]], founder of the [[People's Republic of China]] began his political career in Changsha. He was a student at the [[Hunan]] Number 1 Teachers' Training School from 1913 to 1918. He later returned as a teacher and principal from 1920 to 1922. The school was destroyed during the [[Chinese Civil War]] but has since been restored. The Former Office of the [[Hunan]] [[Communist Party]] Central Committee where Mao Zedong once lived is now a museum that includes Mao's living quarters, photographs and other historical items from the 1920s.
During the [[Second Sino-Japanese War]] (1937–45), the strategic location of Changsha made it the focus of four campaigns by the [[Japan]]ese to capture it from the hands of the [[National_Revolutionary_Army|Chinese Nationalists]] which resulted in the battles of [[Battle of Changsha (1939)|1st Changsha]], [[Battle of Changsha (1941)|2nd Changsha]], [[Battle of Changsha (1942)|3rd Changsha]], and [[Battle of Changsha (1944)|4th Changsha]]. The city was able to repulse the first three attacks thanks to [[Bai Chongxi]]'s leadership, but ultimately fell for a short time into Japanese hands in 1944 for another year until they were defeated in a counterattack and forced to surrender. The city itself was virtually destroyed by fire in 1938–39.
The city later became the territory of the [[People's Republic of China]] when it was formed in [[1949]] after the [[Kuomintang]] were driven to [[Taiwan]].
==Geography and climate==
[[Image:PICT0931.JPG|right|thumb|[[Xiang River]] and Changsha's riverbank at night (2005)]]
Changsha is located at 111°53'–114°5' east longitude and 27°51'–28°40' north latitude, situated in the east central [[Hunan]]. Its terrain is high in the west and low in the east. There are many mountainous areas in the west and in the north. The [[Xiangjiang River]] flows south to northwest; 296 m high [[Mt. Yuelushan]] is in the west; and [[Liuyanghe]] River ([[Liuyang River]]) and [[Laodaohe]] River ([[Laodao River]]) east.
Changsha has a [[monsoon]] climate within the sub-tropical zone, with annual average temperature being 16.8°C–17.2°C, 4.6°C in January and 28.6°C in July. Average annual precipitation is 1422 mm., and the yearly frost-free period is 275 days.
The four seasons are distinct. The summers are long and hot, with heavy rainfall, and autumn is comfortable with abundant sunlight. In winter, it is nearly rainless and not very cold, changing to rainy and wet weather with rapidly increasing temperatures in the spring.
Changsha neighboring areas include: [[Jiangxi]] province, cities and counties of Hunan, such as [[Tonggu]] county, [[Wanzai]] county, [[Yichun]] city, [[Pingxiang]] city of Jiangxi province. [[Pingjiang]] county, [[Miluo]] city, [[Xiangyin]] County of [[Yueyang]]; [[Heshan District]], [[Taojiang]] county, [[Anhua]] County of [[Yiyang]]; [[Lianyuan]] city of [[Loudi]]; [[Zhuzhou county]], [[Liling]] City of [[Zhuzhou]]; [[Xiangtan county]], [[Xiangxiang]] city of [[Xiangtan]].
==Transportation==
Changsha is well connected by roads, river, rail, and air transportation modes, and is a regional hub for industrial, tourist, and service sectors.
*Public Transport: The city's [[public transportation]] system consists of an extensive bus network with over a hundred lines as well as taxis.
*Roads: National Highways 107 and 319, as well as Changsha-[[Zhuzhou]]-[[Xiangtan]] Express Way connect the Changsha metro area nationally. There are three main bus terminals in Changsha: South Station, East Station and West Station, dispatching long- and short-haul trips to cities within and outside Hunan Province.
*River: Changsha is surrounded by major rivers, including the [[Xiangjiang]], the [[Liuyang River|Liuyanghe]], and the [[Laodao River|Laodaohe]]. Ships transport mainly goods from Xianing port located in North Changsha domesticly and internationally.
*Rail: Changsha Railway Station is located at city center and provides express and regular services to most cities in China, new passenger only high speed railway station under constraction in Yuhua district, with two main high speed rail way line across in next ten years (Beijing -> Hongkong, Shanghai -> Changsha).
*Air: [[Changsha Huanghua International Airport]] is a regional hub for [[China Southern Airlines]], which serves major cities in China, including [[Hong Kong]]. Other major airlines also provide daily service between Changsha and other domestic and international destinations.
== Economy ==
[[Image:Cs1 018.jpg|right|thumb|The Huángxīng Lù Pedestrian Commercial Street in Changsha (2006)]]
Rebuilt since 1949, its population nearly tripled between the late 1940s and the early 1980s. The city is now a major port, handling [[rice]], [[cotton]], [[timber]], and [[livestock]], and is also a collection and distribution point on the [[railway]] from [[Hankou]] to [[Guangzhou]]. It is a centre of rice [[milling]] and also has [[oil]]-extraction, [[tea]]- and [[tobacco]]-curing, and [[meat-processing]] plants. Its textile industry produces [[cotton yarn]] and [[fabrics]] and engages in [[dyeing]] and [[printing]]. [[Agricultural chemical]]s and [[fertilizers]], farm implements, and [[pumping]] [[machinery]] are also produced.
Changsha has a large thermal generating station linked by a [[power grid]] with the nearby industrial centres of [[Zhuzhou]] and [[Xiangtan]]; the three cities were designated in the 1970s as the nucleus of a major industrial complex. In the 1960s there was some development of [[heavy industry]]. The manufacture of machinery, especially machine tools and precision tools, became important, and Changsha became a center of China's [[aluminum]] industry. The city also has cement, rubber, ceramic, and papermaking plants and is a centre for many types of traditional handicrafts, producing [[hsiang]] embroidery, leather goods, umbrellas, and buttons. [[Coal]] is mined in the vicinity.
In 2007, Changsha's nominal GDP was ¥219.03 billion ($31.3 billion), a year-on-year growth of 16% from the previous year. Its per capita GDP was ¥33,711 ($4,816).<ref>Changsha Statistical Yearbook 2007</ref>
Changsha is one of China's top 20 "economically advanced " cities. Its GDP has grown at an average of 14% per year from 2001-2005, compared with the national average of 9%. During the year 2005, the [[service sector]] represented roughly half of Changsha's GDP (at 49%), up 112% from 2001 figures, and it is expected to continue driving the city's economic growth. The manufacturing and construction sectors have grown relatively steadily, growing 116% during 2001-2005. The primary sector, including agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery, has grown slightly over this same period. In addition, the consumer market has grown dramatically with income levels. Urban residents in 2005 had average income of about USD $1,500, 15% higher than national average, and up 10% from 2001 figures. <ref>Changsha Statistical Yearbook 2005</ref>
The city has also attracted tremendous amount of foreign investment. In 2005, for example, nearly USD $1 billion worth of [[foreign direct investment]] (FDI) poured into the city, mainly in hi-tech, manufacturing, food production, and services. This figure is up 40% from 2001. 59% of the total FDI has come from [[Hong Kong]], [[South Korea]], [[Singapore]], and [[Japan]]; 28% has come from the [[Americas]] and 9% from [[Europe]].<ref>[http://www.kpmg.com.cn/en/virtual_library/Financial_advisory_services/Changsha_investment06.pdf KPMG Changsha Investment Environment Study 2006]</ref>
Along with the economic growth, environmental pollution in Changsha has become a serious problem, with rapidly increasing number of private cars, construction fields everywhere, and numerous industrial facilities on the outskirts of the city (2007).
== Cultural life ==
[[Image:Hunanprovmuseum.jpg|right|thumb|[[Hunan Provincial Museum]] in Changsha, [[Hunan province]], [[China]]]]
In recent years, Changsha has become an important creative center for TV and entertainment arts, with its many TV stations producing some of the most popular programs in China, including [[Super Girl (contest)|Super Girl]], a Chinese female version of the UK [[Pop Idol]] or [[American Idol]] that is the most watched program ever to air on Chinese TV. These programs have also brought a new entertainment industry, including singing bars, dance clubs, theater shows, as well as related businesses like hair salons, fashion stores, and hot spicy snacks at night(esp. in the summer time).
Changsha is home to the Lei Feng Jinianguan ([[Lei Feng]] Memorial) and his statue.
On the 27th May 2008, the BBC started broadcasting a four-part TV series in the UK, a study of the China's largest restaurant, a 5,000 seat capacity West Lake restaurant in Hunanese town of Changsha, under the BBC's 'Storyville' documentary series.
==Colleges and universities==
Changsha was the seat of many ancient schools and academies. It is the site of [[Hunan Medical University]] (1914) and has several colleges and institutes of [[higher learning]].
'''National'''
*[[Central South University]] (中南大学)
*[[Hunan University]] (湖南大学)
*[[National University of Defense Technology]] (国防科技大学)
'''Public'''
*[[Changsha University of Science and Technology]] (长沙理工大学)
*[[Hunan Agricultural University]] (湖南农业大学)
*Hunan Normal University (湖南师范大学)
*Hunan College of Traditional Chinese Medicine (湖南中医学院)
*Changsha University (长沙学院)
*Hunan Business College (湖南商学院)
*Central South University of Forestry and Technology(中南林业科技大学)
Note: Institutions without full-time bachelor programs are not listed.
===Changsha in fiction===
[[Richard McKenna]]'s novel ''[[The Sand Pebbles]]'' concerns [[United States|American]] sailors on the [[United States Navy]]'s [[Yangtze Patrol]]. Most of the events in the novel take place in [[Changsha]] or [[Wuhan]], during the 1926-7 civil war. The book was made into a film, also named [[The Sand Pebbles (film)|The Sand Pebbles]].
==Notable inhabitants==
Changsha is the birthplace of:
* [[Xiong Ni]] - Olympic diver and gold medalist
* [[Yang Kaihui]] - Mao's second wife
* [[Zhu Rongji]] - Prime Minister of China, 1997-2002
* [[Tian Han]] - Author of the lyrics to China's national anthem
* [[Huang Xing]] - [[Kuomintang]] General
* [[Liang Heng]] - Writer and literary scholar.
* [[Hu Yaobang]] - CPC General Secretary until death (1989)
* [[Lei Feng]] - Eminent PLA soldier/role-model
* [[Li Xiaopeng (gymnast)|Li Xiaopeng]] - Olympic gymnast
* [[Li Fuchun]]
* [[Liu Shaoqi]] - President of China, until disgrace in 1966.
* [[Tan Dun]] - Contemporary composer (''[[Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon]]'', ''[[Hero (2002 film)|Hero]]'' soundtracks)
* [[Dong Qiming]] - Olympic swimmer and gold medalist
* [[Qin Vivian]] - Model and literary scholar
Other famous people associated with the city:
* [[Mao Zedong]]
==Sister cities and friendship cities==
Changsha has [[town twinning|city partnerships]] with the following cities and regions:
*{{flagicon|ITA}} [[Aleizuo]], [[Italy]]
*{{flagicon|DEU}} [[Augsburg]], [[Germany]]
*{{flagicon|SUI}} [[Fribourg]], [[Switzerland]]
*{{flagicon|KOR}} [[Gumi]], [[South Korea]]
*{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Kagoshima]], [[Japan]]
*{{flagicon|ZAF}} [[Kimberley]], [[South Africa]]
*{{flagicon|LKA}} [[Latenapula]], [[Sri Lanka]]
*{{flagicon|BEL}} [[Mons]], [[Belgium]]
*{{flagicon|NZL}} [[Puluolua]], [[New Zealand]]
*{{flagicon|USA}} {{flagicon|Minnesota}} [[Saint Paul, Minnesota|Saint Paul]], [[Minnesota]] [[USA]]
==See also==
*[[1938 Changsha Fire]]
==References==
<references/>
==External links==
{{commonscat|Changsha}}
*[http://www.changsha.gov.cn/ Changsha Government website]
{{Hunan}}
{{Major cities of Greater China}}
{{coor title dms|28|11|46|N|112|58|20|E|region:CN-43_type:city(6017600)}}
[[Category:Settlements established in the 1st millennium BC]]
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[[Category:Provincial capitals in China]]
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