Hunan
Encyclopedia
is a province of South-Central China
, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River
and south of Lake Dongting (hence the name Hunan, meaning "south of the lake"). Hunan is sometimes called and officially abbreviated as "湘" (pinyin
: Xiāng) for short, after the Xiang River
which runs through the province.
Hunan borders Hubei
in the north, Jiangxi
to the east, Guangdong
to the south, Guangxi
to the southwest, Guizhou
to the west, and Chongqing
to the northwest. The capital is Changsha.
, Tujia, Dong
and Yao people
s. It entered the written history of China
around 350 BC, when under the kings of the Zhou dynasty
, it became part of the State of Chu. At this time, and for hundreds of years thereafter, it was a magnet for migration of Han Chinese
from the north, who cleared most of the forests and began farming rice in the valleys and plains. To this day many of the small villages in Hunan are named after the Han families who settled there. Migration from the north was especially prevalent during the Eastern Jin Dynasty and the Southern and Northern Dynasties
Periods, when nomadic invaders pushed these peoples south.
During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, Hunan was home to its own independent regime, Ma Chu
.
Hunan and Hubei
became a part of the province of Huguang
(湖廣) until the Qing dynasty
. The Hunan province was created in 1664 from Huguang, renamed to its current name in 1723.
Hunan became an important communications center due to its position on the Yangzi River (Changjiang). It was also on the Imperial Highway
constructed between northern and southern China. The land produced grain so abundantly that it fed many parts of China with its surpluses. The population continued to climb until, by the nineteenth century, Hunan became overcrowded and prone to peasant
uprisings. Some of the uprisings were caused by ethnic tensions like ten-years long Miao people rebellion of 1795-1806.
The Taiping Rebellion
began to the south in Guangxi
Province in 1850. The rebellion spread into Hunan and then further eastward along the Yangzi River valley. Ultimately, it was a Hunanese army under Zeng Guofan
who marched into Nanjing
to put down the uprising in 1864.
Hunan was relatively quiet until 1910 when there were uprisings against the crumbling Qing dynasty, which were followed by the Communist's Autumn Harvest Uprising
of 1927. It was led by Hunanese native Mao Zedong
, and established a short-lived Hunan soviet in 1927. The Communists maintained a guerrilla army in the mountains along the Hunan-Jiangxi
border until 1934. Under pressure from the Nationalist Kuomintang
(KMT) forces, they began the famous Long March
to bases in Shaanxi
Province. After the departure of the Communists, the KMT army fought against the Japanese in the second Sino-Japanese war
. They defended the capital Changsha until it fell in 1944. Japan launched Operation Ichigo, a plan to control the railroad from Wuchang to Guangzhou
(Yuehan Railway
). Hunan was relatively unscathed by the civil war that followed the defeat of the Japanese in 1945. In 1949, the Communists returned once more as the Nationalists retreated southward.
As Mao Zedong
's home province, Hunan supported the Cultural Revolution
of 1966-1976. However it was slower than most provinces in adopting the reforms implemented by Deng Xiaoping
in the years that followed Mao's death in 1976.
Former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji
is also Hunanese, as are the late President
Liu Shaoqi
and the late Marshal Peng Dehuai
.
lies 1000 km away, Beijing
1200 km away, and Guangzhou
500 km away.
Hunan is situated between 109°-114° east longitude
and 20°-30° north latitude
. The east, south and west sides of the province are surrounded by mountains and hills, such as the Wuling Mountains
to the northwest, the Xuefeng Mountains
to the west, the Nanling Mountains to the south, and the Luoxiao Mountains
to the east. The mountains and hills occupy more than 80% of the area and the plain comprises less than 20% of the whole province.
The Xiangjiang
, the Zijiang
, the Yuanjiang and the Lishui
Rivers converge on the Yangtze River
at Lake Dongting (Dongting Hu, 洞庭湖) in the north of Hunan. The center and northern parts are somewhat low and a U-shaped basin, open in the north and with Lake Dongting as its center. Most of Hunan Province lies in the basins of four major tributaries of the Yangtze River.
Lake Dongting is the largest lake in the province and the second largest freshwater lake of China. Due to the reclamation of land for agriculture, Lake Dongting has been subdivided into many smaller lakes, though there is now a trend to reverse some of the reclamation, which had damaged wetland
habitats surrounding the lake.
Hunan's climate is subtropical, with mild winters and plenty of precipitation. January temperatures average 3 to 8 °C while July temperatures average around 27 to 30 °C. Average annual precipitation is 1200 to 1700 mm.
The fourteen prefecture-level divisions of Hunan are subdivided into 122 county-level divisions (34 districts, sixteen county-level cities, 65 counties, seven autonomous counties). Those are in turn divided into 2587 township-level divisions (1098 towns, 1158 townships, 98 ethnic townships, 225 subdistrict
s, and eight district public offices).
See List of administrative divisions of Hunan for a complete list of county-level divisions.
.
The Governor of Hunan is the highest ranking official in the People's Government of Hunan. However, in the province's dual party-government governing system, the Governor has less power than the Hunan Communist Party of China
Provincial Committee Secretary, colloquially termed the "Hunan CPC Party Chief".
and cotton
. The Lake Dongting area is an important center of ramie
production, and Hunan is also an important center of tea
cultivation. Aside from agricultural products, in recent years Hunan has grown to become an important center for steel, machinary and electronics production, especially as China's manufacturing sector moves away from coastal provinces such as Guangdong
and Zhejiang
.
The Lengshuijiang
area is noted for its stibnite
mines, and is one of the major centers of antimony
extraction in China.
Its nominal GDP for 2010 was 1.59 trillion yuan (US$234.9 billion). Its per capita GDP was 20,226 yuan (US$2,961).
The Changsha National Economic and Technology Development Zone was founded in 1992. It is located east of Changsha. The total planned area is 38.6 km2 and the current area is 14 km2. Near the zone is National Highways G319 and G107 as well as Jingzhu Highway. Besides that, it is very close to the downtown and the railway station. The distance between the zone and the airport is 8 km. The major industries in the zone include high-tech industry, biology project technology and new material industry.
Approved by the State Council, Chenzhou Export processing Zone (CEPZ) was established in 2005 and is the only export processing zone in Hunan province. The scheduled production area of CEPZ covers 3km2. The industrial positioning of CEPZ is to concentrate on developing export-oriented hi-tech industries, including electronic information, precision machinery, and new-type materials. The zone has good infrastructure, and the enterprises inside could enjoy the preferential policies of tax-exemption, tax-guarantee and tax-refunding. By the end of the “Eleventh Five-Year Plan”, the CEPZ achieved a total export and import volume of over USD 1 billion and provided more than 50,000 jobs. It aimed to be one of the first-class export processing zones in China.
Zhuzhou Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone was founded in 1992. Its total planned area is 35 km2. It is very close to National Highway G320. The major industries in the zone include biotechnology, food processing and heavy industry. In 2007, the park signed a cooperation contract with Beijing Automobile Industry, one of the largest auto makers in China, which will set up a manufacturing base in Zhuzhou HTP.
, the population of Hunan is 64,400,700 consisting of forty-one ethnic group
s. Its population grew 6.17% (3,742,700) from its 1990 levels. According to the census, 89.79% (57,540,000) identified themselves as Han people
, 10.21% (6,575,300) as minority group
s. The minority groups are Tujia, Miao
, Dong
, Yao
, Hui
, Bai, Zhuang, Uyghurs
and so on.
and other parts of Changde. Hui
and Uyghurs have intermarried in this area. The Uyghurs in Changde are not very religious, and eat pork. Older Uygurs disapprove of this, especially elders at the mosques in Changde, and they seek to draw them back to Islamic customs. In addition to eating pork, the Uygurs of Changde
Hunan practice other Han Chinese customs, like ancestor worship at graves. Some Uyghurs from Xinjiang visit the Hunan Uyghurs out of curiosity or interest. Also, the Uyghurs of Hunan do not speak the Uyghur language, instead, they speak Chinese as their native language, and Arabic for religious reasons at the mosque.
Xiang is a subdivision of spoken Chinese that originates from Hunan.
Hunan cuisine
is noted for its use of chili pepper
s.
Nü shu
is a writing system that was used exclusively among women in Jiangyong County
.
Hunan's culture industry generated 87 billion yuan (US$11.76 billion) in economic value in 2007, a major contributor to the province's economic growth. The industry accounts for 7.5 percent of the region's GDP - 0.9 percentage points higher than the previous year.
In recent years, Hunan's cultural exports to the rest of China have been making a big impact. For instance, the Super Girl contest – a Chinese version of Pop Idol
– was a significant and ground-breaking achievement for Chinese television. It included live broadcast, voting by mobile phones, and featured quirky and atypical characters. Another television export has been the television cartoon series Blue Cat
.
The gross profit for the Supergirl contest in 2005, for example, was 17.79 million yuan (US$ 2.48 million). As a result of programs like Supergirl, Golden Eagle Broadcasting System's Hunan satellite television channel has become the most-watched regionally-produced channel in China, with over 5.6 million viewers. According to Golden Eagle, its programming also airs in the US, Japan, and Europe.
The local government started developing its cultural industry earlier than other cities, which is the main reason why they are ahead. There is a mature entertainment chain and standardized management in Hunan's cultural industry. A prime example of this is Golden Eagle Broadcasting System.
South Central China
South Central China is a region of the People's Republic of China defined by governmental bureaus that includes the provinces of Guangdong, Hainan, Henan, Hubei, and Hunan, and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, however excluding the 2 special administrative regions : Hong Kong and...
, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River
Yangtze River
The Yangtze, Yangzi or Cháng Jiāng is the longest river in Asia, and the third-longest in the world. It flows for from the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai eastward across southwest, central and eastern China before emptying into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It is also one of the...
and south of Lake Dongting (hence the name Hunan, meaning "south of the lake"). Hunan is sometimes called and officially abbreviated as "湘" (pinyin
Pinyin
Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...
: Xiāng) for short, after the Xiang River
Xiang River
The Xiang River , in older transliterations as the Siang River or Hsiang River, is a river in southern China...
which runs through the province.
Hunan borders Hubei
Hubei
' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...
in the north, Jiangxi
Jiangxi
' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...
to the east, Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
to the south, Guangxi
Guangxi
Guangxi, formerly romanized Kwangsi, is a province of southern China along its border with Vietnam. In 1958, it became the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, a region with special privileges created specifically for the Zhuang people.Guangxi's location, in...
to the southwest, Guizhou
Guizhou
' is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the southwestern part of the country. Its provincial capital city is Guiyang.- History :...
to the west, and Chongqing
Chongqing
Chongqing is a major city in Southwest China and one of the five national central cities of China. Administratively, it is one of the PRC's four direct-controlled municipalities , and the only such municipality in inland China.The municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the...
to the northwest. The capital is Changsha.
History
Hunan's primeval forests were first occupied by the ancestors of the modern MiaoMiao people
The Miao or ม้ง ; ) is an ethnic group recognized by the government of the People's Republic of China as one of the 55 official minority groups. Miao is a Chinese term and does not reflect the self-designations of the component nations of people, which include Hmong, Hmu, A Hmao, and Kho Xiong...
, Tujia, Dong
Dong people
The Dong , a Kam–Sui people of southern China, are one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. They are famed for their native-bred Kam Sweet Rice , carpentry skills, and unique architecture, in particular a form of covered bridge known as the "wind and rain...
and Yao people
Yao people
The Yao nationality is a government classification for various minorities in China. They form one of the 55 ethnic minority groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China, where they reside in the mountainous terrain of the southwest and south...
s. It entered the written history of China
History of China
Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...
around 350 BC, when under the kings of the Zhou dynasty
Zhou Dynasty
The Zhou Dynasty was a Chinese dynasty that followed the Shang Dynasty and preceded the Qin Dynasty. Although the Zhou Dynasty lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history, the actual political and military control of China by the Ji family lasted only until 771 BC, a period known as...
, it became part of the State of Chu. At this time, and for hundreds of years thereafter, it was a magnet for migration of Han Chinese
Han Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...
from the north, who cleared most of the forests and began farming rice in the valleys and plains. To this day many of the small villages in Hunan are named after the Han families who settled there. Migration from the north was especially prevalent during the Eastern Jin Dynasty and the Southern and Northern Dynasties
Southern and Northern Dynasties
The Southern and Northern Dynasties was a period in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589 AD. Though an age of civil war and political chaos, it was also a time of flourishing arts and culture, advancement in technology, and the spreading of Mahayana Buddhism and Daoism...
Periods, when nomadic invaders pushed these peoples south.
During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, Hunan was home to its own independent regime, Ma Chu
Chu (Ten Kingdoms)
Chǔ was a kingdom in southern China during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period . It existed from 907 to 951.-Founding:Ma Yin was named regional governor by the Tang court in 896 after fighting against a rebel named Yang Xingmi. He declared himself as the Prince of Chu with the fall of the...
.
Hunan and Hubei
Hubei
' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...
became a part of the province of Huguang
Huguang
Huguang was a province of China during the Yuan and Ming Dynasties. It was partitioned in the late Qing Dynasty, becoming the provinces of Hubei and Hunan....
(湖廣) until the Qing dynasty
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
. The Hunan province was created in 1664 from Huguang, renamed to its current name in 1723.
Imperial Highway
Imperial Highway is a road in Orange and Los Angeles counties in California. It begins at the Anaheim-Orange boundary and runs through several cities until it stops at Dockweiler State Beach in Los Angeles near the Los Angeles International Airport. For much of the way, Imperial Highway is signed...
constructed between northern and southern China. The land produced grain so abundantly that it fed many parts of China with its surpluses. The population continued to climb until, by the nineteenth century, Hunan became overcrowded and prone to peasant
Peasant
A peasant is an agricultural worker who generally tend to be poor and homeless-Etymology:The word is derived from 15th century French païsant meaning one from the pays, or countryside, ultimately from the Latin pagus, or outlying administrative district.- Position in society :Peasants typically...
uprisings. Some of the uprisings were caused by ethnic tensions like ten-years long Miao people rebellion of 1795-1806.
The Taiping Rebellion
Taiping Rebellion
The Taiping Rebellion was a widespread civil war in southern China from 1850 to 1864, led by heterodox Christian convert Hong Xiuquan, who, having received visions, maintained that he was the younger brother of Jesus Christ, against the ruling Manchu-led Qing Dynasty...
began to the south in Guangxi
Guangxi
Guangxi, formerly romanized Kwangsi, is a province of southern China along its border with Vietnam. In 1958, it became the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, a region with special privileges created specifically for the Zhuang people.Guangxi's location, in...
Province in 1850. The rebellion spread into Hunan and then further eastward along the Yangzi River valley. Ultimately, it was a Hunanese army under Zeng Guofan
Zeng Guofan
Zeng Guofan was an eminent Han Chinese official, military general, and devout Confucian scholar of the late Qing Dynasty in China....
who marched into Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
to put down the uprising in 1864.
Hunan was relatively quiet until 1910 when there were uprisings against the crumbling Qing dynasty, which were followed by the Communist's Autumn Harvest Uprising
Autumn Harvest Uprising
The Autumn Harvest Uprising was an insurrection that took place in Hunan province and Jiangxi province, China on September 7, 1927, led by Mao Zedong, who established a short-lived Hunan Soviet....
of 1927. It was led by Hunanese native Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
, and established a short-lived Hunan soviet in 1927. The Communists maintained a guerrilla army in the mountains along the Hunan-Jiangxi
Jiangxi
' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...
border until 1934. Under pressure from the Nationalist Kuomintang
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
(KMT) forces, they began the famous Long March
Long March
The Long March was a massive military retreat undertaken by the Red Army of the Communist Party of China, the forerunner of the People's Liberation Army, to evade the pursuit of the Kuomintang army. There was not one Long March, but a series of marches, as various Communist armies in the south...
to bases in Shaanxi
Shaanxi
' is a province in the central part of Mainland China, and it includes portions of the Loess Plateau on the middle reaches of the Yellow River in addition to the Qinling Mountains across the southern part of this province...
Province. After the departure of the Communists, the KMT army fought against the Japanese in the second Sino-Japanese war
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
. They defended the capital Changsha until it fell in 1944. Japan launched Operation Ichigo, a plan to control the railroad from Wuchang to Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
(Yuehan Railway
Yuehan railway
The Guangdong–Hankou or Yuehan Railway is an older railway now incorporated into the Jingguang Railway. The original Canton–Hankow Railway ran from Guangzhou to Wuchang and was opened in 1936. Another line, the Peking–Hankow Railway ended across the river at Hankou...
). Hunan was relatively unscathed by the civil war that followed the defeat of the Japanese in 1945. In 1949, the Communists returned once more as the Nationalists retreated southward.
As Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
's home province, Hunan supported the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
of 1966-1976. However it was slower than most provinces in adopting the reforms implemented by Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping was a Chinese politician, statesman, and diplomat. As leader of the Communist Party of China, Deng was a reformer who led China towards a market economy...
in the years that followed Mao's death in 1976.
Former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji
Zhu Rongji
Zhū Róngjī is a prominent Chinese politician who served as the Mayor and Party chief in Shanghai between 1987 and 1991, before serving as Vice-Premier and then the fifth Premier of the People's Republic of China from March 1998 to March 2003.A tough administrator, his time in office saw the...
is also Hunanese, as are the late President
President of the People's Republic of China
The President of the People's Republic of China is a ceremonial office and a part of State organs under the National People's Congress and it is the head of state of the People's Republic of China . The office was created by the 1982 Constitution...
Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi was a Chinese revolutionary, statesman, and theorist. He was Chairman of the People's Republic of China, China's head of state, from 27 April 1959 to 31 October 1968, during which he implemented policies of economic reconstruction in China...
and the late Marshal Peng Dehuai
Peng Dehuai
Peng Dehuai was a prominent military leader of the Communist Party of China, and China's Defence Minister from 1954 to 1959. Peng was an important commander during the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Chinese civil war and was also the commander-in-chief of People's Volunteer Army in the Korean War...
.
Geography
Hunan Province is located on the south bank of the Yangtze River (Changjiang, 长江), about half way along its length. ShanghaiShanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
lies 1000 km away, Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
1200 km away, and Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
500 km away.
Hunan is situated between 109°-114° east longitude
Longitude
Longitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east-west position of a point on the Earth's surface. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds, and denoted by the Greek letter lambda ....
and 20°-30° north latitude
Latitude
In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a...
. The east, south and west sides of the province are surrounded by mountains and hills, such as the Wuling Mountains
Wuling Mountains
The Wuling Mountains is a mountain range located in Central China, running from Chongqing Municipality and East Guizhou to West Hunan.The Wulingyuan Scenic Area in the east is a World Heritage Site, noted for its high mountains, strangely-shaped crags, clear waters, deep valleys, and mountain...
to the northwest, the Xuefeng Mountains
Xuefeng Mountains
The Xuefeng Mountains are a mountain range of China in western Hunan province....
to the west, the Nanling Mountains to the south, and the Luoxiao Mountains
Luoxiao Mountains
The Luoxiao Mountains form a mountain range in the People's Republic of China, on the border between Jiangxi and Hunan provinces....
to the east. The mountains and hills occupy more than 80% of the area and the plain comprises less than 20% of the whole province.
The Xiangjiang
Xiang River
The Xiang River , in older transliterations as the Siang River or Hsiang River, is a river in southern China...
, the Zijiang
Zijiang River
The Zi Jiang is one of the four largest rivers in Hunan province of China, also one of the main tributaries of the Yangtze River. It is 653 km long and covers 28,2142 km² .The Zijiang has two sources, the South and the West...
, the Yuanjiang and the Lishui
Lishui River
Lishui River is a river in Hunan province of China, one of the Yangtze River's four largest tributaries in the province....
Rivers converge on the Yangtze River
Yangtze River
The Yangtze, Yangzi or Cháng Jiāng is the longest river in Asia, and the third-longest in the world. It flows for from the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai eastward across southwest, central and eastern China before emptying into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It is also one of the...
at Lake Dongting (Dongting Hu, 洞庭湖) in the north of Hunan. The center and northern parts are somewhat low and a U-shaped basin, open in the north and with Lake Dongting as its center. Most of Hunan Province lies in the basins of four major tributaries of the Yangtze River.
Lake Dongting is the largest lake in the province and the second largest freshwater lake of China. Due to the reclamation of land for agriculture, Lake Dongting has been subdivided into many smaller lakes, though there is now a trend to reverse some of the reclamation, which had damaged wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
habitats surrounding the lake.
Hunan's climate is subtropical, with mild winters and plenty of precipitation. January temperatures average 3 to 8 °C while July temperatures average around 27 to 30 °C. Average annual precipitation is 1200 to 1700 mm.
Administrative divisions
Hunan is divided into fourteen prefecture-level divisions, of which thirteen are prefecture-level cities and the remaining division an autonomous prefecture. The prefecture-level cities are:| Map | # | Name | Hanzi | Hanyu Pinyin | Administrative Seat | Population (2010 Sixth National Population Census of the People's Republic of China The Sixth National Population Census of the People's Republic of China, also referred to as the 2010 Chinese Census, was conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics of the People's Republic of China with a zero hour of November 1, 2010.... ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — Prefecture-level city Prefecture-level city A prefectural level city , prefectural city or prefectural level municipality is an administrative division of the People's Republic of China, ranking below a province and above a county in China's administrative structure. Prefectural level cities form the second level of the administrative... — |
||||||
| 1 | Changsha | 长沙市 | Chángshā Shì | Yuelu District Yuelu District Yuelu is one of five urban districts of Changsha, the capital of Hunan province, China. It is located on the west bank of Xiang River , and named after the Yuelu Mountain, one of National Historical Interest and Scenic Beauties of China.... |
7,044,118 | |
| 2 | Changde Changde Changde is a city in the north of Hunan Province, China, with a population of 5,717,218 inhabitants at the 2010 census whom 1,232,182 in the built up area made of 2 urban districts .-History:... |
常德市 | Chángdé Shì | Wuling District Wuling District Wuling District is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Changde city.... |
5,747,218 | |
| 3 | Chenzhou Chenzhou Chenzhou is a city located in the southern area of Hunan province, People's Republic of China. Its administrative area covers , 9.2% of the provincial area, and its total population reached 4,559,600 as of 2001, 26% of them living in urban areas, 74% of them live in rural areas.-History:Chenzhou... |
郴州市 | Chénzhōu Shì | Beihu District Beihu District Beihu District is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Chenzhou city.-References:*... |
4,581,778 | |
| 4 | Hengyang Hengyang Hengyang is the second largest city of China's Hunan Province. It straddles the Xiang River about 160 km south of Changsha.-History:Its former name was Hengzhou . This was the capital of a prefecture in the Tang Dynasty's Jiangnan and West Jiangnan circuits... |
衡阳市 | Héngyáng Shì | Yanfeng District Yanfeng District Yanfeng District is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Hengyang city.-References:*... |
7,141,462 | |
| 5 | Huaihua Huaihua -Administration:* Hecheng District 鹤城区* Hongjiang City 洪江市* Hongjiang District 洪江区* Yuanling County 沅陵县* Chenxi County 辰溪县* Xupu County 溆浦县* Zhongfang County 中方县* Huitong County 会同县* Mayang Miao Autonomous County 麻阳苗族自治县... |
怀化市 | Huáihuà Shì | Hecheng District Hecheng District Hecheng District is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Huaihua city.-References:*... |
4,741,948 | |
| 6 | Loudi Loudi Loudi is a prefecture-level city located in central Hunan province, China. It is situated about 110km south west of the provincial capital of Changsha and is considered a small to medium size city within the province... |
娄底市 | Lóudǐ Shì | Louxing District Louxing District Louxing District is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Loudi city.-References:*... |
3,785,627 | |
| 7 | Shaoyang Shaoyang -Administrative divisions:*Shuangqing District *Daxiang District *Beita District *Wugang City *Shaodong County *Shaoyang County *Xinshao County *Longhui County *Dongkou County *Suining County... |
邵阳市 | Shàoyáng Shì | Shuangqing District Shuangqing District Shuangqing District is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Shaoyang city.-References:*... |
7,071,826 | |
| 8 | Xiangtan Xiangtan Xiangtan is a city in China's Hunan Province that is located on the lower reaches of Xiang river. The hometowns of several founding leaders of the Chinese Communist Party, including Mao Zedong, Liu Shaoqi, and Peng Dehuai are in the Xiangtan Municipal District, as well as the hometowns of Qing... |
湘潭市 | Xiāngtán Shì | Yuetang District Yuetang District Yuetang District is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Xiangtan city.-References:*... |
2,748,552 | |
| 9 | Yiyang Yiyang Yiyang is a prefecture-level city at the Zi River in Hunan province, China. According to the 2010 Census, Yiyang has a population of 4,313,084 inhabitants residing in an area of 12,144 km². It can be said that the population of the city hasn't changed since the last census in 2000, when the data... |
益阳市 | Yìyáng Shì | Heshan District Heshan District, Yiyang Heshan District, Yiyang is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Yiyang city.-References:*... |
4,313,084 | |
| 10 | Yongzhou Yongzhou Yongzhou is a prefecture-level city in the Hunan province of China.YongZhou is located in the central and south of China, on the southern side of Xiang River, which is formed by the confluence of the Xiao and Xiang rivers. Yongzhou is one of the four ancient counties in Hunan; it is 2000 years old... |
永州市 | Yǒngzhōu Shì | Lengshuitan District Lengshuitan District Lengshuitan District is a district that constitutes the northern half of Yongzhou county in the north of Yongzhou prefecture, Hunan province in China. It is situated on the Xiang river and is under the administration of Yongzhou city. In 2005, its population was approximately 94,000.-External... |
5,180,235 | |
| 11 | Yueyang Yueyang Yueyang is a prefecture-level city at the northeastern corner of Hunan province, South Central China, on the southern shores of Dongting Lake.The Yueyang metropolitan area occupies 14,896 km². and the city proper occupies 304 km²... |
岳阳市 | Yuèyáng Shì | Yueyanglou District Yueyanglou District Yueyanglou District is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Yueyang city.-References:*... |
5,477,911 | |
| 12 | Zhangjiajie Zhangjiajie Zhangjiajie is a prefecture-level city in the northwestern part of Hunan province in China. It comprises the district of Yongding and counties of Cili and Sangzhi... |
张家界市 | Zhāngjiājiè Shì | Yongding District Yongding District Yongding District is a district in Zhangjiajie, Hunan province of China.... |
1,476,521 | |
| 13 | Zhuzhou Zhuzhou Zhuzhou , formerly Jianning, is a city in Hunan Province, China, southeast of Changsha beside the Xiangjiang River. It is part of the "ChangZhuTan Golden Triangle"... |
株洲市 | Zhūzhōu Shì | Tianyuan District Tianyuan District Tianyuan District is a district of Hunan, China. It is under the administration of Zhuzhou city.-References:*... |
3,855,609 | |
| — Autonomous Prefecture Autonomous prefectures of China Autonomous prefectures are one type of Autonomous areas of China, existing at the prefectural level. Autonomous prefectures either have over 50% of the population with ethnic minorities or are historically resided by significant minorities. All autonomous prefectures are mostly dominated, in... — |
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| 14 | Xiangxi (Tujia & Miao) Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture is an autonomous prefecture of the People's Republic of China. It is located in western Hunan province. Zhangjiajie and Sangzhi used to be parts of this autonomous prefecture. It consists of 1 city, Jishou, and 7 counties:Baojing, Fenghuang, Guzhang,... |
湘西土家族苗族自治州 | Xiāngxī Tǔjiāzú Miáozú Zìzhìzhōu | Jishou Jishou Jishou is a county-level city and the seat of Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in Hunan province of thePeople's Republic of China.-History:... |
2,547,833 | |
The fourteen prefecture-level divisions of Hunan are subdivided into 122 county-level divisions (34 districts, sixteen county-level cities, 65 counties, seven autonomous counties). Those are in turn divided into 2587 township-level divisions (1098 towns, 1158 townships, 98 ethnic townships, 225 subdistrict
Subdistrict
Subdistrict is a low level administrative division of a country. In Thailand it may refer to the King Amphoe or to the Tambon. In England and Wales it was part of a Registration district....
s, and eight district public offices).
See List of administrative divisions of Hunan for a complete list of county-level divisions.
Politics
The Politics of Hunan is structured in a dual party-government system like all other governing institutions in mainland ChinaMainland China
Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...
.
The Governor of Hunan is the highest ranking official in the People's Government of Hunan. However, in the province's dual party-government governing system, the Governor has less power than the Hunan Communist Party of China
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
Provincial Committee Secretary, colloquially termed the "Hunan CPC Party Chief".
Economy
Hunan's traditional crops are riceRice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
and cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
. The Lake Dongting area is an important center of ramie
Ramie
Ramie is a flowering plant in the nettle family Urticaceae, native to eastern Asia. It is a herbaceous perennial growing to 1–2.5 m tall; the leaves are heart-shaped, 7–15 cm long and 6–12 cm broad, and white on the underside with dense small hairs—this gives it a silvery appearance;...
production, and Hunan is also an important center of tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
cultivation. Aside from agricultural products, in recent years Hunan has grown to become an important center for steel, machinary and electronics production, especially as China's manufacturing sector moves away from coastal provinces such as Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
and Zhejiang
Zhejiang
Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...
.
The Lengshuijiang
Lengshuijiang
Lengshuijiang is a county-level city in Hunan province of the People's Republic of China.Lengshuijiang Normal School is an institution of higher education in Lengshuijiang, which has no university....
area is noted for its stibnite
Stibnite
Stibnite, sometimes called antimonite, is a sulfide mineral with the formula Sb2S3. This soft grey material crystallizes in an orthorhombic space group. It is the most important source for the metalloid antimony...
mines, and is one of the major centers of antimony
Antimony
Antimony is a toxic chemical element with the symbol Sb and an atomic number of 51. A lustrous grey metalloid, it is found in nature mainly as the sulfide mineral stibnite...
extraction in China.
Its nominal GDP for 2010 was 1.59 trillion yuan (US$234.9 billion). Its per capita GDP was 20,226 yuan (US$2,961).
Economic and Technological Development Zones
- Changsha National Economic and Technical Development Zone
The Changsha National Economic and Technology Development Zone was founded in 1992. It is located east of Changsha. The total planned area is 38.6 km2 and the current area is 14 km2. Near the zone is National Highways G319 and G107 as well as Jingzhu Highway. Besides that, it is very close to the downtown and the railway station. The distance between the zone and the airport is 8 km. The major industries in the zone include high-tech industry, biology project technology and new material industry.
- Changsha National New & Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone
- Chenzhou Export Processing Zone
Approved by the State Council, Chenzhou Export processing Zone (CEPZ) was established in 2005 and is the only export processing zone in Hunan province. The scheduled production area of CEPZ covers 3km2. The industrial positioning of CEPZ is to concentrate on developing export-oriented hi-tech industries, including electronic information, precision machinery, and new-type materials. The zone has good infrastructure, and the enterprises inside could enjoy the preferential policies of tax-exemption, tax-guarantee and tax-refunding. By the end of the “Eleventh Five-Year Plan”, the CEPZ achieved a total export and import volume of over USD 1 billion and provided more than 50,000 jobs. It aimed to be one of the first-class export processing zones in China.
- ZhuzhouZhuzhouZhuzhou , formerly Jianning, is a city in Hunan Province, China, southeast of Changsha beside the Xiangjiang River. It is part of the "ChangZhuTan Golden Triangle"...
National New & Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone
Zhuzhou Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone was founded in 1992. Its total planned area is 35 km2. It is very close to National Highway G320. The major industries in the zone include biotechnology, food processing and heavy industry. In 2007, the park signed a cooperation contract with Beijing Automobile Industry, one of the largest auto makers in China, which will set up a manufacturing base in Zhuzhou HTP.
Artistic
The Hunan Province is accredited with being filled with skilled craftsmen and women who create embroidered silks, carved jade, and other skillfully hand made artistic goods of international quality.Demographics
As of the 2000 censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, the population of Hunan is 64,400,700 consisting of forty-one ethnic group
Ethnic group
An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...
s. Its population grew 6.17% (3,742,700) from its 1990 levels. According to the census, 89.79% (57,540,000) identified themselves as Han people
Han Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...
, 10.21% (6,575,300) as minority group
Minority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
s. The minority groups are Tujia, Miao
Hmong people
The Hmong , are an Asian ethnic group from the mountainous regions of China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. Hmong are also one of the sub-groups of the Miao ethnicity in southern China...
, Dong
Dong people
The Dong , a Kam–Sui people of southern China, are one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. They are famed for their native-bred Kam Sweet Rice , carpentry skills, and unique architecture, in particular a form of covered bridge known as the "wind and rain...
, Yao
Yao people
The Yao nationality is a government classification for various minorities in China. They form one of the 55 ethnic minority groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China, where they reside in the mountainous terrain of the southwest and south...
, Hui
Hui people
The Hui people are an ethnic group in China, defined as Chinese speaking people descended from foreign Muslims. They are typically distinguished by their practice of Islam, however some also practice other religions, and many are direct descendants of Silk Road travelers.In modern People's...
, Bai, Zhuang, Uyghurs
Uyghur people
The Uyghur are a Turkic ethnic group living in Eastern and Central Asia. Today, Uyghurs live primarily in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China...
and so on.
- List of Chinese ethnic groups
Hunan Uyghurs
Around 5,000 Uyghurs live around Taoyuan CountyTaoyuan County, Hunan
Taoyuan County is located in Changde, Hunan Province of the People's Republic of China. The Yuanjiang river, a tributary of Yangtze, flows through Taoyuan. Taoyuan covers 4441 square kilometer area, among which the arable land is 895 square kilometers...
and other parts of Changde. Hui
Hui people
The Hui people are an ethnic group in China, defined as Chinese speaking people descended from foreign Muslims. They are typically distinguished by their practice of Islam, however some also practice other religions, and many are direct descendants of Silk Road travelers.In modern People's...
and Uyghurs have intermarried in this area. The Uyghurs in Changde are not very religious, and eat pork. Older Uygurs disapprove of this, especially elders at the mosques in Changde, and they seek to draw them back to Islamic customs. In addition to eating pork, the Uygurs of Changde
Changde
Changde is a city in the north of Hunan Province, China, with a population of 5,717,218 inhabitants at the 2010 census whom 1,232,182 in the built up area made of 2 urban districts .-History:...
Hunan practice other Han Chinese customs, like ancestor worship at graves. Some Uyghurs from Xinjiang visit the Hunan Uyghurs out of curiosity or interest. Also, the Uyghurs of Hunan do not speak the Uyghur language, instead, they speak Chinese as their native language, and Arabic for religious reasons at the mosque.
Culture
Hunan cuisine
Hunan cuisine
Hunan cuisine, sometimes called Xiang cuisine , consists of the cuisines of the Xiang River region, Dongting Lake and western Hunan Province, in China. Hunan cuisine consists of three styles:...
is noted for its use of chili pepper
Chili pepper
Chili pepper is the fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum, members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae. The term in British English and in Australia, New Zealand, India, Malaysia and other Asian countries is just chilli without pepper.Chili peppers originated in the Americas...
s.
Nü shu
Nü Shu
Nüshu , is a syllabic script, a simplification of Chinese characters that was used exclusively among women in Jiangyong County in Hunan province of southern China.-Language:...
is a writing system that was used exclusively among women in Jiangyong County
Jiangyong County
Jiangyong County is a county located in the southwestern part of the prefecture of Yongzhou in Hunan province, China. Nüshu is a local script understood only by women in Jiangyong County....
.
Hunan's culture industry generated 87 billion yuan (US$11.76 billion) in economic value in 2007, a major contributor to the province's economic growth. The industry accounts for 7.5 percent of the region's GDP - 0.9 percentage points higher than the previous year.
In recent years, Hunan's cultural exports to the rest of China have been making a big impact. For instance, the Super Girl contest – a Chinese version of Pop Idol
Pop Idol
Pop Idol is a British television series which debuted on ITV on 6 October 2001. The show was a talent contest to decide the best new young pop singer in the United Kingdom, based on viewer voting and participation. Two series were broadcast - one in 2001-02 and a second in 2003...
– was a significant and ground-breaking achievement for Chinese television. It included live broadcast, voting by mobile phones, and featured quirky and atypical characters. Another television export has been the television cartoon series Blue Cat
Lan Mao
Lan Mao or Blue Cat is a Chinese animation character that is broadcast only in China. The character appears in the show Sunchime Cartoon Flier and its sub-animation-series 3000 Whys of Blue Cat, which is more well-known than the show....
.
The gross profit for the Supergirl contest in 2005, for example, was 17.79 million yuan (US$ 2.48 million). As a result of programs like Supergirl, Golden Eagle Broadcasting System's Hunan satellite television channel has become the most-watched regionally-produced channel in China, with over 5.6 million viewers. According to Golden Eagle, its programming also airs in the US, Japan, and Europe.
The local government started developing its cultural industry earlier than other cities, which is the main reason why they are ahead. There is a mature entertainment chain and standardized management in Hunan's cultural industry. A prime example of this is Golden Eagle Broadcasting System.
Tourism
- ShaoshanShaoshanShaoshan is a county-level city in Xiangtan, Hunan Province, noted as the birthplace of Mao Zedong, founder of the People's Republic of China. Shaoshan was an important base during the Chinese Communist Revolution....
, the village where Mao ZedongMao ZedongMao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
was born. - WulingyuanWulingyuanWulingyuan is a scenic and historic interest area in Hunan Province, China, noted for its approximately 3,100 tall quartzite sandstone pillars, some of which are over in height and are a type of karst formation. The site is in the Zhangjiajie City and lies about from Changsha, the capital of...
Scenic and Historic Interest Area (World Heritage SiteWorld Heritage SiteA UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
) - Yueyang Pagoda in YueyangYueyangYueyang is a prefecture-level city at the northeastern corner of Hunan province, South Central China, on the southern shores of Dongting Lake.The Yueyang metropolitan area occupies 14,896 km². and the city proper occupies 304 km²...
. - Mount HengMount Heng (Hunan)Mount Heng , also known as Nan Yue , is located in Hunan Province, People's Republic of China and is one of the Five Sacred Mountains of Taoism in China. Heng Shan is a mountain range long with 72 peaks and lies at 27.254798°N and 112.655743°E...
in HengyangHengyangHengyang is the second largest city of China's Hunan Province. It straddles the Xiang River about 160 km south of Changsha.-History:Its former name was Hengzhou . This was the capital of a prefecture in the Tang Dynasty's Jiangnan and West Jiangnan circuits...
. - ZhangjiajieZhangjiajieZhangjiajie is a prefecture-level city in the northwestern part of Hunan province in China. It comprises the district of Yongding and counties of Cili and Sangzhi...
. - Fenghuang CountyFenghuang CountyFenghuang County is located in Xiangxi Prefecture, Hunan Province, People's Republic of China. It has an exceptionally well-preserved ancient town that harbors unique ethnic languages, customs, arts as well as many distinctive architectural remains of Ming and Qing styles. The town is placed in a...
in Xiangxi PrefectureXiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous PrefectureXiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture is an autonomous prefecture of the People's Republic of China. It is located in western Hunan province. Zhangjiajie and Sangzhi used to be parts of this autonomous prefecture. It consists of 1 city, Jishou, and 7 counties:Baojing, Fenghuang, Guzhang,...
. - Hong Jiang.
Sports
Professional sports teams in Hunan include:- Chinese Football Association Jia LeagueChinese Football Association Jia LeagueThe China League One is the second tier professional league for Chinese football clubs. The league is under the auspices of the Chinese Football Association. Above the League One is Chinese Super League....
- Hunan Xiangjun