Jiangmen
Encyclopedia
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...
in 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...
province in southern China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
with a population of about 4.48 million in 2010. The 3 urban districts are now part of Guangzhou - Shenzhen built up area.
Names
Jiangmen has various historical romanisationsRomanization of Chinese
The romanization of Mandarin Chinese is the use of the Latin alphabet to write Chinese. Because Chinese is a tonal language with a logographic script, its characters do not represent phonemes directly. There have been many systems of romanization throughout history...
including Kong-Moon, Kongmoon, Kongmun or Kiangmoon. The area is alternately referred to as Sze Yup
Sze Yup
Sze Yup, Sze Yap, Seiyap refers to the four former counties of Xinhui, Taishan, Kaiping and Enping in the Pearl River Delta of southern Guangdong province, China. Xinhui is a city district and the other three are county-level cities, all four belong to Jiangmen prefecture administered from the...
or Ng Yup. The name Jiangmen is often the butt of jokes because its Cantonese pronunciation is identical to the scientific word for anus
Anus
The anus is an opening at the opposite end of an animal's digestive tract from the mouth. Its function is to control the expulsion of feces, unwanted semi-solid matter produced during digestion, which, depending on the type of animal, may be one or more of: matter which the animal cannot digest,...
(肛門). As a result there has been some proposals to change the name of the city, for example a 2009 proposal to change it to "Qiaodu" ("City of Overseas Chinese").
History
The port of Jiangmen, was forced to open to westernWestern world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
trade in 1902. One legacy of this period is an historic waterfront district lined with buildings in the treaty port
Treaty ports
The treaty ports was the name given to the port cities in China, Japan, and Korea that were opened to foreign trade by the Unequal Treaties.-Chinese treaty ports:...
style. The city has an ongoing renewal project which has restored many of these buildings.
Jiangmen was proclaimed a city in 1951, and later became the administrative capital of the prefecture for the Wu Yi
Sze Yup
Sze Yup, Sze Yap, Seiyap refers to the four former counties of Xinhui, Taishan, Kaiping and Enping in the Pearl River Delta of southern Guangdong province, China. Xinhui is a city district and the other three are county-level cities, all four belong to Jiangmen prefecture administered from the...
region which includes Taishan
Taishan
Taishan is a coastal county-level city in Guangdong Province, China. The city is part of the Greater Taishan Region....
, Kaiping
Kaiping
Kaiping : Hoi3 Pen6) or Hoi Ping is a county-level city in Guangdong Province, southern China. It has a population of 680,000 as of 2003 and an area of 1,659 km². The locals speak a variation of the Taishan dialect.-Administration:...
, Xinhui
Xinhui
Xinhui also known as 'Kuixiang'. Famous people born in what is now known as Xinhui include Liang Qichao, Chen Baisha, Chan Heung, and Michael Li from Westmead Hospital.-Geography:...
, Enping
Enping
Enping is a county-level city in Guangdong Province, China and is part of the Siyi prefecture administered from Jiangmen city....
and Heshan.
Geography
The city is located on the lower reaches of the Xijiang or West River, in the west of the Pearl River DeltaPearl River Delta
The Pearl River Delta , Zhujiang Delta or Zhusanjiao in Guangdong province, People's Republic of China is the low-lying area surrounding the Pearl River estuary where the Pearl River flows into the South China Sea...
in the middle of southern Guangdong Province. It faces the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
in the south and is 100 km away from 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...
and Zhuhai
Zhuhai
Zhuhai is a prefecture-level city on the southern coast of Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in the Pearl River Delta, Zhuhai borders Jiangmen to the northwest, Zhongshan to the north, and Macau to the south. Zhuhai was one of the original Special Economic Zones...
by highway. Jiangmen city has an area of 9,260 km², about one quarter the size of the Pearl River Delta.
The climate is subtropical with monsoon
Monsoon
Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...
influences. The annual average temperature is 21.8°C.
Economy
Jiangmen was selected by the Chinese state as a pilot city for a nationwide information programme. It was also chosen by the Pacific Economic Cooperation CouncilPacific Economic Cooperation Council
The Pacific Economic Cooperation Council is a network of member committees composed of individuals and institutions dedicated to promoting cooperation across the Asia Pacific region...
(PECC) as a trial city for the Regional Integration for Sustainable Economics (RISE) project. According to the "Report on Investment Environment in China 2003" by the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
, Jiangmen ranked the fourth after Shanghai
Shanghai
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...
, Hangzhou
Hangzhou
Hangzhou , formerly transliterated as Hangchow, is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in Eastern China. Governed as a sub-provincial city, and as of 2010, its entire administrative division or prefecture had a registered population of 8.7 million people...
and Dalian
Dalian
Dalian is a major city and seaport in the south of Liaoning province, Northeast China. It faces Shandong to the south, the Yellow Sea to the east and the Bohai Sea to the west and south. Holding sub-provincial administrative status, Dalian is the southernmost city of Northeast China and China's...
of 23 cities under evaluation in China. Among various indicators, Jiangmen excelled in infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
, labour redundancy, proportion of joint ventures in all firms, informal payments to government, taxation, productivity and the investment rate.
The economic development strategies within Jiangmen focus on the three urban districts, and the south, middle and north lines. It is planned to develop four main economic areas: the central urban district of the city, the Yinzhou Lake (銀州湖) economic area, and two economic areas along the various transport axes.
Manufacturing industries
Similar to other cities in the western Pearl River Delta, the manufacturing sector plays a significant role in Jiangmen's economy. The chief industries include manufacturing of motorcycles, household appliances, electronicsElectronics
Electronics is the branch of science, engineering and technology that deals with electrical circuits involving active electrical components such as vacuum tubes, transistors, diodes and integrated circuits, and associated passive interconnection technologies...
, paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
, food processing
Food processing
Food processing is the set of methods and techniques used to transform raw ingredients into food or to transform food into other forms for consumption by humans or animals either in the home or by the food processing industry...
, synthetic fiber
Synthetic fiber
Synthetic fibers are the result of extensive research by scientists to improve on naturally occurring animal and plant fibers. In general, synthetic fibers are created by forcing, usually through extrusion, fiber forming materials through holes into the air, forming a thread...
s and garments, as well as textiles and stainless steel
Stainless steel
In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....
products. Some worldwide brand names have factories in Jiangmen including Haojue motorcycles, Jingling fan/washing machines, Vinda toilet paper
Toilet paper
Toilet paper is a soft paper product used to maintain personal hygiene after human defecation or urination. However, it can also be used for other purposes such as blowing one's nose when one has a cold or absorbing common spills around the house, although paper towels are more used for the latter...
, ABB Group and Lee Kum Kee
Lee Kum Kee
Lee Kum Kee International Holdings Ltd. is a food company which specialized in manufacturing oyster flavored sauce and a wide range of authentic Chinese and Asian sauces founded by Lee Kum Sheung in 1888 in Nanshui, a small town in Guangdong. Its primary brand, Lee Kum Kee is well known throughout...
foods.
Jiangmen port
Jiangmen Port is the second largest river port in Guangdong province. The local government plans to develop a harbour industrial zone with heavy industries to include petrochemicalPetrochemical
Petrochemicals are chemical products derived from petroleum. Some chemical compounds made from petroleum are also obtained from other fossil fuels, such as coal or natural gas, or renewable sources such as corn or sugar cane....
and machinery plants, as well as an ocean-based economy.
Administration
Jiangmen has jurisdiction over:| Map | # | Name | Hanzi | Hanyu Pinyin | Population (2003 est.) | Area (km²) | Density (/km²) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City Proper | ||||||
| 1 | Jianghai District Jianghai District Jianghai District is a district of Guangdong Province, China. It is under the administration of Jiangmen city.... |
江海区 | Jiānghǎi Qū | 150,000 | 107 | 1,402 |
| 2 | Pengjiang District Pengjiang District Pengjiang District is a district of Guangdong Province, China. It is under the administration of Jiangmen city.... |
蓬江区 | Péngjiāng Qū | 440,000 | 325 | 1,354 |
| 3 | Xinhui District | 新会区 | Xīnhuì Qū | 740,000 | 1,260 | 587 |
| Satellite cities | ||||||
| 4 | Enping Enping Enping is a county-level city in Guangdong Province, China and is part of the Siyi prefecture administered from Jiangmen city.... |
恩平市 | Ēnpíng Shì | 470,000 | 1,698 | 277 |
| 5 | Taishan Taishan Taishan is a coastal county-level city in Guangdong Province, China. The city is part of the Greater Taishan Region.... |
台山市 | Táishān Shì | 990,000 | 3,286 | 301 |
| 6 | Kaiping Kaiping Kaiping : Hoi3 Pen6) or Hoi Ping is a county-level city in Guangdong Province, southern China. It has a population of 680,000 as of 2003 and an area of 1,659 km². The locals speak a variation of the Taishan dialect.-Administration:... |
开平市 | Kāipíng Shì | 680,000 | 1,659 | 410 |
| 7 | Heshan | 鹤山市 | Hèshān Shì | 360,000 | 1,108 | 325 |
Transport
Jiangmen has a mature network of inter-city highway (between Guangzhou, Foshan, Zhuhai, Zhongshan, Yangjiang etc.). It does sits astride a key route between Guangzhou and the southwest region of its home province, even GuangxiGuangxi
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.
A network of intra-city roadways has been built since the late 1990s to facilitate industrial integration within the city.
Making use of the Jiangmen Port facilities, Chu Kong Passenger Transport (CKS) connects Jiangmen with high speed ferry
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
services to Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
(95 nautical miles) taking about 2.5 hours each way.
Education
Wuyi University is the main university in Jiangmen.Jiangmen No.1 Middle School is claimed to be the top middle school in the district, was one of the best middle school in Guangdong Province in 1980s~1990s. However in recent years the quality of its education has been dropping and in the district of Jiangmen, its status has been constantly challenged by Xinhui No.1 Middle School in Xinhui, Kaiqiao(Kaiping Emigrant) Middle School in Kiaping etc.
Culture
Jiangmen is the homeland of 3.68 million overseas ChineseOverseas Chinese
Overseas Chinese are people of Chinese birth or descent who live outside the Greater China Area . People of partial Chinese ancestry living outside the Greater China Area may also consider themselves Overseas Chinese....
, who live in 107 countries and regions throughout the world. Strong oversea connections are especially found in the villages.
Tourism
A significant amount of historical heritage survives from the period of mass emigration prior to World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The most significant are the fortified multi-story towers found mainly in Kaiping. These are known as "Gold Mountain Towers" or diaolou
Diaolou
The Kaiping Diaolou are fortified multi-storey towers, generally made of reinforced concrete. These towers are located mainly in Kaiping County, Guangdong province, China...
(碉樓).Number of natural Hotspring resorts has been developed successfully by using its wealthy natural heated ground water resources such as Gudou Hotspring Resort (古兜温泉)
The local government's economic development strategies emphasize the development of tourism and protection of the environment.
Controversy
In 2011, the city banned pet dogs after rabiesRabies
Rabies is a viral disease that causes acute encephalitis in warm-blooded animals. It is zoonotic , most commonly by a bite from an infected animal. For a human, rabies is almost invariably fatal if post-exposure prophylaxis is not administered prior to the onset of severe symptoms...
killed 42 people over the preceding 3 years. The city plans to remove all remaining dogs from the city centre. A government spokesman said "We hope that all citizens will cooperate with us in creating a civilised Jiangmen and send their dogs to live in the outskirts or rural areas," a 13 acre site has been set aside to allow rural chinese to adopt the dogs, but the City has warned that it may be forced to seize and put down any remaining dogs left in Pengjiang, Jianghai and Xinhui districts after the 26th of August, 2011. An estimated 30,000 dogs will be affected. Dr. Tang Qing of the National Institute for Viral Disease Control and Prevention at China's Centre for Disease Control reportedly believes that culling is not scientific, humane, or effective in preventing rabies over the long term.