Chengdu

Chengdu (read) Cheng-Du ( listen)in Chinese, ..; pinyin, Chéngdū; old transcription, Chengtu) is the capital of Sichuan province, southwest of the People's Republic of China. It has a population of about 10 million in an area of 12 300 km2. The city houses the Wolong National Nature Reserve.

Nicknames

• The City of Brocades: during dynasty The brocades from Chengdu acquired great popularity between royalty and the Chinese elite. The emperor installed a Jin-Guan, an officer in charge of the production of the brocades, to control the production of Chengdu. Since then, Chengdu is known as "Jin-Guan Cheng" (city of the brocade officer) or in its shortest form "Jin Cheng", city of the brocades (see also "Brocado sichuanés").
• The City of the Hibiscus: In the period of the Five Dynasties, Menchang, of the Shu kingdom, ordered to plant hibiscus in the wall surrounding the city. From that moment on, Chengdu began to be known as the city of hibiscus. Today the flower of the city remains that of hibiscus.
• The Turtle City: according to an ancient legend, when Chengdu was built in 310, the main architect Zhang Yi followed the lines of a turtle to decide the city's borders. This coincides with the fact that the city map has a turtle shape.

Toponymy

The name Chengdu is recorded in sources dating back to the Warring States period. It has been called the only major city in China that has remained in one location without name changes throughout the three eras; imperial, republican and communist, although it also had other names, for example, it was briefly known as Xijing 西京 (the capital of the west) in the XVII.

The etymology of the name is unclear. The oldest and best-known explanation, though not generally accepted by modern scholars, comes from the book Taiping World Geography (太平寰宇记) a geographical treatise from the X, written during the Northern Song dynasty. This treaty states that after the king's approval of a settlement, it takes 1 year to become a town, 2 years to become a city, and 3 years to become a metropolis. The sinograms for the city are Cheng 成 (achieve, reach, become) and Du 都 (capital, big city, metropolis).

Some people think Chengdu is a transliteration of ancient Shu place names. There is a saying that "Guangdu, Xindu and Chengdu" (“广都, 新都, 成都”) are collectively known as "the three capitals of ancient Shu". Today, there are many cultural relics of ancient Shu in the city.

Those who support that Chengdu is a word in the Shu language and not a Mandarin Chinese word, argue that then cheng is (mountain, mountain) while Du means; region or place which would translate to "place with mountains".

History

Marco Polo travel map, where it appears to the right Chengdu

The first people settled in the Chengdu area during the Bronze Age, more than four thousand years ago. At the beginning of the 4th century B.C. C., the king of the shu moved his capital to the city located in the enclave of present-day Chengdu. It was inspired by the ancient story of King Tai of Zhou who also moved the capital from him. The Shu king named the new capital "Cheng Du," which means to become the capital.

After the defeat of the Shu by the Qin dynasty in 316 B.C. C., the general Zhang Yi founded a new city that meant the beginning of contemporary Chengdu. During the Han dynasty, the city was renamed as Yi Zhou.

During the Tang dynasty, the poets Li Bai and Du Fu spent part of their lives in the city. Du Fu built his famous "cottage" between 759 and 762. The cabin that can be visited today was built in 1078 in memory of the poet.

In Chengdu, paper money was used for the first time in history. It was during the Northern Song Dynasty, around the year 960.

Chengdu was the last city in mainland China to be occupied by the Kuomintang. Chiang Kai-shek, accompanied by his son Chiang Ching-kuo, were in charge of defending the city. The defense lasted until December 10, 1949 when the People's Liberation Army took the city and the Nationalist government fled to Taiwan.

Shaocheng

Shaocheng (Little Town), also known as Manchu City, was built near a fortress. It was a "city within a city" Established by the Qing Dynasty imperial court for Manchu soldiers and their families in 1718. People's Park, once known as Shaocheng Park was used as a military warehouse for Qing soldiers. It was demolished in 1911 after the Xinhai Revolution, which ended thousands of years of Chinese feudalism. At present, only a few remains of the original city can be found in the alleys of Chengdu.

Geography

The vast Chengdu plain on which the city sits ranges in altitude from 450 to 720 m a.s.l. no. m.

The northwest of Chengdu is surrounded by the Longmen Mountains which are high and rugged, and to the west by the Qionglai Mountains, the elevation of which exceeds 3000 meters which includes the Miao Jiling Peak (5364 m) and the Xiling Mountains (5164 m). The western mountainous area is also home to a large forest with abundant biological resources and habitat for wildlife. Since ancient times, Chengdu has been known as the "abundant land" due to its fertile soil, favorable climate and innovative irrigation system.

Chengdu lies on the western edge of the Sichuan Basin and lies on the Chengdu Plain, a plain-dominated terrain. To the east is the Longquan Range and the Penzhong Hills rising to 5,364 m a.s.l. no. m. in Dayi county. The lowest point in Chengdu is 378 m s. no. m., which is located in the southeast of the county.

Administration

As of June 2020, Chengdu sub-province is divided into 19 localities that are administered into 9 urban districts, 4 satellite cities and 6 counties.

Map
1 2 3 4 5 Longquanyi Qingbaijiang Xindu Wenjiang Jintang Shuangliu Pi Dayi Pujiang Xinjin Dujiangyan Pengzhou Qionglai Chongzhou Jianyang 1. Jinjiang 2. Qingyang 3. Jinniu 4. Wuhou 5. Chenghua
Name	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Population (2010)	Area (km2)	Density (/km2)
Central area
Qingyang District	flagging	Qīngyáng Qū	828 140	66	12 548
Jinjiang District		J/25070/njiāng Qū	690 422	61	11 318
Jinniu District		Jīnniú Qū	1 200 776	108	11 118
Wuhou District		W/25070/hóu Qū	1 083 806	77	14 075
Chenghua District	.	Chénghuá Qū	938 785	109	8 613
Metropolitan Area
Longquanyi District		Lóngquányì Qū	767 203	558	1 375
Qingbaijiang District	מה	Qīngbáijiāng Qū	381 792	392	974
Xindu District	Manifesto	Xīndū Qū	775 703	481	1 613
Wenjiang District	▪	Wēnjiāng Qū	457 070	277	1 650
Shuangliu District	▪	Shuāngliú Qū	1 158 516	1 067	1 086
Pidu District	passage	Pídū Qū	756 047	438	1 726
Satellite cities
Dujiangyan City	¢Ü ¢Ü	Dūjiāngyàn Shì	657 996	1 208	545
Pengzhou City	市lev	Péngzhōu Shì	762 887	1 420	537
Qionglai City		Qiónglái Shì	612 753	1 384	443
Chongzhou City	市lev	Chóngzhōu Shì	661 120	1 090	607
Jianyang City		JigulnYáng Shì	1 045 900	2 214	472
Rural area
Jintang County		Jīntáng Xiàn	717 225	1 156	620
Dayi County	.	Dàyì Xiàn	502 198	1 327	378
Pujiang County		Pújiāng Xiàn	239 562	583	411
Xinjin District		Xīnjīn Xiàn	302 199	330	916

It also has special business areas:

• New area of Tianfu (scancer).
• Chengdu economic and technological development zone.
• Chengdu industrial development zone.
• Chengdu Tianfu Software Park.
• Chengdu Free Zone.

Climate

Chengdu has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate and is largely mild and humid. It has four distinct seasons, with abundant rainfall, sweltering summers, and harsh winters. Its favorable climate contributes to the development of agriculture and livestock.

The Qin Mountains serve as the city's shield from the cold Siberian winds in winter, so the short winter is milder than on the lower Yangtze. January with 5.5 °C. Snow is rare, but there are some periods of frost in winter. Summer is hot and humid. From July to August with an average of 25 °C and, in the afternoon, sometimes it reaches 33 °C. Rain is frequent year-round, but is heaviest in July and August, with less rain in the cooler months. Chengdu also has one of the lowest sunshine records in China (fewer sunny days per year than London), and most days are cloudy, though no rain. This is especially so in the winter months, exacerbating the poor air quality. Spring (March-April) tends to be sunnier and warmer than fall (October-November). Extreme temperatures have ranged from -5.9°C to 40°C.

Chengdu's average climate parameters (1971-2000)
Month	Ene.	Feb.	Mar.	Open up.	May.	Jun.	Jul.	Ago.	Sep.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.	Annual
Average temperature (°C)	9.3	11.2	15.9	21.7	26.0	28.0	29.5	29.7	25.2	20.6	15.8	10.7	20.3
Average temperature (°C)	5.5	7.2	11.6	16.5	21.0	23.5	25.2	24.9	21.0	16.9	11.8	7.1	16
Temp. medium (°C)	2.8	4.7	8.2	12.9	17.2	20.5	22.0	21.7	18.6	14.6	9.5	4.5	13.1
Total precipitation (mm)	7.9	12.1	20.5	46.6	87.1	106.8	230.5	223.7	131.8	39.4	15.9	5.2	927.5
Precipitation days (≥ 1 mm)	7.0	8.5	10.9	13.0	14.7	15.2	17.6	15.8	15.6	13.1	7.7	5.2	144.3
Hours of sun	53.3	51.4	83.1	113.9	121.7	117.2	131.9	155.0	77.6	59.4	57.2	51.6	1073.2
Relative humidity (%)	83	81	79	78	76	81	86	85	85	85	83	84	82.2
Source: 中国وعربية 简体字 繁體字 Français Español العربية 中文

Transportation

The city is connected to each other and to its neighbors through various means of transportation:

Chengdu Metro Network

• The Chengdu Metro (through tax) It is the collective transport system of the city that has two lines, Line 1, which was built between December 2005 and 2010 (test operations in March 2010 and official opening on 27 September 2010) and Line 2, which began its operations in September 2012. It is operated by Chengdu Metro Limited Liability Company on 27 September 2010. It has connection with the main railway stations of the city, such as the Chengdu station.

• Chengdu-Shuangliu International Airport, which serves Chengdu, is located in Shuangliu County, 16 kilometres from the city centre, was built during the second but-Japanese war in 1938.

• Chengdu-Tianfu International Airport (IATA: TFU, ICAO: ZUTF)1 is an airport that serves Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province in China. It is approximately 50 km southeast of the metropolis. It operated in June 2021 as Chengdu's second airport, along with Shuangliu Airport.

• The Chengdu motorway network is well developed, and the city serves as a starting point for many national routes, with the main routes from Sichuan-Shanxi, Sichuan-Tíbet, and Sichuan-Yunnan.

• River transport: historically, the River of the Silk (also known as the Funan River) has been used for the traffic of boats inside and outside Chengdu. However, due to the size of the same river and the depth of the reduced channel over time, the river is no longer able to carry any kind of water traffic. Because of this reason, Chengdu has no direct access to the Yangtzé River, or any other larger river. However, to ensure that Chengdu’s goods have access to the river efficiently, the port cities of Yibin and Luzhou, both accessible from Chengdu, have initiated the development of their large-scale port infrastructure.

Panda Bears

Giant panda bear

As a National Treasure of China, the giant panda is one of the rarest animals in the world. The total number is estimated at 1,500, including those living in the wild, 80% of which are in Sichuan province.

A giant panda breeding center was founded in the northern suburbs of Chengdu. It is the only one of its kind in the world that is situated in a metropolitan area. In order to better protect wild giant pandas, Chengdu has established nature reserves in their localities. The Wolong National Nature Reserve is the largest of its kind in the world and is only 130 kilometers from Chengdu.

On January 11, 2012, six captive-bred pandas were released into a "semi-wild" from Chengdu. Scientists believe that success in the reintroduction project will help save the giant panda from extinction. NBA basketball players such as Yao Ming and other activists attended the ceremony.

Points of Interest

• Wu Marquis Temple: was built in honor of Zhuge Liang, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Shu during the period of the Three Kingdoms. The original temple was built 400 years before Liang died. During the Ming dynasty, a temple was added to house the tomb of the king of Shu, the emperor Liu Bei. The temple was rebuilt during the Qing dynasty. It occupies an area of 37000 m2.
• Monastery Wenshu: Buddhist monastery built during the Tang dynasty. It is the best preserved Buddhist temple in the entire city of Chengdu. It occupies an area of 5.5 hectares and is dedicated to the Wenshu god. The temple complex consists of 200 buildings decorated with bas-reliefs and about four hundred statues of Buddha.
• Du Fu Cabana: was built by the poet Du Fu during his stay in the city. The original cabin was destroyed because of a bandage. At the death of the poet, the village built a new cabin in honor of the artist. It was rebuilt during Ming and Qing dynasties.
• Tomb of General Wang Jian: In it is buried Wang Jian who was general of the army during the Tang dynasty. He later declared himself emperor of the Kingdom of Shu.
• Center for Research and Reproduction of the Giant Panda: about 10 kilometers from the city center, occupies an area of 600 000 m2. Inaugurated in 1993, the centre mimics the natural habitat of the pandas so that the animals feel as comfortable as possible and thus facilitate their reproduction. It welcomes 21 giant pandas, 20 red pandas and other endangered animals.
• New Century Global Centre: multipurpose building that is, with its 1 700 000 square meters, the largest building in the world by surface. It contains shops, offices, hotels, conference rooms, a university complex, an IMAX cinema and an artificial beach. It was built between 2010 and 2013.