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Chengdu [chœng-dy]

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Chengdu

[chœng-dy]

Chengdu or Chengtu, city (1994 est. pop. 1,932,800), capital of Sichuan prov., SW China, on the Min River. It is a port and the commercial center of the Chengdu plain, the main farming area of Sichuan. Its irrigation system dates back to the 2d cent. B.C. A transportation hub, it is the rail center for SE China. Products include textiles, processed foods, chemicals, machinery, railway equipment, aluminum, electronics, and paper. High-grade iron ore is mined at nearby Lugu. Chengdu, an old walled city, was in existence during the Ch'un-ch'iu period (770-475 B.C.). It was the capital of the Shu Han dynasty (3d cent. A.D.) and one of the earliest (9th cent. A.D.) printing centers in China. A cultural seat since ancient times, it is commonly called "little Beijing." Its numerous institutions of higher learning include Sichuan Univ., Chengdu Technical Univ., and two medical colleges. The cottage where Tu Fu wrote his poetry (8th cent.) was restored in 1955.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004.
Licensed from Columbia University Press

Chengdu

or Ch'eng-tu

City (pop., 2003 est.: 2,664,000), capital of Sichuan province, west-central China. It lies in the fertile Chengdu plain, the site of one of China's most ancient and successful irrigation systems, watered by the Min River. First set up in the late 3rd century BC, the system has survived and has enabled the area to support one of the densest agrarian populations in the world. Chengdu was the capital of various dynasties, and in the 10th century AD it was immensely prosperous; its merchants introduced the use of paper money, which spread throughout China under the Song dynasty. Chengdu was famous for its brocades and satins. The capital of Sichuan since 1368, it has remained a major administrative centre. Today it is a transportation and industrial hub, as well as an educational centre.

Learn more about Chengdu with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

Chengdu

) established itself in this region. The fertile Chengdu Plain, on which Chengdu is located, is called Tianfuzhi guo in Chinese, which literally means "the country of heaven", or more often seen translated as "the Land of Abundance". It was recently named China's 4th-most livable city by China Daily.

History

In the early 4th century BC, the 9th Kaiming king of the ancient Shu moved his capital to the city's current location from today's nearby Pixian. He was said to have been inspired by the ancient story of King Tai of Zhou, Grandfather of King Wu of Zhou, moving his capital. History recorded King Tai of Zhou's move as "it took a year to become a town; it took three years to become a capital". Following this, king of Shu named the new city as "Cheng Du", which means "become a capital" (In Chinese, the word "cheng" means "become", "du" means "capital"). There are, however, several versions of why the capital was moved to Chengdu, and more recent theories of the name's origin point to it as stemming from, or referring to, earlier non-Han inhabitants and/or their languages.

After the conquest of Shu by the State of Qin in 316 BC, a new city was founded by the Qin general Zhang Yi (who as a matter of fact had argued against the invasion). This can be seen as the beginning of the Chinese Chengdu. It was renamed Yìzhou during the Han Dynasty.

During the partition following the fall of the Eastern Han Dynasty, i.e. the era of the Three Kingdoms, Liu Bei founded the southwest kingdom of Shu-Han (221-263) with Chengdu as its capital.

During the Tang Dynasty, both the "Poet God" Li Bаí and the "Poet Sage" Dù Fǔ spent some part of their lives in Chengdu. Du Fu constructed the celebrated "Caotáng" (?? or grass-hut) in the second year of his four-years stay (759-762). But today's Caotang, a rather sumptuous house in the traditional style, was only constructed in 1078 in memory of Du Fu. During Tang, Chengdu was the best commercial city second to only Yangzhou.

Chengdu was also the birthplace of the first widely used paper money in the world (Northern Song Dynasty, around A.D. 960).

Two rebel leaders, one around the end of Song Dynasty, the other near the end of Ming Dynasty, set up the capitals of their short-lived kingdoms here, called Dàshu and Dàxi respectively.

During the Second World War the Kuomintang (Chinese Nationalist) government under Chiang Kai-shek fled to Sichuan Province to escape the invading Japanese forces. They brought with them businesspeople, workers and academics, who founded many of the industries and cultural institutions which continue to make Chengdu an important center. However, the city soon became a symbol of Nationalist corruption and ineffectiveness.

In 1944 the American XX Bomber Command launched Operation Matterhorn, an ambitious plan to base B-29 Superfortresses at Chengdu and strategically bomb the Japanese Home Islands. Because it required a massive airlift of fuel and supplies over the Himalayas, it was not a great military success, but it did earn Chengdu the distinction of launching the first serious retaliation against the Japanese homeland.

Chengdu was the last city on the Chinese mainland to be held by the Kuomintang-controlled government. R.O.C. President Chiang Kai-shek and his son Chiang Ching-kuo directed the defence of the city at Chengdu Central Military Academy until 1949, when the city fell into Communist hands. The People's Liberation Army took the city on December 10 and the remnants of the Nationalist Chinese government fled to Taiwan.

Today the industrial base is very broad, including light and heavy manufacturing, aluminum smelting and chemicals. The textile industry remains important, with cotton and wool milling added to the traditional manufacturing of silk brocade and satin.

Today it is the headquarters of the Chengdu Military Region.

On May 12, 2008, a 8.0 magnitude earthquake struck causing damage to the area, killing about 80,000 people and injuring 26,413 in the area as of May 24, 2008. 4021 of the casualties and most of the property damage were from Dujiangyan and Pengzhou, two suburban cities of Chengdu. While 75 kilometers (48 miles) from the epicenter, the urban area did not suffer any discernible damage. .

Geography and climate

Chengdu is situated at the western edge of the Sichuan Basin. It is therefore sheltered from northwest winds from Siberia in winter by the Qinling Mountains to the north. The climate is mild and humid. The short wdeqwewinter is milder than in the Lower Yangtze because of the sheltering effect of the Qinling. Snow is rare but there are a few periods of frost each winter. The summer is longer, but not as hot as in cities such as Wuhan and Nanjing in the Lower Yangtse downstream. Average daytime highs are 10°C (49°F) in January and 30°C (85°F) in July. Rainfall is reliable year-round but peaks in the summer months.

             January

July

             February

7.6

             August

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             September

             April

             October

May

             November

             June

             December

Asia-Planet.net Chengdu climate

Chengdu has one of the lowest sunshine totals in China (less sunshine annually than London), and most days are cloudy even if without rain. This is especially so in the winter months, when it is typically interminably grey and dreary. Spring (Mar-Apr) tends to be sunnier, warmer and drier than autumn (Oct-Nov).

Administrative divisions

Qingyang District (青羊区)
Jinjiang District (锦江区)
Jinniu District (金牛区)
Wuhou District (武侯区)
Chenghua District (成华区)
Longquanyi District (龙泉驿区)
Qingbaijiang District (青白江区)
Xindu District (新都区)
Wenjiang District (温江区)
Dujiangyan City (都江堰市)
Pengzhou City (彭州市)
Qionglai City (邛崃市)
Chongzhou City (崇州市)
Jintang County (金堂县)
Shuangliu County (双流县)
Pi County (郫县)
Dayi County (大邑县)
Pujiang County (蒲江县)
Xinjin County (新津县)

Notable people

Sima Xiangru, a great writer of the Western Han Dynasty.
Zhuo Wenjun, wife of the famous writer Sima Xiangru.
Yang Xiong, a great writer and philosopher during the Western Han Dynasty.
Chang Qu, the famous historian of the Western Jin Dynasty; his work 'Hua Yang Guo Zhi' is the first Chinese historical geography work.
Xue Tao, a noted female poet of the Tang Dynasty.
Ba Jin, a great writer, who was born in Chengdu and died in Shanghai in 2005.
Wang Guangxi, a noted musician, the first Chinese awarded a doctoral degree in music.
Zhou Taixuan, a noted biologist.
Li Jieren, the famous writer, was born in Chengdu in 1891.
Kong Xiangming, the famous female player of Go.
Zheng Jie and Yan Zi have been making quite an impact on the Women's Tennis Tour. Although both are successful in singles (Zheng Jie with two titles and Yan Zi with one), they are better known for their doubles grand slam wins in the 2006 Australian Open and in the 2006 Wimbledon. Recently Zheng made a run to the Wimbledon Ladies singles semifinals. She donated all of her prize money to the earthquake relief situation that occurred in Chengdu shortly before the tournament.
Jung Chang, writer and historian, born in Yibin in 1952, and raised in Chengdu.
Bai Ling, Chinese-born American actress, born in Chengdu in 1970.
Jane Zhang, Mandopop singer, born in Chengdu in 1984.
Li Yuchun, Mandopop singer, born in Chengdu in 1984.
Zhang Li Yin, aka Jang Ri In. She is a Korea-based Chinese singer, signed with SM Entertainment.
Liu Bei, former ruler of Chengdu in 211 CE during the end of the Han Dynasty.

Previous names

The Brocade City: Jinchéng,

In the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-23 AD), brocade produced in Chengdu enjoyed great popularity among the royal and elite class in China. Emperor installed Jin Guan (an official in charge of brocade production) to oversee brocade production in Chengdu. Since then, Chengdu has been called "Jin Guan Cheng" (Brocade Official's City), or in its short form, "Jin Cheng" (Brocade city).

The City of Hibiscus: Róngchéng,

In the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period (907-960), Mengchang, the king of the Later Shu Kingdom, ordered the planting of hibiscus on the fortress wall surrounding the city. After this, Chengdu started being referred as the City of Hibiscus. Nowadays, the hibiscus is still the city flower of Chengdu. But the last city wall was torn down in the 1960s along with the Royal Palace situated in the middle of the city.

The aforementioned "previous names" are not formal names, however, but are more accurately thought of as nicknames. The name "Chengdu" has never changed during thousands years since the city was founded, and the city has always been in the same location.

Culture and folklore

People from Chengdu (or Sichuan, in general) tend to eat spicy. Many local specialties include Grandma Chen's Bean Curd (Mapo doufu), Chengdu Hot pot, and Carrying Pole Noodles (Dan Dan Noodles).

An article by the Los Angeles Times (2006) called Chengdu "China's party city". Chengdu outnumbers Shanghai in the number of tea houses and bars despite having less than half the population. The inhabitants have a reputation both within Sichuan and in China at large for having a laid back attitude and for knowing how to enjoy life. The carefree lifestyle of Chengdu greatly benefits its local women, who are generally of a sweet and charming nature. A Chengdu-based writer has portrayed Chengdu girls in this way: "Chengdu girls sound delectable and tender, even when they are squabbling.

Economy

The main industries in Chengdu - which include food, medicine, machinery and the information technology - are supported by numerous large-scale enterprises, such as Chengdu Sugar and Wine Co.. Ltd., Chengdu Food Group, Sichuan Medicine Co. Ltd., Chengdu Automobile Co. Ltd. etc. Many high-tech enterprises from outside Chengdu are also beginning to settle down there.

The National Development and Reform Commission has formally approved Chengdu's proposed establishment of a national bio-industry base there. China's aviation industries have begun construction of a high-tech industrial park in the city that will feature space and aviation technology. The local government plans to attract overseas and domestic companies for service outsourcing and become a well-known service outsourcing base in China and worldwide.

Electronic and IT industry

Chengdu has long been established as a national base for electronic and IT industry. Several key national electronic R&D institutes are located in Chengdu. Chengdu Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone has attracted a variety of multinationals, at least 30 Fortune 500 companies and 12,000 domestic companies, including Intel, IBM, NOKIA, Motorola, SAP, Siemens, Canon, HP, Xerox and Microsoft, as well as domestic powerhouses such as Lenovo.

Intel's Chengdu factory is its second one after its Shanghai factory in China and the first such large-scale foreign investment in electronic industry in interior mainland China. Intel, the world largest chipmaker has invested US$525 million in two assembly and testing facilities in Chengdu. Following the footsteps of Intel, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), the worlds third largest foundry, set up an assembly and testing plant in Chengdu. Intel's rival AMD is likewise set to open an R&D center in this city.

In November 2006 IBM signed an agreement with the Chengdu High-Tech Zone to establish a Global Delivery Center, its fourth in China after Dalian, Shanghai and Shenzhen, within the Chengdu Tianfu Software Park. Scheduled to be operational by February 2007, this new center will provide multi-lingual application development and maintenance services to clients globally in English (Australia, Japan, New Zealand, the US and Europe), Japanese and Chinese, and to the IBM Global Procurement Center, recently located to the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen. On March 23 2008, IBM announced at the "West China Excellent Enterprises CEO Forum" that the southwest working team of IBM's Global Business Services is now formally stationed in Chengdu. On May 28 2008, Zhou Weikun, president of IBM China disclosed that IBM Chengdu would increase its staff number from the present 600 to nearly 1,000 by the end of the year.

Over the past few years, Chengdu's economy has flourished rapidly. Chengdu has been quick to become a major base for communication infrastructure, with one of China's nine top level postal centers and one of six national telecom exchanges.

In 2009, Chengdu will host the World Cyber Games Grand Final. It's the first time China hosts the world's largest computer and video game festival.

Financial industry

Chengdu is now building itself to be the financial hub for Western People's Republic of China and has successfully attracted major international financial institutions, including Citigroup, HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank, ABN AMRO, BNP Paribas, etc.

Historically, Chengdu has marked its name in the history of financial innovation. The world’s first ever paper currency 'Jiao Zi' was seen in Chengdu in the year 1023, during the Song Dynasty of ancient China.

Now, Chengdu is not only the gateway of Western People's Republic of China for foreign financial institutions, but also a booming town for Chinese domestic financial firms. The Chinese monetary authority, People's Bank of China (China’s central bank), set its southwest China headquarters in Chengdu City. In addition, almost all domestic banks and securities brokerage firms located their regional headquarters or branches in Chengdu. At the same time, the local financial firms of Chengdu are strengthening their presences nationally, notably, West China Securities, GuoJin Securities and Chengdu Commercial Bank. Moreover, on top of banks and brokerage firms, the flourish of local economy lured more and more financial service firms to the city to capitalize on the economic growth. KPMG opened this first west China office in Chengdu City this October, and before the inauguration of KPMG Chengdu office, its rival, Ernst & Young, had already integrated Chengdu into its global operation for several years.

Defense industry

Located within the city limits is the Chengdu Aircraft Company which produces the recently declassified J-10 Fighter. The company is one of the major manufacturers of Chinese Military aviation technology.

Investment

The Chengdu Statistics Bureau reports that the total investment in fixed assets in 2006 was 189.95 billion yuan (US$25.13 billion). Domestic investment was 72.84 billion yuan (US$9.65 billion), an increase of 71.1 percent from 2005. The total amount of foreign direct investment reached 5.74 billion yuan (US$0.76 billion), an increase of 36.6 percent from 2005. The total amount of revenue in the first half of 2007 stands at 13.15 billion yuan (US$1.74 billion), of which 32 percent came from state-owned enterprises and 25.5 percent came from enterprises with foreign equities. Both components of revenue increased by almost 80 percent, as compared with the previous year.

Industrial zones

Chengdu Economic & Technological Development Zone
Chengdu Export Processing Zone
Mianyang High-Tech Industrial Park

Transportation

Chengdu's transportation network is well developed, and it is the start of many national highways, with major routes going from Sichuan-Shanxi, Sichuan-Tibet, and Sichuan-Yunnan.

For the year 2007, Chengdu announced the official launch of 37 significant projects, including the Chengdu-Jianyang Expressway, to accelerate the construction of the experimental district. This will try to solve the current transportation problem, which is proving to be the bottleneck in Jianyang's development. Development of major tunnels and the Longquan Lake scenic spot has also been planned to integrate Jianyang better into the Chengdu economic circle.

Several major road projects were mentioned in the paper: a 15 km tunnel from Shuangliu Taiping to Jianyang Sancha Lake; alteration of the National Expressway 321, from Jiangyang to Longquanyi, totaling 26 kilometers. There will also be a road that connects Longquan Town to Longquan Lake - it will be connected to the Chengdu-Jianyang Expressway and it will shorten the journey by 10 kilometers. It undecided whether drivers will have to pay to access the road.

Expressways

Four expressways, connecting the center of Chengdu to its suburbs, will be completed by the end of 2008. The expressways that will be open to the public by the end of December are the Chenglin Expressway, extensions of Guanghua Avenue, Shawan Line, and an expressway from Chengdu to Heilongtan.

The toll-free Chengjin Expressway in the east of Chengdu is 38.7 km long, with six lines and designed for travel at 80 km/h. After it opens to the public, it will take only about half an hour to drive from the downtown Chengdu to Jintang, half the time of the current journey.

The expressway between Chengdu to Heilongtan (Chengdu section), going to the south of the city, is 42 km long. It is also toll-free and a journey from downtown Chengdu to Heilongtan will only take half an hour.

The extension of Guanghua Avenue, going towards the west of the city, is 11.6 km long with an estimated investment of 300 million yuan. It will cut the journey time from Chongzhou city to Sanhuan Road to less than half an hour.

The extension of Shawan Road going north will be 8.8 km long, and is designed for travel at 60 km/h. After it is connected to the expressways Bixian–Dujiangyan and Bixian–Pengzhou, it will take only 30 minutes to go from Chengdu to Pengzhou.

Via the Sichuan-Tibet Highway, from Chengdu to Nagchu (near Lhasa) is a distance of 2028 km.

Public transport

A subway system with seven lines is planned for Chengdu. Line 1 is under construction. See Chengdu Metro.

Air transport

Chengdu is served by the Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport located 16 km southwest of downtown. In 2007, it was the busiest airport in Western China and the 6th busiest airport nationwide in terms of passenger traffic.

The city is also turning into an important hub for air travel in China. China Southern Airlines, says it is planning to add a Beijing-Chengdu route, while Chengdu Municipal Committee of Communication has announced that 3E Airlines will launch an international cargo air route, from Chengdu to Europe and America in August. Shuangliu International Airport in Chengdu is one of the major national airports in China.

Chengdu plans to build an airport in Jintang County with six runways. Upon its completion, it will take less than 30 minutes to travel from Jintang to Chengdu downtown area.

River Transport

Located to the Northwest of Chongqing, Chengdu has no direct access to the Yangtze River, or any other river. However, to ensure that Chengdu's goods are able to access the river efficiently, the port cities of Yibin and Luzhou have begun a process of large scale port development, and as materials to support the rebuilding of northern Sichuan begin their movement from the East Coast to Sichuan, these ports will see significant throughput.

Colleges and universities

Sichuan University (Founded in 1896)
Sichuan Normal University(Founded in 1946)
Southwest Jiaotong University (Founded in 1896)
University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (Founded in 1956)
Southwestern University of Finance and Economics (Founded in 1952)
Southwest University for Nationalities
Sichuan International Studies University
Chengdu University of Technology
Chengdu University of TCM
Sichuan Conservatory of Music
Chengdu University of Information Technology
Chengdu Kinesiology University
Xihua University
Chengdu University
Chengdu Medical College
Chengdu College of UESTC

Note: Institutions without full-time bachelor programs are not listed.

High schools

Consulates

The United States Consulate General at Chengdu opened on October 16, 1985. It was the first foreign consulate in west-central China since 1949. Currently seven countries have consulates in Chengdu. The United Kingdom also opened a visa application center in Chengdu.

Consulate	Year	Consular District
United States Consulate General Chengdu	1986	Sichuan/Chongqing/Yunnan/Guizhou/Tibet
Germany Consulate General Chengdu	2003	Sichuan/Chongqing/Yunnan/Guizhou
Republic of Korea Consulate General Chengdu	2004	Sichuan/Chongqing/Yunnan/Guizhou
Thailand Consulate General Chengdu	2004	Sichuan/Chongqing
France Consulate General Chengdu	2005	Sichuan/Chongqing/Yunnan/Guizhou
Singapore Consulate Chengdu	2006	Sichuan
Pakistan Consulate General Chengdu	2007	Sichuan/Chongqing/Yunnan/Guizhou/Tibet

Sister cities

In 1979, Chengdu signed a sister city agreement with Montpellier, France, the first pair of Sino-French sister cities. Later Chengdu signed sister city agreements with cities in ten countries, as well as signing a friendly region agreement with the Dalarna province in Sweden. Chengdu has had many friendly exchanges with the sister cities. Montpellier, for example, has a Chengdu Street and a Chengdu Plaza. The soccer team Chengdu Blades is owned by Sheffield United F.C.