Zhengzhou

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Zhengzhou
郑州
—  Prefecture-level city  —
郑州市
Erqi Memorial Tower at night
Location in Henan
Zhengzhou is located in China
Zhengzhou
Zhengzhou
Location in China
Coordinates: 34°45′37″N 113°38′31″E / 34.76028°N 113.64194°E / 34.76028; 113.64194
Country  China
Province Henan
City seat Zhongyuan
Subdivisions
Government
 - Mayor Zhao Jiancai
Area
 - Prefecture-level city 7,446.2 km2 (2,875 sq mi)
 - Urban 1,010.3 km2 (390.1 sq mi)
Population (2006)
 - Prefecture-level city 7,243,000
 - Density 972.7/km2 (2,519.3/sq mi)
 - Urban 4,362,800
 - Urban Density 4,318.3/km2 (11,184.4/sq mi)
Time zone UTC (UTC+8)
Postal code 450000
Area code(s) 371
Website http://www.zhengzhou.gov.cn/

Zhengzhou (simplified Chinese: 郑州; traditional Chinese: 鄭州; pinyin: Zhèngzhōu), formerly called Zhengxian is a prefecture-level city, and the capital of Henan province, People's Republic of China.

Contents

[edit] Geography

Located just north of the province's center and south of the Yellow River, Zhengzhou borders Luoyang to the west, Jiaozuo to the northwest, Xinxiang to the northeast, Kaifeng to the east, Xuchang to the southeast, and Pingdingshan to the southwest. It is geographically the center city of China.

Zhengzhou is situated to the south of the Yellow River where its valley broadens into the great plain and at the eastern extremity of the Xionger Mountains. Zhengzhou is at the crossing point of the north–south route skirting the Taihang Mountains and the mountains of western Henan and the east–west route along the southern bank of the Yellow River.

Close to the Yellow River to the north, bordering the Songshan Mountain to the west, and adjacent to the Huanghuai Plains to the southeast, Zhengzhou is in the region of 34°16'~34°58N and 112°42'~114°14'E, covering a total area of 7446.2 square kilometers , including city area of 1013.3 square kilometers and built area in central city area of 147.7 square kilometers.

The land descends from west to east. Its west is characterized by mountains & hills whereas the east is mostly of plains. Located in medium latitude zone Zhengzhou has a temperate semi-moisture continental monsoon climate ,cold in winter and hot in summer, centralized dryness and wetness, and warm in spring and cool in autumn with four clearly-defined seasons. An annual average temperature stands at 14.4 ℃, but highest temperature at an average of 27.3℃ in July and coldest at an average 0.2℃ in January. Annual rainfall stands at 640.9 mm, frost-free period 220 days, and annual sunshine time about 2400 hours. There are 35 big and small rivers and streams, which belong to the two big water systems of the Yellow River and Huaihe River, respectively. The section of the Yellow River flowing through Zhengzhou extends 150.4 kilometers.



[edit] Administration

Subdivisions of Zhengzhou

The prefecture-level city of Zhengzhou administers 12 county-level divisions, including 6 districts, 5 county-level cities and 1 county.

[edit] History

The Shang Dynasty established Aodu (隞都) or Bodu (亳都) in Zhengzhou (see also: History of China). The pre-historical city had been long lost even before the time of the First Emperor of China. Since 1950 archaeological finds have shown that there were Neolithic settlements in the area and that the Shang Bronze Age culture, which flourished there from about 1500 BC, was centered on a walled city. Outside this city, in addition to remains of large public buildings, a complex of small settlements has been discovered. The site is generally identified with the Shang capital of Ao. It is preserved in the Shang Dynasty Ruins monument in Guanchen District. The Shang, who continually moved their capital, left Ao, perhaps in the 13th century BC. The site, nevertheless, remained occupied; Zhou (post-1050 BC) tombs have also been discovered. Traditionally it is held that in the Western Zhou period (1111–771 BC) it became the fief of a family named Guan. From this derives the name borne by the county (xian) since the late 6th century BC — Guancheng (City of the Guan). The city first became the seat of a prefectural administration in AD 587, when it was named Guanzhou. In 605 it was first called Zhengzhou — a name by which it has been known virtually ever since.

The name of Zhengzhou came from Sui Dynasty (AD 581), albeit it was located in Chenggao, another town. The government moved to the contemporary city during Tang Dynasty. It achieved its greatest importance under the Sui (AD 581–618), Tang (618–907), and early Song (960–1127) dynasties, when it was the terminus of the New Bian Canal, which joined the Yellow River to the northwest. There, at a place called Heyin, a vast granary complex was established to supply the capitals at Luoyang and Chang'an to the west and the frontier armies to the north. In the Song period, however, the transfer of the capital eastward to Kaifeng robbed Zhengzhou of much of its importance.It is a capital during the five dynasties of Xia, Shang, Guan, Zheng, and Han, and a prefecture during the eight dynasties of Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song, Jin, Yuan, Ming, and Qing.

In 1903 the Beijing–Hankou railway arrived at Zhengzhou, and in 1909 the first stage of the Longhai Railway gave it an east–west link to Kaifeng and Luoyang; it later was extended eastward to the coast at Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province, and westward to Xi'an (Chang'an), Shaanxi Province, as well as to western Shaanxi. Zhengzhou thus became a major rail junction and a regional center for cotton, grain, peanuts (groundnuts), and other agricultural produce. Early in 1923 a workers' strike began in Zhengzhou and spread along the rail line before it was suppressed; a 14-story double tower in the center of the city commemorates the strike. In 1938, during the war with Japan, the retreating Chinese Nationalist Army blew up the dikes retaining the Yellow River about 32 km northeast of the town, flooding a vast area. At about the same time, in their drive to relocate industry in the interior far from the invading Japanese, the Chinese transferred all the local plants to the west.

When the Communist government came to power in 1949, Zhengzhou was a commercial and administrative center, but it had virtually no industry. Because it was the center of a densely populated cotton-growing district, it was developed into an industrial city, with industry concentrated on the west side so that the prevailing northeast winds would blow fumes away from the city. There are cotton-textile plants, spinning mills, textile-machinery works, flour mills, tobacco and cigarette factories, and various food-processing plants; coal is mined nearby.

Zhengzhou also has a locomotive and rolling-stock repair plant, a tractor-assembly plant, and a thermal generating station. The city's industrial growth has resulted in a large increase in population, largely of industrial workers from the north. Trees have been planted throughout the city's more than 23 km² area, holding down the sand that formerly blew in thick gusts through the city. A water diversion project and pumping station, built in 1972, has provided irrigation for the surrounding countryside. The city has an agricultural university.

[edit] Politics

List of Mayors (incomplete):

  1. Song Zhihe (宋致和): October 1948-August 1955
  2. Hu Shujian (胡树俭): June 1983-February 1991
  3. Zhang Shiying (张世英): February 1991-June 1993
  4. Song Tianbao (朱天宝): June 1993-November 1996
  5. Chen Yichu (陈义初): November 1996-February 2003
  6. Wang Wenchao (王文超): February 2003-February 2006
  7. Zhao Jiancai (赵建才): February 2006- (incumbent)

List of the CPC Party Chiefs of Zhengzhou:

  1. Gu Jingsheng (谷景生): October 1948-December 1948
  2. Wu Defeng (吴德蜂): December 1948-June 1949
  3. Zhao Wucheng (赵武成): June 1949 - April 1953
  4. Song Zhihe (宋致和): April 1953-August 1956
  5. Wang Lizhi (王黎之): August 1956-January 1968
  6. Wang Hui (王辉): March 1971-January 1974
  7. Zhang Junqing (张俊卿): January 1974-December 1977
  8. Yu Yichuan (于一川): December 1977-December 1979
  9. Li Baoguang (李保光): December 1979-May 1983
  10. Jiang Jinfei (蒋靳非): May 1983-September 1984
  11. Yao Minxue (姚敏学): September 1984-August 1987
  12. Cao Lei (曹磊): August 1987-July 1990
  13. Song Guochen (宋国臣): July 1990-May 1992
  14. Zhang Deguang (张德广): May 1992-December 1995
  15. Wang Youjie (王有杰): December 1995-June 2001
  16. Li Ke (李克): June 2001-

[edit] Economy

GDP per capita was RMB40,398 in 2008.

[edit] Agriculture

By the end of 2006, Zhengzhou has a total population of over 7 million, of which 2.88 million live in rural area.[1] Its main products include apples, paulownia, tobacco, maize, cotton, and wheat. In addition, Zhengzhou also produces Yellow River carp, Zhengzhou watermelons, Xinzheng jujube, [Xingyang] dried persimmons, Guangwu Pomegranate and Zhongmu garlic, all of which are specialties that are rarely found outside the region.

[edit] Industry

Zhengzhou has been one of the major industrial cities in The People's Republic of China since 1949. The city's staple industry is textiles. Others manufactured items include tractors, locomotives, cigarettes, fertilizer, processed meats, agricultural machinery, and electrical equipment

[edit] Culture

[edit] Tourism

Erqi Memorial Tower

Zhengzhou is a flat industrial city set to the farmland of the central China plain. While it is not a tourist city, it's an example of a remarkably fast-changing city in China (without minor tourism clutter).

The best known tourist attraction is the Shaolin Temple (少林寺), which is more than 50 miles southwest of Zhengzhou. Shaolin Temple is not only known as one of China's important Buddhist shrines, but also as the ancient center of Chinese kung-fu. When the temple was built in 495, the temple was originally designed to house Batuo, a celebrated Indian monk, who, after many years of spreading Buddhism, was later known as Fo Tuo, or Grand Monk. In 537, another famous Indian monk named Boddhidharma, settled in the temple. According to legend, he created a primitive bare-hand combat routine called “xingyi boxing” after he had sat meditating in a cave for nine years. That started the kung-fu tradition at the temple.

Henan Museum

Zhengzhou's most notable cultural institution is the Henan Museum (河南省博物院), one of China's most important museums. The provincial museum in particular requires at least a half day visit to do justice to the many impressive exhibits, which range from prehistoric times, including dinosaur bones, up through the Qing Dynasty. The admission price was 20 yuan, but has now been made free of charge.

Zhengzhou has a zoo: 动物园 (Dong Wu Yuan) located on Hua Yuan Lu (花园路). The Erqi Memorial Tower is located in the city center.

There are the remains of the Shang Dynasty Ruins in Zhengzhou's west side located around Shangcheng lu (商城路). It mostly consists of a 5,000 year old dirt wall which formed part of the old city's defenses. Additionally, the city wall is cut in three places by new roads that have been built recently.

There are large water, light and music shows on display in Zheng Dong Xin Qu (New Eastern District) during the weekend at 8.30 pm in the summer and 8:00 pm during the winter months. The show is about 25 minutes long and is free of charge. People would have to arrive before 8.00 for a seat. The show times can change from 8:00 and 8:30 without warning.

[edit] ZhengDong CBD

A great measure taken by Henan Province and Zhengzhou City to establish and develop Zhengdong New District for speeding up Zhengzhou's development. Mr. Kisho Kurokawa, Japan's world well-known planner and architect, who has brought in advanced ideas including ecological city, co-existing city, metabolic city and ring city, designs the overall conceptual planning scheme for Zhengdong New District. The scheme won the "Prominent Award for City Planning Design" at the first session of Annual Meeting of the World Architects Alliance in 2002. Zhengdong New District, located at the eastern Putian district clusters in the overall planned Zhengzhou City approved by the State Council, starts from the State Highway 107 in the west to the Jing-Zhu Expressway in the east, from Zhengzhou Airport Expressway in the south to the Lian-Huo Expressway in the north. Zhengdong New District is the key project of Henan Province whose total far-reaching planned area is 105 square kilometers and short-term planned construction area 45 square kilometers. The plan of Zhengdong New District adopts the concept of district cluster development to divide the urban structure into Central Business District (CBD), Longhu Lake District, Commercial Residential & Logistic District and Economic & Technological Development Area, etc. Each district cluster, linked by mutual connections of ring highways, has commercial, service and administrative centers alongside. The CBD mainly focuses on the functions of finance, office, business and residence, with the planned area of about 6 square kilometers of artificial lake (Longhu Lake) in the northwest surrounded by low-rise residential district; the secondary CBD center, situated on the byland extending to Longhu Lake, is designed for tourism and residence; with high-rise residential district on its both sides, an urban commercial and cultural center axis line connects the CBD and secondary CBD center; logistics center and industry are mainly concentrated in the V-shape industries belt; in addition, the massive planned ecological green land circles the river, lake, expressway, ring way and main road. The conceptual idea of Zhengdong New District pictures a historical culture and ecological development axis line with southwest-northeast trend, assembling Erqi Square, historical sites in the Shang Dynasty, provincial and municipal administrative working area, CBD, secondary CBD center, Longhu Lake and principal rivers of Jinshui River and Xiong'er River running through the whole city. Zhengdong New District exerts its function as an urban hub, and thus works out a scheme of sustainable urban development with Chinese characteristics for Zhengzhou's far-reaching construction.

At present, the plan of starting area has put into construction, infrastructure such as road in the district is basically completed, transfer of land for construction and land requisition and removal are on the way, many items entering CBD such as International Conference & Exhibition Center and Broadcasting & TV Center have started to construct, and preliminary preparation of Henan Art Center, Higher Learning Institute Parks and Scientific and Technological City are on the way. The Administrative Committee of Zhengdong New District is making its full efforts to promote the construction of the projects in the starting area to realize the short-term objective of "establishing the image in three years and forming the scale in five years".

Currently, they are building a six-star hotel in the CBD area it will also be Zhengzhou's tallest building.

ZhengDong CBD also holds China's largest wetland filtration system for water

[edit] Transport

[edit] Train

Zhengdong east district

Zhengzhou is the major railway junction between the Longhai railway (east-west) and the Jingguang railway (north-south). Nearly all trains pass through Zhengzhou on route to Beijing, Shanghai and Xian.

Zhengzhou is easy to reach from Beijing (between 5-8 hours) and Shanghai (6-14 hours) by train. Further traveling to Xi'an (8 hours, no fast train) is also possible. A tourist-friendly train leaves from Zhengzhou to Xi'An every morning.

[edit] Taxi

The base taxi fare starts at 6 yuan. Every additional kilometer (past the initial 2 kilometers included in the base fare) costs 1.5 yuan with rates starting at 8 yuan after 10pm. There are now a few newer taxis operating that have higher starting rates of up to 10 yuan (usually based from the airport).

[edit] Bus

The city has a well-developed public transportation system and you can get most places by bus for 1yuan (or 2yuan for some of the newer air-conditioned buses). Bus passes can be purchased to eliminate the hassle of always needing to carry exact change.

[edit] Air

Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport is 37 km southeast of the city centre. An airport shuttle bus runs between the airport and the Civil Aviation Hotel 民航大酒店 (Mín Háng dà jiǔ diàn) on 金水路 (Jīnshuĭ Lù) in the heart of Zhengzhou. It costs 15 yuan per person to ride the shuttle in either direction. A taxi from the airport will cost about 140 yuan, while a taxi to the airport will cost about 90 yuan. There will also be an extra 10 yuan toll fee for the taxi using the airport expressway.

On February 8, 2009, the direct air route between Zhengzhou and Taiwan was launched in Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport, the Zhengzhou-Taipei flight was operated by Shenzhen Airlines[2].

Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport is also a focus city for China Southern Airline and Shenzhen Airlines

[edit] Subway

The plan of "Zhengzhou Subway line No. 1" as well as "Zhengzhou Subway line No. 2", recently have been approved by National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) in Feb. 2009[3]. Zhengzhou Subway, will be a rapid transit rail network that serves both the urban and suburban districts of Zhengzhou municipality. As planned, those two projects will start from 2009 and will be finished in 2013 and 2015 respectively[4]. Also as referenced in the long term plan, there are another 4 lines pending approval[5], Line 3 and Line 4 will be under construction during 2015-2020 and will be in operation by 2020, project on Line 5 and Line 6 will begin since 2020[6].


[edit] Highways

[edit] Accommodation

There are several styles of accommodation in Zhengzhou, from 5 star luxury style hotels to hostels. A few of the hotels are: Holiday Inn Express, Sofitel, Golden Palace Hotel, Pearl Hotel, Yuda Palace, Crowne Plaza, and the Hotel Home. The majority of the hotels are near the central business district or the rail station.

[edit] Colleges and universities

Zhengzhou Evening

[edit] Public

[edit] Military

[edit] Private

[edit] Notable people

[edit] Sister cities

Zhengzhou view from space

[edit] International

[edit] Domestic

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ (Chinese)General information of Zhengzhou, Zhengzhou Government official website.
  2. ^ "Direct air route launched between Henan and Taiwan" GOV.cn Feb. 9, 2009
  3. ^ (Chinese)"郑州地铁获国务院批准 每公里成本近6亿今年开工" 河南日报大河网 Dahe.cn Feb. 13, 2009
  4. ^ (Chinese)"地铁未来将出现在郑州市" 中广网 CNR.cn Feb. 13, 2009
  5. ^ (Chinese)"国务院批准郑州地铁建设 6条地铁轨道线走向" 大河网 Dahe.cn Feb. 13, 2009
  6. ^ (Chinese)"郑州地铁规划获国务院批准" 大河网 Dahe.cn Feb. 13, 2009

[edit] External links

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Coordinates: 34°45′37″N 113°38′31″E / 34.76028°N 113.64194°E / 34.76028; 113.64194

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