Beihai

Beihai
北海市 • Bwzhaij Si
Prefecture-level city
Beihai Silver Beach

Location of Beihai in Guangxi
Coordinates: 21°28′N 109°06′E / 21.467°N 109.100°E / 21.467; 109.100
Country People's Republic of China
Region Guangxi
Area
 • Prefecture-level city 3,337 km2 (1,288 sq mi)
Elevation 21 m (69 ft)
Population (2010 census)
 • Prefecture-level city 1,539,300
 • Density 460/km2 (1,200/sq mi)
 • Urban 572,000
 • Metro 405,600
Time zone UTC+8 (China Standard)
Postal code 536000
Area code(s) 779
ISO 3166 code CN-GX-05
Vehicle registration 桂E
Website beihai.gov.cn
Beihai
"Beihai", as written in Chinese
Chinese name
Chinese 北海
Postal Pakhoi
Literal meaning north of the sea
Zhuang name
Zhuang Bwzhaij
1957 orthography Bɯƨhaiз

Beihai (Chinese: 北海; pinyin: Běihǎi) is a prefecture-level city in the south of Guangxi, People's Republic of China. The name of the city means "north of the sea" in Chinese, signifying its status as a seaport on the north shore of the Gulf of Tonkin, which has granted it historical importance as a port of international trade for Guangxi, Hunan, Hubei, Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yunnan.[1] Between the years 2006 and 2020, Beihai is predicted to be the world's fastest growing city.[2] Beihai has a large shipyard, but most of the money generated in the city is derived from trade.

In addition, it governs the small islands of Weizhou and Xieyang, and is directly west of Leizhou Peninsula.

Subdivisions

Beihai contains three districts and one county, which are subdivided into five urban sub-districts, 23 towns, 3 townships, 87 neighborhood committees, 343 village committees. (see also Administrative divisions of the People's Republic of China#Levels)

Map

History

After the 1876 Sino-British Treaty of Yantai, eight Western nations (the UK, US, Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Italy, Portugal, and Belgium) set up consulates, hospitals, churches, schools, and maritime customs. Today, 15 of these western buildings remain in Beihai. It officially became an international tourist spot (旅游对外开放城市) in 1982.

City timeline

  • December 4, 1949: Beihai became a town of Hepu County under the Communist Party of China .
  • January 1951: a province-administered city of Guangdong
  • May 1951: entrusted to Guangxi
  • March 1952: officially administered by Guangxi
  • May 1955: Administered by Guangdong again
  • 1956: reduced to a county-level city
  • 1958: reduced to Beihai People's Commune of Hepu County
  • 1959: county-class town
  • 1964: restored to county-class city
  • June 1965: Administered by Guangxi again
  • October 1983: restored to prefecture-level city

Climate

Beihai has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cwa), with mild to warm winters and long, hot (but not especially) summers, and very humid conditions year-round. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from 14.6 °C (58.3 °F) in January to 29.0 °C (84.2 °F) in July, while extremes have ranged from 2.6 to 37.1 °C (37 to 99 °F). Rain is both the heaviest and most frequent from June to September, when 70% of the annual rainfall also occurs. This is in contrast to the autumn and winter months, where only 20 to 40 millimetres (0.79 to 1.57 in) of rain falls per month. The area receives about 2,000 hours of sunshine annually.[1]

Language

Vernacular languages of Beihai include Qin-Lian Yue, Hakka and Min. Mandarin is of increasing prevalence as a result of the Chinese government's general promotion of it.

Transportation

Air Transportation

Beihai is served by Beihai Fucheng Airport (BHY). It serves domestic destinations and also Hong Kong.

Rail

Beihai is served by a railway branch from Nanning. There are passenger trains to Nanning and Guilin.[3] At the end of 2013, the introduction of high-speed (D-series) train service to Beihai was announced as well.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 北海城市介绍 (in Chinese). Weather China. Retrieved 2012-02-25.
  2. ↑ City Mayors: World's fastest growing urban areas
  3. ↑ Beihai train schedule (in Chinese)
  4. ↑ 广西再开通运营9对动车组 陈武宣布高铁开通 Archived 2014-11-29 at the Wayback Machine. (Guangxi opens new CRH service, with 9 pairs of train a day. Chen Wu announces the opening of high-speed service), 2013-12-31
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