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Tianjin (Chinese: 天津; pinyin: tiān
jīn; Postal System Pinyin: Tientsin) is
a harbour municipality in China on the Hai He River (from Beijing) and Bohai Gulf of the Yellow Sea (Pacific Ocean). The placename literally
means "the Heavenly Ford".
Tianjin is one of four independent municipalities in the People's Republic of China with provincial-level status. Tianjin is also the third
largest city of China (rural population not counted).
History
The land where Tianjin lies today was originally part of Bohai Bay, and was
created by sedimentation of the Yellow River when it entered the sea at that point.
The opening of the Grand Canal of China during the
Sui Dynasty prompted the development of Tianjin into a trading center. Until
1404 Tianjin was called "Zhigu" (直沽), or "Straight Port". In that year, the
Emperor Yongle renamed the city "Tianjin", literally
"Heaven Ford", to mean that the emperor (son of heaven) forded
the river at that point, as he indeed did earlier on his way to taking the throne forcibly from his nephew. A fort was
established at Tianjin, known as "Tianjin Wei" (天津卫), meaning "Fort Tianjin".
Tianjin was promoted to a prefecture in
1725. Tianjin County was established under the prefecture in 1731.
In 1856 Chinese soldiers boarded The Arrow, a Chinese-owned ship registered in
Hong Kong flying the British flag and suspected of piracy, smuggling and of being
engaged in the opium trade. They captured 12 men and imprisoned them. In response the British and French sent gunboats under the command of Admiral Sir
Michael Seymour to capture the Taku forts near Tianjin in May 1858.
In June 1858, at the end of the first part of the Second Opium War, the Treaties of
Tianjin were signed, which opened Tianjin to foreign trade. The treaties were ratified by the Emperor of China in 1860, and Tianjin
was formally opened.
In June 1870, Wanghailou Church in Tianjin,
built by French missionaries one year earlier, was implicated in the kidnapping, death
by neglect, and improper burial of Chinese children. On June 21, the magistrate of Tianjin County initiated a showdown at the church that developed into
violent clashes between the church's Christian supporters and non-Christian Tianjin residents. Mobs eventually burned down
Wanghailou Church and
the nearby French consulate, in what has since been known as the Tianjin Church
Incident (天津教案). After the incident, France and six other Western nations complained to the
Qing government, which was forced to pay compensation for the incident.
Between 1895 and 1900 Britain and France were joined by
Japan, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy and Belgium in establishing self-contained concessions each with their own prisons, schools,
barracks and hospitals.
In June 1900, the Boxers were able to seize control of much of Tianjin. On June
26 European forces heading towards Beijing were stopped by Boxers at nearby
Langfang, and were forced to turn back to
Tianjin. The foreign concessions also came under siege for several weeks. Herbert Hoover, the future President of the United States, was working in Tianjin at the time as chief engineer in the
Chinese government's imperial bureau of mines, and together with fellow engineers built a protective wall against the attackers
and risked his own life rescuing Chinese children.
Tianjin was established as a municipality of China in
1927.
On July 30, 1937, Tianjin fell to Japan, as part of the Second Sino-Japanese War. During the occupation Tianjin was ruled by the North
China Executive Committee, a puppet state based in Beijing. Japanese occupation lasted until August
15, 1945, the surrender of Japan marking the
end of World War II.
After 1945, Tianjin became base to American forces. In December 1946, the rape of a Beiping (now Beijing) female university student by an American soldier, together with a series of rapes that had occurred in Tianjin before, sparked protests in Tianjin that culminated in a demonstration on January 1, 1947 involving thousands of students.
American troops pulled out of Tianjin in June 1947.
Communist forces took Tianjin on January 15, 1949, following a 29-hour long
battle. After communist takeover, Tianjin remained a municipality of China, except between 1958 and 1967, when it was reduced to be a part of and the capital of Hebei province. The Tangshan earthquake of
1976 killed 23938 people in Tianjin and did heavy damage.
After China began to open up in the late 1970s, Tianjin has seen rapidly development,
though it is now lagging behind other important cities like Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou.
Geography
Tianjin is at the northern end of the Grand Canal of
China, which connects with the Huang He and Chang Jiang rivers. Tianjin borders Hebei province to the north, south,
and west; the municipality of Beijing in a small portion to the northwest; and the
Bohai Gulf of the Yellow Sea
to the east.
Tianjin is generally flat, and swampy near the coast, but hilly in the far north, where the Yanshan Mountains pass through
the tip of northern Tianjin. The highest point in Tianjin is Jiushanding Peak on the northern border with Hebei, at
an altitude of 1078 m.
The Hai He River forms within Tianjin at the confluence of the Ziya River, Daqing River, Yongding River, North Grand Canal, and South Grand Canal; and enters
the Pacific Ocean at Tianjin as well, in Dagu District. Major reservoirs include
the Beidagang
Reservoir in the extreme south (in Dagang District) and the Yuqiao Reservoir in the extreme north (in Jixian County).
Tianjin's climate is characterized by hot, humid summers, due to the monsoon, and dry, cold winters, due to the Siberian anticyclone. Spring is windy but dry, and most of the precipation takes place in July and August.
Administrative divisions
Tianjin is divided into 18 county-level divisions, including 15 districts and 3 counties.
Six of the districts govern the urban area of Tianjin:
Three of the districts govern towns and harbours along the seacoast:
- Tanggu District
(塘沽区 Tánggū Qū)
- Hangu District
(汉沽区 Hàngū Qū)
- Dagang District
(大港区 Dàgǎng Qū)
Six of the districts govern satellite towns and rural areas close to the urban center:
- Jinnan District
(津南区 Jīnnán Qū)
- Dongli
District (东丽区 Dōnglì Qū)
- Xiqing District
(西青区 Xīqīng Qū)
- Beichen District
(北辰区 Běichén Qū)
- Baodi District
(宝坻区 Bǎodǐ Qū) — Baodi County before 2001
- Wuqing District
(武清区 Wǔqīng Qū) — Wuqing County before 2000
The three counties govern towns and rural areas further away from the urban center:
- Ji County
(蓟县 Jì Xiàn)
- Jinghai County
(静海县 Jìnghǎi Xiàn)
- Ninghe County
(宁河县 Nínghé Xiàn)
In addition, the Tianjin Economic and Technological Development Area (TEDA) is not a
formal level of administration, but nevertheless enjoys rights similar to a regular district.
These districts and counties are further subdivided into 241 township-level divisions, including 120 towns, 18 townships, 2 ethnic townships and 101 subdistricts.
Economy
Farmland takes up about 40% of Tianjin Municipality's total area. Wheat, rice, and maize are the most important crops. Fishing is important along the coast.
Tianjin Municipality also sits on top of about 1 billion tonnes of petroleum, with Dagang District containing important oilfields.
Salt production is also important, with Changlu Yanqu being one of China's most
important salt production areas. Geothermal energy is another
resource of Tianjin. Deposits of manganese and boron under Tianjin were the first to be found in China.
Tianjin is also an important industrial base. Major industries include petrochemical industries, textiles, car manufacturing, mechanical industries, and metalworking.
The GDP per capita was ¥20443 (ca. US$2470) in 2003, ranked no. 56 among 659 Chinese
cities. After China's opening up to the world, Tianjin has lagged behind other important cities like Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou in economic development.
Demographics
The majority of Tianjin residents are Han Chinese. Minorities include Hui, Koreans, Manchus, and
Mongols.
Culture
People from urban Tianjin speak Tianjin dialect, which comes under
the Mandarin subdivision of spoken Chinese. Despite its proximity to Beijing, Tianjin dialect sounds
quite different from Beijing dialect, which provides the basis for
Putonghua, official spoken language of the People's Republic of China.
Tianjin cuisine places a
focus on seafood. Tianjin's Goubuli is a traditional brand of baozi (Chinese buns with filling) that is famous throughout China.
Yangliuqing, a town about 15
km west of Tianjin's urban area, is famous for its popular Chinese New Year-themed, traditional-style, colourful wash paintings.
Ma Sanli (1914 - 2003), an ethnic Hui and longtime resident of Tianjin, is paramountly
respected in China for his xiangsheng, a hugely popular form of Chinese
entertainment similar to stand-up comedy. Ma Sanli delivered his
xiangsheng in Tianjin dialect.
Stereotypes
People from Tianjin are stereotyped to be very eloquent, very
humorous, open, and unfettered, but also loud, verbose, lazy, and prone to arguing / fighting. There is a term for the stereotype
of the always-eloquent and sometimes-humorous Tianjin native: wèizuǐzi (卫嘴子), which translates roughly as "the Tianjin mouth". This
stereotype is perhaps partially the result of Ma Sanli's reputation (see "Culture"
section above).
Transportation
Rail
There are several railway stations in the city, Tianjin Railway Station being the principal one. It was built in 1888, initially, the station was located at Wangdaozhuang (旺道庄). The station was later
moved to Laolongtou
(老龙头) on the banks of the Hai He River in 1892, so the station was renamed Laolongtou Railway Station. The station was rebuilt from scatch in 1988. The rebuilding work began on April 15, 1987 and was finished on October 1, 1988.
Tianjin West Railway Station and Tianjin
North Railway Station are also major railway stations in Tianjin. There is also Tanggu Railway Station
is located in the important port area of Tanggu District, and TEDA Railway Station located in TEDA, to the north of
Tanggu.
There are several other railway stations in the city.
Railways
The following railways of China go through Tianjin:
- Jinghu Railway, from
Beijing to Shanghai
- Jingha Railway, from
Beijing to Harbin
- Jingqin Railway, from
Beijing to Qinhuangdao, Hebei
- Jinpu Railway, from Tianjin
to Pukou District, Nanjing
- Jinji Railway, from Tianjin
urban area to Jixian
County, Tianjin
- Jinba Railway, from Tianjin
to Bazhou, Hebei
Road
Some spots in Tianjin, including roads and bridges, have names from Dr. Sun
Yat-Sen's Three Principles of the
People (for example, Minquan Gate on Zhonghuan Road). Names harkening back to the era of the Republic of China on the mainland also appear (e.g. Beiyang Road). Many
roads in Tianjin are named after a Chinese province or city. Also, Tianjin is unlike Beijing, in that very few roads run parallel to the major four compass
directions.
Tianjin has three ring roads. Unlike Beijing, the Inner and Middle Ring Roads are not closed, traffic-controlled roadways and
some often have traffic light intersections. The Outer Ring Road is the closest thing to a highway-level ring road, although
traffic is often chaotic and sometimes more than chaotic.
Tianjin's roads often finish in dao (avenue), xian (line, more used for highways and through routes) and
lu (road). Jie (street) is rare. As Tianjin's roads are rarely in a cardinal compass direction, jing roads
and wei roads often appear, which attempt to run more directly north-south and east-west, respectively.
Expressways
The following seven expressways of China run in or
through Tianjin:
- Jingjintang Expressway, from Beijing, through Tianjin's urban area, to Tanggu District / TEDA
- Jinghu Expressway, from Jinjing Gonglu Bridge to Shanghai (together with Jingjintang Expressway, this is the expressway from Beijing to Shanghai)
- Jingshen Expressway, through Baodi District on its way from
Beijing to Shenyang
- Tangjin Expressway, from Tanggu District, Tianjin, to
Tangshan, Hebei -- known in Tianjin as
the Jintang Expressway
- Baojin Expressway, from Beichen District, Tianjin, to
Baoding, Hebei -- known in Tianjin as the
Jinbao Expressway
- Jinbin Expressway, from Zhangguizhuang Bridge to Hujiayuan
Bridge, both within Tianjin
- Jinji Expressway, from central Tianjin to Jixian County
China National Highways
The following six China National Highways pass
through Tianjin:
- China National Highway 102, through
Ji County, Tianjin on its way from
Beijing to Harbin
- China National Highway 103, from Beijing, through Tianjin's urban area, to Tanggu District
- China National Highway 104, from Beijing, through Tianjin Municipality, to Fuzhou
- China National Highway 105, from Beijing, through Tianjin Municipality, to Macau
- China
National Highway 112, circular highway around Beijing, passes through Tianjin Municipality
- China
National Highway 205, from Shanhaiguan, Hebei, through Tianjin Municipality, to Guangzhou
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Roads and Expressways of Tianjin |
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Related: Transportation of Tianjin |
Air
Tianjin Binhai International
Airport (ZBTJ) is located to the east of the urban area, in Dongli District,
Tianjin.
Public Transit
Bus
The Tianjin bus network was created in 1904, and was the first city to have its own
city-wide bus system in China.
There are hundreds of bus lines in the city.
Metro
Building work on the Tianjin
Metro started on July 4, 1970. It was the
second metro to be built in China and commenced service in 1984. The total length of track
is 7.4 kilometers.
The metro service was suspended on October 9, 2001 and is currently being rebuilt. This new metro will be called "Tianjin Metro Line 1". It is scheduled to be
finished in the later half of 2005. The track will be extended to 26.188 kilometers and
there will be a total of 22 stations. Previously, there were 8 stations.
Several new metro lines are planned. Construction work on Line 2 and Line 3 will begin in late 2004.
There is also a light railway line in the city. The line runs between Tianjin downtown and TEDA, in the seaside region. The eastern part of the line began service on March 28, 2004. The western part of the line is scheduled to be completed in
2006.
Tourism
Sights in Tianjin include:
Sports teams
Sports teams based in Tianjin include:
Chinese Football Association Super
League
Chinese Basketball Association
There are no teams based in Tianjin.
Colleges and Universities
Under the national Ministry of Education:
Under the national Civil Aviation Authority:
Under the municipal government:
Note: Institutions without full-time bachelor programs are not listed.
High Schools
External links
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