Dazhou (达州)

1. Introduction

Dazhou City, abbreviated as Da, is a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of Sichuan Province, People's Republic of China, located in the northeastern part of Sichuan Province. The city borders Chongqing Municipality to the east, Guang'an City to the south, Nanchong City and Bazhong City to the west, and Hanzhong City and Ankang City in Shaanxi Province to the north. Situated at the southern foothills of the Daba Mountains and at the junction of Sichuan, Chongqing, and Shaanxi, the Zhou River flows through the urban area, which lies within the basin of the Qu River, a tributary of the Jialing River. The city covers a total area of 16,588 square kilometers, with a permanent population of 5.37 million. The People's Government of Dazhou is located at No. 2 Yongxing Road, Tongchuan District. Dazhou is known as the "Gas Capital of China and Hometown of the Ba People" due to its abundant natural gas resources and serves as the starting station for the national "West-to-East Gas Pipeline" project.

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2. History

In ancient times, the present-day city area was under the jurisdiction of the State of Ba. During the Western Han Dynasty, it belonged to Dangqu County in Ba Commandery. In the eighth year of the Yongyuan era (96 AD) of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Xuanhan County was established separately, with its seat in present-day Dazhou city proper, and was subordinate to Ba Commandery. By the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Ba Commandery was renamed Baxi Commandery, and in the twenty-third year of the Jian'an era (218 AD), Dangqu Commandery was established separately. In the second year of the Datong era (536 AD) of the Southern Dynasties' Liang Dynasty, it was reorganized into Wanzhou, with its seat in Xuanhan County. In the second year of the reign of Emperor Fei of the Western Wei Dynasty (553 AD), Wanzhou was renamed Tongzhou, and simultaneously, Xuanhan County was renamed Shicheng County. In the eighteenth year of the Kaihuang era (598 AD) of the Sui Dynasty, Shicheng County was renamed Tongchuan County. At the beginning of the Daye era, it became the seat of Tongchuan Commandery. In the first year of the Wude era (618 AD) of the Tang Dynasty, Tongchuan Commandery was renamed Tongzhou. In the first year of the Tianbao era (742 AD), it was again renamed Tongchuan Commandery. In the first year of the Qianyuan era (758 AD), it was once more renamed Tongzhou. Tongchuan County consistently served as the administrative seat.

In the third year of the Qiande era (965 AD) of the Northern Song Dynasty, Tongzhou was renamed Dazhou, because the area "connected Jin and Fang, flanked Han and Mian, extended west to Qu and Lang, and east to Kui and Wu, situated at the crossroads of four routes," hence the name. In the ninth year of the Hongwu era (1376 AD) of the Ming Dynasty, Dazhou was renamed Daxian County. In the ninth year of the Zhengde era (1514 AD), the county was restored to a prefecture, subordinate to Kuizhou Prefecture. In the sixth year of the Yongzheng era (1728 AD) of the Qing Dynasty, it was elevated to Dazhou Directly Administered Prefecture, under Sichuan Province. In the seventh year of the Jiaqing era (1802 AD), it was renamed Suiding Prefecture. In the second year of the Republic of China (1913 AD), the prefecture was abolished, and the county was placed under the Eastern Sichuan Circuit. In the twenty-fourth year of the Republic of China (1935 AD), the 15th Administrative Inspection District of Sichuan Province was established. In 1933, the Communist Party of China established the Sichuan-Shaanxi Soviet Province, with Daxian County as a core area.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, in 1950, Daxian Special District was established under the Northern Sichuan Administrative Office; Dazhu Special District was established under the Eastern Sichuan Administrative Office. In 1952, each special district came directly under Sichuan Province. In 1953, Dazhu Special District was abolished, and Dazhu, Quxian, and Linshui counties were transferred to Daxian Special District. Daxian Special District governed 11 counties: Daxian, Wanyuan, Xuanhan, Kaijiang, Linshui, Dazhu, Quxian, Nanjiang, Bazhong, Pingchang, and Tongjiang. In 1970, Daxian Special District was renamed Daxian Region. In 1976, Daxian City was separated from Daxian County. In 1979, Baisha Workers' and Peasants' District was separated from Wanyuan County. In July 1993, Daxian Region and Daxian City were renamed Dachuan Region and Dachuan City respectively, and Bazhong, Tongjiang, Nanjiang, and Pingchang counties were transferred to the newly established Bazhong Region. In June 1999, Dachuan Region was abolished, and the prefecture-level Dazhou City was established, with the former county-level Dachuan City reorganized into Tongchuan District. In July 2013, Daxian County was abolished and reorganized into Dachuan District.

3. Geography

Spanning from 106°39′45″E to 108°32′11″E and 30°19′40″N to 32°20′15″N, the area extends 177.5 kilometers from east to west and 223.8 kilometers from north to south. The topography comprises mountains, hills, valleys, and plains, with medium-low mountains and hilly landforms predominating, accounting for 98.8% of the total area. The terrain is higher in the northeast and lower in the southwest, characterized by complex landforms and significant elevation differences. The city's average annual temperature ranges from 14.7°C to 17.6°C, with a long-term average annual precipitation of approximately 1100 mm and a frost-free period of 258 to 300 days.

Dazhou Meteorological Data (1981–2010)

| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year | |--------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------| | Record high °C (°F)| 20.1 (68.2) | 24.9 (76.8) | 32.1 (89.8) | 35.3 (95.5) | 37.5 (99.5) | 37.7 (99.9) | 40.6 (105.1) | 40.7 (105.3) | 39.7 (103.5) | 35.0 (95.0) | 27.0 (80.6) | 17.7 (63.9) | 40.7 (105.3) | | Average high °C (°F) | 9.6 (49.3) | 12.2 (54.0) | 16.9 (62.4) | 22.5 (72.5) | 26.8 (80.2) | 29.4 (84.9) | 32.3 (90.1) | 32.7 (90.9) | 27.7 (81.9) | 21.5 (70.7) | 16.5 (61.7) | 10.6 (51.1) | 21.6 (70.8) | | Daily mean °C (°F) | 6.3 (43.3) | 8.5 (47.3) | 12.3 (54.1) | 17.3 (63.1) | 21.7 (71.1) | 24.7 (76.5) | 27.4 (81.3) | 27.3 (81.1) | 23.0 (73.4) | 17.5 (63.5) | 12.7 (54.9) | 7.6 (45.7) | 17.2 (62.9) | | Average low °C (°F) | 4.0 (39.2) | 5.7 (42.3) | 8.9 (48.0) | 13.6 (56.5) | 17.8 (64.0) | 21.2 (70.2) | 23.7 (74.7) | 23.4 (74.1) | 19.9 (67.8) | 15.0 (59.0) | 10.2 (50.4) | 5.5 (41.9) | 14.1 (57.3) | | Record low °C (°F)| -2.2 (28.0) | -1.5 (29.3) | -0.1 (31.8) | 4.6 (40.3) | 9.7 (49.5) | 14.0 (57.2) | 17.0 (62.6) | 17.3 (63.1) | 12.8 (55.0) | 2.8 (37.0) | 1.3 (34.3) | -4.5 (23.9) | -4.5 (23.9) | | Average precipitation mm (inches)| 15.5 (0.61) | 20.2 (0.80) | 44.9 (1.77) | 93.1 (3.67) | 163.6 (6.44) | 165.4 (6.51) | 223.1 (8.78) | 161.9 (6.37) | 144.3 (5.68) | 101.0 (3.98) | 48.9 (1.93) | 23.2 (0.91) | 1,205.1 (47.45) | | Average precipitation days (≥0.1mm)| 8.2 | 8.1 | 11.3 | 13.3 | 14.3 | 14.4 | 13.9 | 11.2 | 14.4 | 13.9 | 10.7 | 8.4 | 142.1 | | Average relative humidity (%)| 82 | 78 | 75 | 76 | 76 | 80 | 79 | 76 | 80 | 85 | 84 | 84 | 80 |

4. Administrative Divisions

Dazhou City administers 2 municipal districts and 4 counties, and also oversees 1 county-level city on behalf of the higher administration.

• Municipal Districts: Tongchuan District, Dachuan District
• County-level City: Wanyuan City
• Counties: Xuanhan County, Kaijiang County, Dazhu County, Qu County

| Division Code | Division Name | Chinese Pinyin | Area (km²) | Resident Population (2020 Census) | Government Seat | Postal Code | Subdistricts | Towns | Townships | Including: Ethnic Townships | |-------------------|-------------------|--------------------|----------------|---------------------------------------|---------------------|-----------------|------------------|-----------|---------------|--------------------------------| | 511700 | Dazhou City | Dázhōu Shì | 16,587.91 | 5,385,422 | Tongchuan District | 635000 | 21 | 149 | 30 | 4 | | 511702 | Tongchuan District | Tōngchuān Qū | 888.03 | 905,678 | Dongcheng Subdistrict | 635000 | 5 | 12 | 1 | | | 511703 | Dachuan District | Dáchuān Qū | 2,246.57 | 945,191 | Sanliping Subdistrict | 635000 | 6 | 22 | 5 | | | 511722 | Xuanhan County | Xuānhan Xiàn | 4,271.93 | 954,090 | Dongxiang Subdistrict | 636100 | 2 | 28 | 7 | 4 | | 511723 | Kaijiang County | Kāijiāng Xiàn | 1,031.45 | 414,310 | Liuyu Subdistrict | 636200 | 1 | 11 | 1 | | | 511724 | Dazhu County | Dàzhú Xiàn | 2,078.79 | 841,960 | Zhuyang Subdistrict | 635100 | 3 | 23 | 5 | | | 511725 | Qu County | Qú Xiàn | 2,018.37 | 917,508 | Qujiang Subdistrict | 635200 | 3 | 28 | 6 | | | 511781 | Wanyuan City | Wànyuán Shì | 4,052.75 | 406,685 | Jidongguan Subdistrict | 636300 | 1 | 25 | 5 | |

5. Economy

To implement the provincial Party committee's "Three Major Development Strategies," the entire city will comprehensively advance three overarching strategic projects: the urban "642," the industrial park "15221," and the enterprise "Hundred-Ten-One" initiatives. Currently, an industrial system has taken shape, primarily comprising energy, chemicals, metallurgy, building materials, machinery and electronics, pharmaceuticals, textiles, food processing, and commercial logistics. The city's "1+7" park development framework has been initially established, with four parks included in the provincial industrial park "1525" project. Among these, the Dazhou Economic Development Zone has become the industrial park with the largest developed area and the most complete facilities in the northeastern Sichuan region. It has already attracted 73 projects and is preparing to apply for national-level development zone status. The Xuanhan Puguang, Dazhu, and Quxian Industrial Parks have been included in the Sichuan Province "Twelfth Five-Year Plan" Economic Development Zone Development Plan. The Dazhou Agricultural Product Processing Zone has been designated as a "National Agricultural Product Processing Base" by the Ministry of Agriculture.

6. Transportation

Dazhou is situated at the intersection and radiating center of four major cities: Chengdu, Chongqing, Xi'an, and Wuhan. Historically, it has served as a logistics distribution hub and commercial center at the junction of Sichuan, Chongqing, Hubei, and Shaanxi provinces. It is recognized as one of the 179 national highway transportation hubs and one of the 12 secondary comprehensive transportation hubs planned by Sichuan Province. The city boasts a multi-modal transportation network comprising "rail, road, water, and air." By expressway, it takes approximately four and a half hours to reach Chengdu, two hours to Chongqing, four hours to Xi'an, and six hours to Wuhan. Dazhou Railway Station is the fourth largest in Southwest China. The G5012 Dazhou-Wanzhou Expressway provides direct access to Wanzhou Port, while Dazhou Jinya Airport offers direct flights to cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Kunming. The Qujiang River waterway connects to Shanghai via Chongqing.

• National Highway 210 passes through the area.

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7. Population

According to the Seventh National Population Census in 2020, the city's permanent resident population was 5,385,422. Compared with the 5,468,097 people from the Sixth National Population Census, the total number decreased by 82,675 over the ten-year period, a decline of 1.51%, with an average annual growth rate of -0.15%. Among them, the male population was 2,769,844, accounting for 51.43% of the total population; the female population was 2,615,578, accounting for 48.57% of the total population. The sex ratio of the total population (with females as 100) was 105.9. The population aged 0–14 was 931,024, accounting for 17.29% of the total population; the population aged 15–59 was 3,249,987, accounting for 60.35% of the total population; the population aged 60 and above was 1,204,411, accounting for 22.36% of the total population, of which the population aged 65 and above was 967,394, accounting for 17.96% of the total population. The population residing in urban areas was 2,682,166, accounting for 49.8% of the total population; the population residing in rural areas was 2,703,256, accounting for 50.2% of the total population.

7.1 Ethnic Groups

Among the city's permanent resident population, the Han ethnic group population was 5,333,590, accounting for 99.04%; the population of various ethnic minorities was 51,832, accounting for 0.96%. Compared with the Sixth National Population Census in 2010, the Han ethnic group population decreased by 92,094, a decline of 1.7%, and its proportion of the total population decreased by 0.19 percentage points; the population of various ethnic minorities increased by 9,419, a growth of 22.21%, and its proportion of the total population increased by 0.19 percentage points.

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Tongchuan District

Xuanhan County

Han Chinese account for 99.04% of the population; ethnic minorities account for 0.96%.

Wintersweet

Camphor tree, Banyan tree