Baoding 保定
—  Prefecture-level city  —
保定市
Back street in old Baoding
Location of Baoding within Hebei
Country	People's Republic of China
Province	Hebei
Area[1]
• Total	22,190 km2 (8,570 sq mi)
Elevation	25 m (83 ft)
Highest elevation	2,286 m (7,500 ft)
Lowest elevation	7 m (23 ft)
License Plate Prefix	冀F
Website	http://www.bd.gov.cn/

Baoding (Chinese: 保定; pinyin: Bǎodìng) is a city of Hebei province, People's Republic of China, bordering the national capital Beijing, which lies 140 kilometres (87 mi) to the northeast. Its population is 11,194,379 inhabitants at the 2010 census whom 1,665,360 live in the built up area made of 3 urban district plus Qingyuan county now part of the agglomeration.

History[link]

Baoding is a city with a history dating back to the Western Han Dynasty. It was destroyed by the Mongols in the 13th century, but after the Mongols established the Yuan Dynasty, it was rebuilt. It acquired the name "Baoding" during the Yuan dynasty — the name is roughly interpreted as "protecting the capital", referring to the city's proximity to Beijing. Baoding served for many years as the capital of Zhili, and was a significant centre of culture in the Ming Dynasty and early Qing Dynasty. After Zhili province was abolished in 1928 Baoding became the capital of the newly formed Hebei province. During World War II, the city was the site of a headquarters for Japanese occupation forces. In 1958, the role of provincial capital was assumed by Tianjin, which had lost its status as a provincial level municipality, but when Tianjin was elevated again in 1966, Baoding regained its position. In 1970, however, the rapidly growing city of Shijiazhuang became capital instead.

Geography[link]

Baoding is located in the west-central portion of Hebei province and lies on the North China Plain, with the Taihang Mountains to the west. Bordering prefectures in the province are Zhangjiakou to the north, Langfang and Cangzhou to the east, and Shijiazhuang and Hengshui to the south. Baoding also borders Beijing Municipality to the northeast and Shanxi province to the west.

Elevations in Baoding's administrative area decrease from northwest to southeast. The western parts are dominated by mountains and hills that are generally more than 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) tall; this area includes parts of Laishui, Yi, Mancheng, Shunping, Tang and Fuping Counties as well as the entirety of Laiyuan County, occupying 30.6% of the prefecture's area.^[1] The highest peak is Mount Waitou (歪头山), with an elevation of 2,286 metres (7,500 ft).^[1] Moving southeast from this area, one encounters low-lying mountains and hills, taking up 18.9% of the prefecture's area.^[1] Further to the east lies generally flat terrain of 30 to 100 metres (98 to 330 ft) elevation. Here the primary rivers are the Juma (拒马河), Yishui (易水), Cao (漕河), Longquan (龙泉河), Tang (唐河), and Sha Rivers (沙河). Baiyangdian Lake, the largest natural lake in northern China, can be found nearby.

Climate[link]

Baoding has a continental, monsoon-influenced semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk),^[2] characterised by hot, humid summers due to the East Asian monsoon, and generally cold, windy, very dry winters that reflect the influence of the vast Siberian anticyclone. Spring can bear witness to sandstorms blowing in from the Mongolian steppe, accompanied by rapidly warming, but generally dry, conditions. Autumn is similar to spring in temperature and lack of rainfall. The annual rainfall, more than half of which falls in July and August alone, is highly variable and not reliable. In the city itself, this amount has averaged to a meagre 513 millimetres (20.2 in) per annum.

Administrative divisions[link]

Baoding prefecture-level city consists of 3 municipal districts, 4 county-level cities, 18 counties:

Map
#	Name	Hanzi	Hanyu Pinyin	Population (2004 est.)	Area (km²)	Density (/km²)
1	Xinshi District	新市区	Xīnshì Qū	440,000	75	5,867
2	Beishi District	北市区	Běishì Qū	290,000	19	15,263
3	Nanshi District	南市区	Nánshì Qū	270,000	43	6,279
4	Dingzhou City	定州市	Dìngzhōu Shì	1,140,000	1,274	895
5	Zhuozhou City	涿州市	Zhuōzhōu Shì	590,000	742	795
6	Anguo City	安国市	Ānguó Shì	400,000	486	823
7	Gaobeidian City	高碑店市	Gāobēidiàn Shì	570,000	672	848
8	Mancheng County	满城县	Mǎnchéng Xiàn	390,000	734	531
9	Qingyuan	清苑县	Qīngyuàn Xiàn	620,000	953	651
10	Yi County	易县	Yì Xiàn	550,000	2,538	217
11	Xushui County	徐水县	Xúshuǐ Xiàn	560,000	736	761
12	Laiyuan County	涞源县	Láiyuán Xiàn	260,000	2,430	107
13	Dingxing County	定兴县	Dìngxīng Xiàn	560,000	714	784
14	Shunping County	顺平县	Shùnpíng Xiàn	300,000	714	420
15	Tang County	唐县	Táng Xiàn	540,000	1,417	381
16	Wangdu County	望都县	Wàngdū Xiàn	260,000	357	728
17	Laishui County	涞水县	Láishuǐ Xiàn	340,000	1,666	204
18	Gaoyang County	高阳县	Gāoyáng Xiàn	310,000	497	624
19	Anxin County	安新县	Ānxīn Xiàn	410,000	724	566
20	Xiong County	雄县	Xióng Xiàn	340,000	513	663
21	Rongcheng County	容城县	Róngchéng Xiàn	250,000	311	804
22	Quyang County	曲阳县	Qūyáng Xiàn	550,000	1,064	517
23	Fuping County	阜平县	Fùpíng Xiàn	210,000	2,497	84
24	Boye County	博野县	Bóyě Xiàn	250,000	331	755
25	Li County	蠡县	Lǐ Xiàn	490,000	652	752

Demographics[link]

The Baoding urban area has a population of around 1,006,000 (2009). The population of the Baoding administrative area is 10,890,000. The considerable majority are Han Chinese. The language of Baoding is Mandarin Chinese — specifically, the Baoding dialect of Ji-Lu Mandarin. Despite Baoding's proximity to Beijing, the Chinese spoken in Baoding is not particularly close to Beijing dialect — rather, it is more closely related to Tianjin dialect.

Economy[link]

Baoding is located in the centre of the Bohai Rim economic area which includes Beijing, Tianjin and Shijiazhuang. One of the largest employers in Baoding is China Lucky Film, the largest photosensitive materials and magnetic recording media manufacturer in China.^[3] And, Yingli group, 2010 World Cup sponsor, is located its headquarter in Baoding, who is the Global Top 10 solar panel manufacturer. More renown companies include ZhongHang HuiTeng Windpower Equipment Co., Ltd (Wind Turbine) and Baoding Tianwei Group Co., Ltd(Transformer).

• Baoding High-tech Industrial Development Zone [1]

Renewable energy[link]

Baoding city has one of China's biggest plants which manufacture blades used in wind turbine generators, catering mainly to the domestic market. Tianwei Wind Power Technology is one of the three main plants in Baoding that produces wind turbine generators. It wheeled out its first 20 turbines in 2008 and it will produce 150 units in 2009 and another 500 in 2010.

Transport[link]

Baoding has good connections to other cities, being located on one of the main routes in and out of Beijing. The Jingshi Expressway connects the two cities, and Baoding is also the western terminus of the Baojin Expressway linking Baoding with Tianjin, which is one out of two nearest ports (Huang Hua port is the other one). The Jingguang Railway provides frequent services to Beijing West Railway Station.

Military[link]

Baoding is headquarters of the 38th Mechanized Group Army of the People's Liberation Army, one of the three group armies that comprise the Beijing Military Region responsible for defending the PRC capital.

Culture[link]

A courtyard in the mansion of the governor of Zhili

Another street of Baoding

Perhaps the best known item to supposedly originate in Baoding are Baoding Balls, which can be used to relax your keyboard hand and strengthen your wrist. The most famous local specialty food is the Donkey Burger (驴肉火烧).

Anxin County is home to the Quantou Village Music Association (圈头村音乐会), a well known traditional music group performing on guan (oboes), sheng (mouth organs), and percussion. The village of Quantou is located on an island in Lake Baiyangdian.

The city's streets follow a rough grid pattern, although this is less obvious in the older part of the city. The traditional main street of old Baoding is Yuhua Road, running from the city's centre to its eastern edge — most of Baoding's historic buildings are located in this area, along with some of its larger shopping centres. Other major streets include Dongfeng Road and Chaoyang Avenue. There is a ring road around the city.

Baoding is home to Hebei University, North China Electric Power University with other 3 universities and 12 colleges.

Historic Sites[link]

Baoding's ancient lotus gardens

Baoding contains a number of notable historic sites. In the city proper, there can be found a historic provincial governor's mansion and an ancient lotus garden. In the hills to the northwest of the city, near the suburb of Mancheng, there are the Mancheng Han Tombs, where prince Liu Sheng and his wife Dou Wan were buried.

The greater Baoding administrative area has 16 designated state-level cultural relics:

1. Yan State Capital Relics (475BC-221BC, Yixian County)
2. Great Wall at Zijinguan Pass (1368–1644, Yixian County and Laiyuan County)
3. Lao Morality Classic Tablet (618-907, Yixian County)
4. Western Qing Tombs (1730–1915, Yixian County)
5. Geyuan Temple (916-1125, Laiyuan County)
6. Ciyun Pavillion (1306, Dingxing County)
7. Yicihui Stone Pillar (550-577, Dingxing County)
8. Kaiyuan Temple (960-1127, Dingzhou County)
9. Kaishan Temple (618-907, Gaobeidian County)
10. Dingzhou Porcelain Kiln Relic (960-1127, Quyang County)
11. Beiyue Temple (386-543, Quyang County)
12. Jin-cha-ji Border Region Headquarter Ruins (1938, Fuping County)
13. Ranzhuang Underground Tunnel (1937–1945, Qingyuan County)
14. Mancheng Han Tombs (154BC-113BC, Mancheng County)
15. Zhili Provincial Governor Office (1730–1911, Baoding)
16. Historical Site of the Baoding Military Academy (1902–1923)

Notable people[link]

• Fan Ye - gymnast, 2003 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships Balance Beam Gold Medallist
• Guo Jingjing - diver and Olympic gold medalist in 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics.

International relations[link]

Twin towns — sister cities[link]

Baoding is twinned with:

• Charlotte, North Carolina, United States
• Yonago, Tottori, Japan
• Saijo, Ehime, Japan

Gallery[link]

See also[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Baoding

• Baoding Government Website
• Hebei Commerce
• Baoding Taoist Association

Coordinates: 38°51′N 115°29′E / 38.85°N 115.483°E / 38.85; 115.483