Liaoyuan
Liaoyuan (simplified Chinese: 辽源; traditional Chinese: 遼源; pinyin: Liáoyuán) is a prefecture-level city in Jilin province, People's Republic of China. It is bounded on the west and south by Tieling of Liaoning province, west and north by Siping, and east by Tonghua and Jilin City. Liaoyuan lies some 100 km (62 mi) south of Changchun, the provincial capital. Covering an area of 5,125 km2 (1,979 sq mi), Liaoyuan is the smallest among the prefecture-level divisions of Jilin. Liaoyuan has a total population of 1,176,645 in the prefecture, while the urban area has a population of 462,233.
History
Liaoyuan was an imperial hunting ground during the Qing Dynasty, going by the name Shengjing Paddock (盛京圍場). Ordinary citizens were prohibited from entering this region until late 1800s, when waves of immigrants from Hebei, Shandong and Henan began to populate Manchuria (see Chuang Guandong). In 1902, Qing government established Xi'an County (西安縣) in this region, which became today's Xi'an District.