Liaoning[a] is a coastalprovince inNortheast China that is the smallest, southernmost, and most populous province in the region. With its capital atShenyang, it is located on the northern shore of theYellow Sea, and is the northernmost coastal province of thePeople's Republic of China.
Historically a gateway betweenChina proper andManchuria, the modern Liaoning province was established in 1907 asFengtian orFengtien province and was renamed Liaoning in 1929. It was also known at that time asMukden Province for theManchu name ofShengjing, the former name of Shenyang. Under the Japanese-puppetManchukuo regime, the province reverted to its 1907 name, but the name Liaoning was restored for a brief time in 1945 and then again in 1954.
Liaoning is named after theLiao River that runs through the province.Ning (宁, "peace") is used frequently in Chinese place names includingNingxia,Xining andNanning. The current name was first adopted in 1929, and restored in 1954 upon the merging of theLiaoxi ("West Liao") andLiaodong ("East Liao") provinces.
TheMing Empire took control of Liaoning in 1371,[10] just three years after the expulsion of the Mongols from Beijing. Around 1442, a defense wall was constructed to defend the agricultural heartland of the province from a potential threat from the Jurchen-MongolOriyanghan (who were Ming's tributaries) from the northwest. Between 1467 and 1468, the wall was expanded to protect the region from the northeast as well, against attacks fromJianzhou Jurchens (who were later to become known as theManchu people). Although similar in purpose to theGreat Wall of China, this "Liaodong Wall" was of a lower-cost design. While stones and tiles were used in some parts, most of the wall was in fact simply an earth dike with moats on both sides.[11]
Despite the Liaodong Wall, theJurchens conquered Liaodong, or eastern Liaoning, in the early 17th century, decades before the rest of China fell to them. The Jurchen dynasty, styled "Later Jin" before being renamed toQing, established its capital in 1616–1621 inXingjing (兴京), which was located outside of the Liaodong Wall in the eastern part of the modern Liaoning Province.[12] It was moved to Dongjing (east of today'sLiaoyang, Liaoning),[13][14] and finally in 1625 toShengjing (now,Shenyang, Liaoning). Although the main Qing capital was moved from Shengjing toBeijing after it fell to the Qing in 1644, Shengjing retained its importance as a regional capital throughout most of the Qing era.
The Qing conquest of Liaoning resulted in a significant population loss in the area, as many local Chinese residents were either killed during fighting, or fled south of theGreat Wall, many cities being destroyed by the retreating Ming forces themselves. As late as 1661, the Civil Governor (Fuyin) of Fengtian Province,Zhang Shangxian reported that, outside of Fengtian City (Shenyang),Liaoyang, andHaicheng, all other cities east of theLiao River were either abandoned, or hardly had a few hundred residents left. In the Governor's words, "Tieling andFushun only have a few vagrants". West of the Liao, onlyNingyuan,Jinzhou, andGuangning had any significant populations remaining.[15]
Later on, the Qing government tried to stop the migrants flow to Fengtian or even to make some settlers return to their original places of residence – or, failing that, to legalize them. For example, an edict issued in 1704 commented on the recent Han Chinese settlers in Fengtian having failed to comply with earlier orders requiring them to leave, and asked them either to properly register and join a local defense group (保;bao), or to leave the province for their original places within the next ten years. Ten years later, naturally, another edict appeared, reminding of the necessity to do something with illegal migrants ...[18] In any event, the restrictive policy was not as effective as desired by the officials in Beijing, and Fengtian's population doubled between 1683 and 1734.[18]
During the Qing Dynasty, Manchuria was ruled by three generals, one of whom, the General ofShengjing (Mukden i Jiyanggiyūn) ruled much of modern Liaoning. In 1860, the Manchu government began to reopen the region to migration, which quickly resulted inHan Chinese becoming the dominant ethnic group in the region.
In the 20th century, the province of Fengtian was set up in what is Liaoning today. WhenJapan andRussia fought theRusso-Japanese War in 1904–1905, many key battles took place in Liaoning, including theBattle of Port Arthur and theBattle of Mukden, which was, to that point, the largest land battle ever fought. During theWarlord Era in the early twentieth century, Liaoning was under theFengtian clique, includingZhang Zuolin and his sonZhang Xueliang. The province first received its present name on January 29, 1929; theZhongdong Railway Incident took place later that year. In 1931, Japan invaded and the area came under the rule of theJapanese-controlledpuppet state ofManchukuo. TheChinese Civil War that took place following Japanese defeat in 1945 had its first major battles (theLiaoshen Campaign) in and around Liaoning.
Liaoning was one of the first provinces in China to industrialize, first under Japanese occupation, and then even more in the 1950s and 1960s. The city of Anshan, for example, is home to one of the largest iron and steel complexes in China. In recent years, this early focus onheavy industry has become a liability, as many of the large state-run enterprises have experienced economic difficulties. Recognizing the special difficulties faced by Liaoning and other provinces in Northeast China because of their heritage of heavy industry, the Chinese central government recently launched a "Revitalize the Northeast" Campaign.
The Ming Liaodong Wall (in purple)
The late-Ming Liaodong (eastern Liaoning) separated by the wall from the "Kingdom of theJurchen" (Regno di Niuche). The map was created during the early Qing, and mentions that "presently" the Jurchen (Tartari delKin) have already conquered the rest of China
The full picture of Shengjing area 1734
Liaodong (Leao-Tong) in the early Qing, surrounded by the Willow Palisade. This map, published in 1734, was based on data collected byJesuits in the early 18th century. The capital is in Shenyang (Chinyang); most other cities mentioned in Governor Zhang's report are shown as well
The central part of Liaoning consists of a basin drained by rivers such as theLiao,Daliao, and their tributaries. This region is mostly flat and low-lying.
The eastern part of Liaoning is dominated by the Changbai Mountains and Qianshan Mountains which extend into the sea to form theLiaodong Peninsula. The highest point in Liaoning,Mount Huabozi (1336 m), is found in this region.
Liaoning has acontinentalmonsoon climate, andrainfall averages to about 440 to 1130 mm annually. Summer is rainy while the other seasons are dry.
Liaoning contains some of the foremost paleontological sites in the world. Known collectively as theJehol Group, they include theYixian Formation,Jiufotang Formation andTiaojishan Formation. The nameJehol derives from a now defunct provincial division of that name, which covered an area that is now Western Liaoning, Eastern Hebei, and a small part of Inner Mongolia. Fossils were first found there during the 1920s. During the Japanese occupation of the area through the 1930s and early 1940s, more fossils were found, but records of them were lost after World War II ended. The area remained relatively unexplored until the 1990s. It was in 1996 that Liaoning made the headlines with the announcement of the discovery ofSinosauropteryx prima, the first example of a filamented "feathered"dinosaur.Sinosauropteryx prima was a small feathered meat-eating dinosaur, from theLower CretaceousYixian Formation.[19] This discovery pushed the evolution of feathers back in time and showed that dinosaurs, not only birds, had feathers. It also showed a direct evolutionary link between theropod dinosaurs and modern birds.
Since then, dozens of ground-breaking finds have been discovered throughout the Jehol group. These including the earliest flower, earliesteutherianmammal, known asEomaia,[20] the earliest knownmetatherian, an intactembryo of apterosaur,[21]Repenomamus robustus—a 15 kg heavy mammal that ate dinosaurs,Sinornithosaurus millenii, as well as many birds andfeathered dinosaurs.[22] Discoveries such asDilong paradoxus, another feathered theropod, date to the early Cretaceous Period. This is some 60 million years beforeTyrannosaurus, and thus these discoveries push the evolution of feathers earlier than previously thought.[21]
The Liaoning fossils are noted for their high degree of preservation—often including soft body tissues, which is rare.[23] Aside from the famous birds and feathered dinosaurs, the Liaoning fossils include insects, fish, aquatic arthropods, and plants.[24] The Liaoning deposit is widely considered to be one of the world's premier fossil sites.[23] The high level of preservation is believed to be due to how the animals died. The area was volcanically active, and large plumes of volcanic dust repeatedly covered the area, instantly killing and burying any living thing in the area. The extremely fine grain of the sediment and the chemical composition of the ash prevented the usual bacterial decay.[24] In some specimens, extremely fine details can be seen such as the proboscis of the beeFlorinemestruis used to drink nectar from the earliest flowers.[21] In other specimens, colours are still visible, including stripes on fish and spots on turtles.[24]
Prior to 1949 and theChinese Communist Revolution, Liaoning was governed by theFengtian clique of warlords and interchangeably officials of theChiang Kai-shek bureaucracy. During theQing Dynasty Liaoning was known as the province ofFengtian (奉天), and was governed by a zǒngdū or Viceroy (The Viceroy of the Three Eastern Provinces,东三省总督), along with the provinces ofJilin andHeilongjiang. The province itself also had a governor (巡抚;xúnfǔ).
^New district established after 2010 census:Liaozhong (Liaozhong County). The new district not included in the urban area count of the pre-expanded city.
^New district established after 2010 census:Pulandian (Pulandian CLC). The new district not included in the urban area count of the pre-expanded city.
^New district established after 2010 census:Dawa (Dawa County). The new district not included in the urban area count of the pre-expanded city.
Most populous cities in Liaoning
Source:China Urban Construction Statistical Yearbook 2018 Urban Population and Urban Temporary Population[32]
Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning ProvinceDalian, second largest city in Liaoning Province
Liaoning has the largest and wealthiest provincial economy of Northeast China. Itsnominal GDP for 2017 was 2.39 trillion yuan (ca. US$354 billion), making it the 14th largest in China (out of 31 provinces). Its per capita GDP was 54,745 yuan (US$8,108). Among the three provinces ofNortheast China, Liaoning is the largest in terms of GDP and GDP per capita.
In 2008, Liaoning was the region with the highest GDP growth among globalG8x8, the eight provinces or states below national level with the highest GDP of the top eight GDP nations. According to preliminary statistics, Liaoning maintained its GDP growth rate of 13.1 percent in 2009 and held its position as the province with the highest economic growth. Economic growth has since slowed down, with the economy expanding 3% in 2015 and contracting 1.3% in the first quarter of 2016.[citation needed]
Leading industries include petrochemicals, metallurgy, electronics telecommunications, and machinery.[33] On a national level, Liaoning is a major producer of pig iron, steel and metal-cutting machine tools, all of whose production rank among the top three in the nation. Liaoning is one of the most important raw materials production bases in China. Industries such as mining, quarrying, smelting and pressing of ferrous metals, petroleum and natural gas extraction, are all of great significance.
Meanwhile, Liaoning is an important production base of equipment and machinery manufacturing, with Shenyang and Dalian being the industrial centers. Enterprises such as Shenyang Jinbei Co. Ltd., Daxian Group Co. Ltd., and Shenyang Machine Tool Co. Ltd., are leaders in their sectors. The province's light industry mainly focuses on textiles and clothing industries which include cotton and wool spinning, chemical fiber production, knitting, silk production, and the manufacturing of both garments and textile machinery.
In 2008, its tertiary industry accounted for 34.5 percent of total GDP. In the future, Liaoning will continue its efforts to restructure large and medium-sized state enterprises. Meanwhile, the province will concentrate in developing its four pillar industries – petrochemicals, metallurgy, machinery and electronics.
Liaoning is the place of origin of theLi Keqiang index, an alternative measure of economic performance where GDP figures are unreliable.
Liaoning's fruits include apples from Dalian andYingkou, golden peaches from Dalian,pears from Beizhen ofJinzhou, white pears fromHuludao and Suizhong, andapricots andplums from Gushan ofDandong.
Liaoning has the mostiron,magnesite,diamond, andboron deposits among all province-level subdivisions of China. Liaoning is also an important source ofpetroleum andnatural gas.Salt is produced along the coast.
Of the development zones formally recognized by the PRC State Council, 56 are located in Liaoning, including 14 on the national level and 42 on the provincial level. These zones are further grouped into Economic Development Zones,[34] High-Tech Zones,[35] Free Trade and Export Processing Zones,[36] and Special Development Zones.[37][38]
Shenyang Cross-Strait Science Industrial Zone
In October 1995, the Shenyang Cross-Strait Science Industrial Zone was approved to be established by State Council. The Shenyang Cross-Strait Science Industrial Zone is the only zone established as part of the Shenyang Hunnan Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone. It has a total area of 5 km2 (1.9 sq mi). It welcomes international investment. It focuses on the development of instruments manufacturing, telecommunication, bio-pharmaceuticals, electronics, and new materials.[39]
Liaoning Shenyang Export Processing Zone
The Liaoning Shenyang Zhangshi Export Processing Zone was approved to be established by the state government in June 2005. It is located in the national-level Shenyang Economic & Technological Development Zone, with a planned area of 62 km2 (24 sq mi) and current area of 14.1 km2 (5.4 sq mi). It encourages and focuses on the development of auto and auto parts, electronics, precision machinery, new energy, new materials, and the fine chemical industry.[40]
Shenyang Economic and Technological Development Zone
Shenyang Hunnan Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone
The Shenyang Hunnan Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone used to be called the Shenyang Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone. Established in 1988, it is a national high-tech development zone approved by the State Council. The zone is located in western Shenyang City with an area of 32 square kilometres (12 sq mi). Its encouraged industries include electronic information, new materials, biological engineering, energy saving, and environmental protection.[41]
The Dalian Economic & Technological Development Zone (now known as the "Dalian Development Area") was established in September 1984, as one of the first of the China National Economic and Technological Development Zones. The zone had a GDP of 70.31 billion yuan in 2007 and the total volume of its import and export trade was 14.92 billion dollars, which accounts for a quarter of such trade for all of Liaoning Province. Most of the enterprises in Dalian ETDZ are factories owned by foreign enterprises, especially from Japan, South Korea and the United States, such as Canon, Pfizer, Toshiba, and Intel.[42]
Dalian Export Processing Zone
The Dalian Export Processing Zone was approved to be set up by the State Council in April 2000, with a planned area of 2.95 km2 (1.14 sq mi). It is divided into two parts, A Zone and B Zone. A Zone has a construction area of 1.5 km2 (0.58 sq mi), and started operation in May 2001. All the basic infrastructure is available, which includes road, water, gas, and power supply, telecommunication, and so on. A Zone promotes industries such as home appliances, lighting, machinery, construction materials, and medical instruments.[43]
Dalian Free Trade Zone
The Dalian Free Trade Zone was approved to be set up by the government in May, 1992. Policies include duty-free trade. It has attracted some leading industries, such as electronics, machinery, and plastics.[44]
Dalian Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone
The Dalian Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone was approved to be a national-level development zone in 1991. It has a total area of 35.6 square kilometres (13.7 sq mi). It focuses on and encourages the following industries: electronic information, bio-pharmaceuticals, and new materials.[45]
Dandong Border Economic Corporation Zone
The Dandong Border Economic Corporation Zone was approved to be a national-level development zone in 1992. It is located in the bank of Yalu River, and oppositeSinuiju, a North Korean city. It promotes industries such as electronic information, machinery manufacturing, and bio-pharmaceuticals.[46]
The Central Liaoning city cluster is amegalopolis centered onShenyang (urban population 4 million). Within its 150 km (93 mi) radius, it includesAnshan (urban population 1.3 million),Fushun (1.3 million),Yingkou (1.1 million),Benxi (0.95 million),Liaoyang (0.7 million), andTieling (0.4 million).
In April 2010, theState Council of the People's Republic of China approved a national development strategy for the Shenyang Metro Area. The core of this strategy is innovation in industrial development, integration of the eight cities, integration of urban and rural areas as well as the promotion of more market-oriented development.[47]
TheChinese Communist Party Committee Secretary of Liaoning,Li Keqiang, initiated the development of a strategy entitled "5 Points and One Line", which he first proposed on a visit toYingkou in late 2005. Liaoning Province formally launched the development strategy for the entire Liaoning coastline in early 2006, so as to re-invigorate the provincial economy from its traditional status as a "rustbelt" of Chinese state-owned enterprises.
The "Five Points" indicate five key development areas in the province and cover seven zones: the Changxing Island Harbor Industrial Zone inDalian;Yingkou Coastal Industrial Base; LiaoxiJinzhou Bay Coastal Economic Zone;Dandong, and the Zhuanghe Huayuankou Industrial Zone.
The five zones together cover a planned area of nearly 500 square kilometres (190 sq mi).
The "One Line" mentioned in the strategy represents a new series of motorways along the coast. The 1,433-kilometer coastline will become the connection between the five above zones, through which 6 provincial cities, 21 counties and 113 towns will be interlinked. Coastal motorways directly connect the entire string of five zones along the Bohai sea.
Liaoning Province was known as Fengtian Province until 1929. Shenyang: part of Liaoning Province until 1947; dissolved in 1954 and incorporated into Liaoning Province. Dalian (Lüda): part of Liaoning Province until 1947; dissolved in 1954 and incorporated into Liaoning Province. Andong Province (Liaodong Province): split from Liaoning Province in 1947; dissolved in 1954 and incorporated into Liaoning Province. Liaobei Province: split from Liaoning Province in 1947; dissolved in 1949 and parts were incorporated into Liaoning Province. Rehe Province: incorporated into a province in 1928; dissolved in 1955 and parts were incorporated into Liaoning Province. Liaoxi Province: split from Liaoning Province in 1949; dissolved in 1954 and incorporated into Liaoning Province.
The population of Liaoning is mostlyHan Chinese withminorities ofManchus,Mongols,Hui,Koreans andXibe. Liaoning has both the highest absolute number and highest percentage of Manchus in all of China.
According to a 2012 survey,[59] only around 10% of the population of Liaoning belongs to organised religions, the largest groups beingBuddhists with 5.5%, followed byProtestants with 2.2%,Muslims with 0.6% andCatholics with 0.2%.
TheMukden Palace was the palace of theQing Dynasty emperors before they conquered the rest of China and moved their capital toBeijing. Though not as large nor as well known as its counterpart (theForbidden City) in Beijing, the Mukden palace is significant for its representation of palace architecture at the time, and has recently been included on theUNESCOWorld Heritage Site as an extension of the Imperial Palace site in Beijing.
In addition, three imperial tombs dating from the Qing Dynasty are located in Liaoning. These tomb sites have been grouped with otherMing and Qing Dynasties tombs (such as theMing Dynasty Tombs in Beijing, and theMing Xiaoling Mausoleum inNanjing) as a combined UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Liaoyang, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in northeast China, has a number of historical sites, including the White Pagoda (Baita), that dates to theYuan Dynasty.
The port city ofDalian, located on the tip of theLiaodong Peninsula, is a tourist destination in its own right, with beaches, resorts, zoos, seafood, shopping, Russian- and Japanese-era heritage architecture, andstreetcars, a rare sight in China.
Dandong, on the border withNorth Korea, is a medium-sized city that offers a cross-river view of the North Korean city ofSinŭiju.
Bijia Mountain is an island which joins to the mainland at low tide by a land bridge.
Liaoning is also one of China's leading provinces in research and education. As of 2023, two major cities in Liaoning ranked in the world's top 200 cities (Dalian 37th and Shenyang 124th) by scientific research output, as tracked byNature Index.[6]
^先秦辽阳地区部族问题初探 [A Preliminary Study on the Tribal Issues in the Liaoyang Area Prior to the Qin Period].lydaw.gov.cn. Archived fromthe original on 2011-07-07. Retrieved2011-01-16.
^Edmonds, Richard Louis (1985).Northern Frontiers of Qing China and Tokugawa Japan: A Comparative Study of Frontier Policy. University of Chicago, Department of Geography; Research Paper No. 213. pp. 38–40.ISBN0-89065-118-3.
^Chen, P-J., Dong, Z-M., Zhen, S-N. 1998. An exceptionally well-preserved theropod dinosaur from the Yixian Formation of China. Nature. Vol. 391:14.–152.
^Vaughan, Terry A; Ryan, James M.; Cheshire, Leonard; Czaplewski, Nicholas J. (2011).Mammalogy. Jones & Bartlett Publishers. pp. 114–116.ISBN978-1449644376.
^Census Office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China; Population and Employment Statistics Division of the National Bureau of Statistics of the People's Republic of China (2012).中国2010人口普查分乡、镇、街道资料 (1 ed.). Beijing:China Statistics Print.ISBN978-7-5037-6660-2.
^National Bureau of Population and Social Science and Technology Statistics Division of China (国家统计局人口和社会科技统计司); Department of Economic Development of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission of China (国家民族事务委员会经济发展司) (2003).《2000年人口普查中国民族人口资料》 (in Chinese (China)). Beijing:Publishing House of Minority Nationalities.ISBN978-7105054251., 2 volumes
.jpg)
.svg)
.svg)
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg)
