Hailar District
This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2009) |
Hailar District
海拉尔区 | |
---|---|
Country | People's Republic of China |
Region | Inner Mongolia |
Prefecture-level city | Hulunbuir |
Area | |
• Total | 1,440 km2 (560 sq mi) |
Elevation | 614 m (2,014 ft) |
Population (1999) | |
• Total | 256,000 |
• Density | 180/km2 (460/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+8 (China Standard) |
Postal code | 021000 |
Area code | 0470 |
Website | http://www.hailar.gov.cn/ |
Hailar District (simplified Chinese: 海拉尔区; traditional Chinese: 海拉爾區; pinyin: Hǎilā'ěr Qū) is an urban district that serves as the seat of the prefecture-level city Hulunbuir in northeastern Inner Mongolia, People's Republic of China. Hulunbuir, due to its massive size, is a city in administrative terms only, being mainly grassland and rural. Hailar, therefore, is a de facto city. Hailar can also refer to the urban area around the Hailar district, with Hulunbuir being the wider geographical region that contains the urban area.
Long known as the "Pearl of the Grasslands", Hailar acts as a gateway between China and Russia. The district has an estimated population of 256,000, and serves as a regional centre for commerce, trade, and transportation.
History
Hailar was founded as a Chinese fort in 1734, and during the administration of the Republic of China it was the capital city of Xing'an Province. It is now a centre of agricultural production on the Chinese Eastern RR. Once known as Hulun, Hailar today is a relatively small but thriving modern industrial city of around 300,000, its population having soared from an estimated 20,000 in the mid-20th century.
It was occupied and fortified by the Japanese during their expansion into Manchuria, Inner Mongolia, and China proper during the 1930s until the end of the Second World War in August 1945, and perhaps the oldest building in Hailar that stands today was left by the occupying forces. When the Soviet Union declared war on Japan, Hailar was the scene of a bitter struggle in the wider campaign to push Japanese forces out of Manchuria and northeast China and Korea (see Soviet invasion of Manchuria (1945)).
Transportation
Hailar Dongshan Airport serves the city, with flights to Beijing and Shenyang amongst others. Hailar's railway station is the penultimate major station before Manzhouli, the port city that stands close to the Russian border. It is on the famous Manchuria branch of the Trans-Siberian express route and China National Highway 301. Trains to Harbin take about 12 hours, and 27 to Beijing. Hailar has a frequent series of buses that cover the town, albeit that they do not run after 6.30.
Climate
Hailar has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dwb) bordering on a subarctic climate (Köppen Dwc). Winters are long, very dry and severe, due to the semi−permanent Siberian High, while summers are short, though very warm, and rather wet, due to the East Asian monsoon. Monthly 24-hour averages range from −25.1 °C (−13.2 °F) in January to 20.0 °C (68 °F) in July, while the annual mean is −0.96 °C (30.3 °F). With at least 55% of possible sunshine in all months and an annual total greater than 2,700 hours, sunny weather dominates year-round. Approximately 70% of the annual rainfall occurs during summer.
Climate data for Hailar District (normals 1971−2000, extremes 1961−2000) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | −1.0 (30.2) |
4.3 (39.7) |
16.2 (61.2) |
29.4 (84.9) |
32.7 (90.9) |
36.5 (97.7) |
35.7 (96.3) |
36.6 (97.9) |
31.2 (88.2) |
26.9 (80.4) |
11.8 (53.2) |
−0.9 (30.4) |
36.6 (97.9) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −19.2 (−2.6) |
−14.1 (6.6) |
−3.9 (25.0) |
8.9 (48.0) |
18.1 (64.6) |
23.7 (74.7) |
25.8 (78.4) |
23.6 (74.5) |
17.2 (63.0) |
7.5 (45.5) |
−5.8 (21.6) |
−16.1 (3.0) |
5.5 (41.9) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −30.0 (−22.0) |
−26.9 (−16.4) |
−16.9 (1.6) |
−3.9 (25.0) |
3.5 (38.3) |
10.5 (50.9) |
14.3 (57.7) |
12.0 (53.6) |
4.4 (39.9) |
−4.9 (23.2) |
−16.8 (1.8) |
−26.2 (−15.2) |
−6.7 (19.9) |
Record low °C (°F) | −43.6 (−46.5) |
−43.3 (−45.9) |
−37.4 (−35.3) |
−21.6 (−6.9) |
−11.2 (11.8) |
−0.4 (31.3) |
4.1 (39.4) |
2.1 (35.8) |
−8.2 (17.2) |
−24.6 (−12.3) |
−38.0 (−36.4) |
−43 (−45) |
−43.6 (−46.5) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 3.4 (0.13) |
2.9 (0.11) |
4.6 (0.18) |
12.4 (0.49) |
22.5 (0.89) |
63.2 (2.49) |
101.8 (4.01) |
91.8 (3.61) |
38.3 (1.51) |
15.8 (0.62) |
5.1 (0.20) |
5.5 (0.22) |
367.3 (14.46) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) | 7.6 | 5.9 | 5.6 | 5.9 | 7.0 | 12.9 | 14.5 | 12.4 | 9.5 | 6.2 | 7.1 | 9.6 | 104.2 |
Average relative humidity (%) | 79 | 79 | 69 | 53 | 46 | 61 | 71 | 73 | 68 | 63 | 74 | 80 | 68.0 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 167.0 | 195.6 | 244.1 | 246.2 | 298.0 | 285.9 | 279.8 | 268.7 | 218.6 | 210.1 | 165.3 | 139.4 | 2,718.7 |
Source: China Meteorological Administration,[1] |
Culture
Hailar is discernibly an ethnic minority town with a strong Han contingent. As such, signs are usually bi-lingual and Mongolian influence pervades in songs played on shop CD players, domes on buildings and the chitter chatter of some locals. As is the case with any Northern Chinese city, cultural facilities differ from those in the West. There is no theatre, opera house or bar running salsa classes. Nor indeed a public library[citation needed]. On the other hand, it does have many KTVs dotted about the town, including one luxurious one in the Yes-Se Nightclub, a new black building (and one of the highest in Hailar). Hailar also has a sophisticated sex worker industry, ranging from impoverished massage parlours whose days are probably numbered to services provided in KTVs, bathhouses and hotels.
Sister city
- Chita, Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia.[2]
See also
References
- ^ "中国地面国际交换站气候标准值月值数据集(1971−2000年)" (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 2011−01−16.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ Sister cities of Inner Mongolia