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Tianjin
Tianjin (Chinese: 天津; pinyin: Tiānjīn; Postal map spelling: Tientsin) is one of the four municipalities of China that are directly under the central government and have provincial-level status. Its urban area is the third largest in China, after Shanghai and Beijing. Tianjin's urban area is located along the Hai He River. Its ports, some distance away, are located on Bohai Gulf in the Pacific Ocean. Tianjin Municipality borders Hebei province to the north, south, and west; the municipality of Beijing is to the northwest, and Bohai Gulf to the east.
History
The land where Tianjin lies today was created in historical times by sedimentation of various rivers entering the sea at Bohai Bay(渤海湾), including the Yellow River, which entered the sea in this area at one point. The opening of the Grand Canal of China during the Sui Dynasty prompted the development of Tianjin into a trading center. Until 1404 Tianjin was called "Zhigu" (直沽), or "Straight Port". In that year, the Emperor Yongle（永乐） renamed the city "Tianjin", literally "Heaven Ford", to mean that the emperor (son of heaven) forded the river at that point. This is because he had indeed forded the river at Tianjin while on a campaign to wrest the throne from his nephew. A fort was established at Tianjin, known as "Tianjin Wei" (simplified Chinese: 天津卫; traditional Chinese: 天津衛; pinyin: Tiānjīnwèi), meaning "Fort Tianjin". Tianjin was promoted to a prefecture in 1725. Tianjin County was established under the prefecture in 1731. In 1856 Chinese soldiers boarded The Arrow, a Chinese-owned ship registered in Hong Kong flying the British flag and suspected of piracy, smuggling and of being engaged in the opium trade. They captured 12 men and imprisoned them. In response the British and French sent gunboats under the command of Admiral Sir Michael Seymour to capture the Taku forts （大沽炮台）near Tianjin in May 1858. At the end of the first part of the Second Opium War in June of the same year, the Treaties of Tianjin were signed, which opened Tianjin to foreign trade. The treaties were ratified by the Emperor of China in 1860, and Tianjin was formally opened to the outside world. Between 1895 and 1900 Britain and France were joined by the empires of Japan, Germany and Russia, and even by countries without other Chinese concessions such as Austria-Hungary, Italy and Belgium, in establishing self-contained concessions in Tianjin, each with its own prisons, schools, barracks and hospitals. For a map, see [1] 
 The presence of foreign influence in Tianjin was not always peaceful; one of the most serious violent incidents to take place was the Tianjin Church Incident (天津.案). In June 1870, (T: 望海樓.堂 / S: 望海楼.堂) in Tianjin, built by French missionaries one year earlier, was implicated in the kidnapping, death by neglect, and improper burial of Chinese children. It was said in the Chinese population that nuns were making preserves of children's eyes (it seems that the confusion came from jars of pickled small onions seen in the kitchen). On June 21, the magistrate of Tianjin County initiated a showdown at the church that developed into violent clashes between the church's Christian supporters and non-Christian Tianjin residents. The furious protestors eventually burned down and the nearby French consulate. After the incident, France and six other Western nations complained to the Qing government, which was forced to pay compensation for the incident. In June 1900, the Boxers（义和团） were able to seize control of much of Tianjin. On June 26 belligerent European forces heading towards Beijing （北京）were stopped by Boxers at nearby Langfang（廊坊）, and were defeated and forced to turn back to Tianjin. The foreign concessions also came under siege for several weeks. In July of 1900, the Eight Nation United Army attacked and occupied Tianjin. They soon established the Tianjin Provisional Government, comprised of representatives from each of the occupying forces (Russian, British, Japanese, German, French, American, Austro-Hungarian, and Italian). Tianjin was governed by this council until August 15, 1902 when the city was returned to Qing control. The well-known Qing general, Yuan Shikai（袁世凯）, headed efforts to remake Tianjin into a modern city. Tianjin was established as a municipality of China（直辖市） in 1927. On July 30, 1937, Tianjin fell to Japan, as part of the Second Sino-Japanese War, but not entirely occupied, respecting non-foe foreign concessions. During the occupation Tianjin was ruled by the North China Executive Committee, a puppet state based in Beijing. Japanese occupation lasted until August 15, 1945, the surrender of Japan marking the end of World War II. After 1945, Tianjin became base to American forces. In December 1946, the rape of a Beiping （北平）(now Beijing（北京）) female university student by an American soldier, together with a series of rapes that had previously occurred in Tianjin, sparked protests in Tianjin that culminated in a demonstration on January 1, 1947 involving thousands of students. American troops pulled out of Tianjin in June 1947. Communist forces took Tianjin on January 15, 1949, following a 29-hour long battle. After communist takeover, Tianjin remained a municipality of China（直辖市）, except between 1958 and 1967, when it was reduced to part and capital of Hebei province （河北省省会）. The Tangshan earthquake（唐山大地震） of 1976 killed 23,938 people in Tianjin and did heavy damage. After China began to open up in the late 1970s, Tianjin has seen rapid development, though it is now lagging behind other important cities like Shanghai（上海）, Beijing（北京）, and Guangzhou（广州）. The city's current mayor is Dai Xianglong （戴相龙）. 
GeographyTianjin is at the northern end of the Grand Canal of China（大运河）, which connects with the Huang He （黄河）and Yangtze （.江）rivers. Tianjin Municipality is generally flat, and swampy near the coast, but hilly in the far north, where the Yanshan Mountains （.山）pass through the tip of northern Tianjin. The highest point in Tianjin is on the northern border with Hebei, at an altitude of 1078 m. The Hai He River（海河） forms within Tianjin Municipality at the confluence of the （子牙河）, （大清河）, （永定河）, , and ; and enters the Pacific Ocean at Tianjin Municipality as well, in . Major reservoirs include the in the extreme south (in ) and the in the extreme north (in Ji County). The urban area of Tianjin is found in the south-central part of the Municipality. In addition to the main urban area of Tianjin proper, the coast along the Bohai is lined with a series of port towns, including Tanggu （塘沽）and Hangu（汉沽）. Tianjin's climate is a monsoon-influenced humid continental climate (Koppen climate classification Dwa) characterized by hot, humid summers, due to the monsoon, and dry, cold winters, due to the Siberian anticyclone. Average highs in January and July are 36 degrees F (2C) and 87 degrees F (31C) respectively). Spring is windy but dry, and most of the precipitation takes place in July and August. Tianjin also experiences occasional spring sandstorms which blow in from the Gobi Desert and may last for several days. Subdivisions
Tianjin is divided into 18 county-level divisions, including 15 districts and 3 counties. Six of the districts govern the urban area of Tianjin:
Three of the districts govern towns and harbours along the seacoast:
Four of the districts govern satellite towns and rural areas close to the urban center:
Two of the districts as well as the three counties govern towns and rural areas further away from the urban center:
In addition, the Tianjin Economic and Technological Development Area (TEDA) is not a formal level of administration, but nevertheless enjoys rights similar to a regular district. These districts and counties are further subdivided, as of December 31, 2004, into 240 township-level divisions, including 120 towns, 18 townships, 2 ethnic townships and 100 subdistricts. PoliticsList of the Secretaries of the CPC Tianjin Committee.
List of Mayors:
EconomyThe nominal GDP for Tianjin was 433.8 billion yuan (US$54.4 billion) in 2006, a year-on-year increase of 14.4%. [3] In 2006, per capita GDP was 40,961 yuan. The manufacturing sector was the largest (53.2%) and fastest-growing (19.8%) sector of Tianjin's economy. Urban disposable income per capita was 14,283 yuan, a real increase of 13% from the previous year. Rural per capita was 7,942 yuan, a real increase of 13% from the previous year. Farmland takes up about 40% of Tianjin Municipality's total area. Wheat, rice, and maize are the most important crops. Fishing is important along the coast. Tianjin is also an important industrial base. Major industries include petrochemical industries, textiles, car manufacturing, mechanical industries, and metalworking. Tianjin Municipality also has deposits of about 1 billion tonnes of petroleum, with containing important oilfields. Salt production is also important, with being one of China's most important salt production areas. Geothermal energy is another resource of Tianjin. Deposits of manganese and boron under Tianjin were the first to be found in China. EADS Airbus will be opening an assembly plant for its A320 series airliners, to be operational in . AVIC I and AVIC II will be EADS' local partners for the site, to which subassemblies will be sent from plants around the world.[1] DemographicsAt the end of 2004, the population of Tianjin Municipality was 10.24 million, of which 9.33 million were holders of Tianjin hukou (permanent residence). Among Tianjin permanent residents, 5.56 million were urban, and 3.76 million were rural. [4] The majority of Tianjin residents are Han Chinese. Minorities include Hui, Koreans, Manchus, and Mongols. 
Excludes members of the People's Liberation Army in active service. MediaTianjin People's Broadcasting Station is the major radio station in Tianjin. Broadcasting in nine channels, it serves most of North China, part of East and Northeast China, reaching an audience of over 100 million.[5] (Chinese) Tianjin Television, the local television station, broadcasts in nine channels. It also boasts a paid digital channel, featuring home improvement programs.[6] (Chinese) Both the radio and television stations are now branches of the Tianjin Film, Radio and Television Group, established in October of 2002.[7] (Chinese) Major local newspapers include the and (literally, tonight newspaper), which are the flagship papers of and , respectively. Culture
People from urban Tianjin speak Tianjin dialect, which comes under the Mandarin subdivision of spoken Chinese. Despite its proximity to Beijing, Tianjin dialect sounds quite different from Beijing dialect, which provides the basis for Putonghua, official spoken language of the People's Republic of China. Tianjin cuisine places a heavy focus on seafood, due to Tianjin's proximity to the sea. Prominent menus include the (八大碗), a combination of eight mainly meat dishes. It can be further classified into several varieties, including the rough (粗), smooth (S: 细 / T: 細), and high (高). The (四大扒) refers actually to a very large number of stews, including chicken, duck, seafood, beef, and mutton. Tianjin also has several famous snack items. Goubuli (狗不理包子) is a traditional brand of baozi(包子) (steamed buns with filling) that is famous throughout China. (S: 桂发祥麻花 / T: 桂發祥麻花) is a traditional brand of (麻花)(twisted dough sticks). (耳朵眼炸.) is a traditional brand of fried rice cakes. Tianjin is a respected home base of Beijing opera, one of the most prestigious forms of Chinese opera. Ma Sanli (马三立)(1914 - 2003), an ethnic Hui and longtime resident of Tianjin, is paramountly respected in China for his xiangsheng(相声), a hugely popular form of Chinese entertainment similar to stand-up comedy. Ma Sanli delivered some of his xiangsheng in the Tianjin dialect(天津话). (Green Willows), a town about 15 km west of Tianjin's urban area and the seat of Tianjin's Xiqing District, is famous for its popular Chinese New Year-themed, traditional-style, colourful wash paintings (杨柳青年画). Tianjin is also famous for (S: 泥人张 / T: 泥人張) which are a type of colourful figurine depicting a variety of vivid characters, and Tianjin's (S: 风筝魏 / T: 風箏魏), which can be folded to a fraction of their full sizes, are noted for portability. StereotypesPeople from Tianjin are stereotyped to be eloquent, humorous, open, and unfettered. There is a term for the stereotype of the always-eloquent and sometimes-humorous Tianjin native: (S: 卫嘴子 / T: 衛嘴子), which translates roughly as "the Tianjin mouth". This stereotype is perhaps partially the result of Ma Sanli's reputation (see "Culture" section above). Transportation
MetroThe Tianjin Metro is currently under heavy expansion from 3 lines to 9 lines. 3 lines are currently operating both in the city and the Binhai New Area. RailThere are several railway stations in the city, being the principal one. It was built in 1888, initially, the station was located at Wangdaozhuang (S: 旺道庄 / T: 旺道莊). The station was later moved to (S: 老龙头 / T: 老龍頭) on the banks of the Hai He River in 1892, so the station was renamed . The station was rebuilt from scatch in 1988. The rebuilding work began on April 15, 1987 and was finished on October 1, 1988. The Tianjin Railway Station is also locally called the 'East Station', due to its geographical position. and are also major railway stations in Tianjin. There is also is located in the important port area of Tanggu District, and located in TEDA, to the north of Tanggu. There are several other railway stations in the city. Construction on a Beijing-Tianjin high-speed rail began on July 4, 2005, and is scheduled to be completed in 2007. The following rail lines go through Tianjin:
Roads and expresswaysSome spots in Tianjin, including roads and bridges, have names from Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's Three Principles of the People (for example, Minquan Gate on Zhonghuan Road). Names harkening back to the era of the Republic of China on the mainland also appear (e.g. Beiyang Road). Many roads in Tianjin are named after a Chinese province or city. Also, Tianjin is unlike Beijing, in that very few roads run parallel to the major four compass directions. Tianjin has three ring roads. Unlike Beijing, the Inner and Middle Ring Roads are not closed, traffic-controlled roadways and some often have traffic light intersections. The Outer Ring Road is the closest thing to a highway-level ring road, although traffic is often chaotic and sometimes more than chaotic. Tianjin's roads often finish in dao (道 avenue), xian (S: 线 / T: 線) line, more used for highways and through routes) and lu (路 road). Jie (街 street) is rare. As Tianjin's roads are rarely in a cardinal compass direction, jing (S: 经 / T: 經) roads and wei (S: 纬 / T: 緯) roads often appear, which attempt to run more directly north-south and east-west, respectively. The following seven expressways of China run in or through Tianjin:
The following six China National Highways pass through Tianjin:
The expressways are sometimes closed due to dense fog particularly in the Autumn and Spring.
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