Municipality of Beijing 北京市
Chinese transcription(s)
- Mandarin (Pinyin)	Běijīng (help·info)
- Wade-Giles	Pei3 ching1
- IPA	[pèitɕíŋ]
The Forbidden City from the air
Location of Beijing Municipality within China
Coordinates: 39°54′50″N 116°23′30″E / 39.91389, 116.39167
Country	People's Republic of China
County-level divisions	18
Township divisions	2734
Settled	c.473 BC
Government
- CPC Beijing	Liu Qi Committee Secretary
- Mayor	Guo Jinlong
Area (ranked 29th)
- Municipality	16,801.25 km² (6,487 sq mi)
Elevation	43.5 m (143 ft)
Population (2007)
- Municipality	17,430,000[citation needed]
- Urban	8,495,000[citation needed]
- Ranks in China	Population: 26th; Density: 4th
- Major nationalities	Han: 96% Manchu: 2% Hui: 2% Mongolian: 0.3%
Time zone	China Standard Time (UTC+8)
Postal code	100000 - 102600
Area code(s)	+86/010
License plate prefixes	京A, C, E, F, H, J, K, L, M 京B (taxis) 京G, Y (outside urban area) 京O (police and authorities) 京V (military headquarters, central government)
ISO 3166-2	cn-11
GDP (2007)	CNY 900.62 billion (10th)
- per capita	CNY 56,044 (2nd)
HDI (2005)	0.882 (2nd) — high
City trees Chinese arborvitae (Platycladus orientalis) Pagoda tree (Sophora japonica) City flowers Chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium) Chinese rose (Rosa chinensis)
Website: www.beijing.gov.cn(Chinese) www.ebeijing.gov.cn (English)

Beijing (Chinese: 北京) is a city in northern China and the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the four municipalities of the PRC, which are equivalent to provinces in China's administrative structure. Beijing is one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China,^[1] and has also been known in English as Peking (English pronunciation (info)). The municipality of Beijing borders Hebei Province to the north, west, south, and for a small section in the east, and Tianjin Municipality to the southeast.^[2]

Beijing is China's second largest city, after Shanghai. It is a major transportation hub, with dozens of railways, roads and motorways passing through the city. It is also the focal point of many international flights to China. Beijing is recognised as the political, educational, and cultural center of the People's Republic of China, while Shanghai and Hong Kong predominate in economic fields.^[3] The city will host the 2008 Summer Olympics.^[1]

Names

Beijing or Peking (北京) means "northern capital", in line with the common East Asian tradition whereby capital cities are explicitly named as such. Other cities that are similarly named include Nanjing (南京), China, meaning "southern capital"; Tokyo (東京), Japan, and Đông Kinh (Chinese: 東京, now Hanoi), Vietnam, both meaning "eastern capital"; as well as Kyoto (京都), Japan, and (京城; now Seoul), Korea, both meaning simply "capital".

Peking is the name of the city according to Chinese Postal Map Romanization, and the traditional customary name for Beijing in English (passports issued by the British Embassy are still printed as being issued by the "British Embassy, Peking"). The term Peking originated with French missionaries four hundred years ago and corresponds to an older pronunciation predating a subsequent sound change in Mandarin from [kʲ] to [tɕ]^[4] ([tɕ] is represented in pinyin as j, as in Beijing). It is still used in many languages (as in French (Pékin), Italian (Pechino), Spanish (Pekín), Portuguese (Pequim), Lithuanian (Pekinas), Bulgarian, Russian, Serbian, Dutch, German, Hungarian, Czech, and Polish).

The city has been renamed several times. During the Jin Dynasty, the city was known as Zhongdu (中都) , and then later under the Mongol Yuan Dynasty as Dadu (大都) in Chinese^[5] , and Khanbaliq^[6] in Mongolian (recorded as Cambuluc^[3] by Marco Polo). Twice in the city's history, the name was changed from Beijing (Peking) to Beiping (Peiping) (北平 Pinyin: Beiping; Wade-Giles: Pei-p'ing), literally "Northern Peace". This occurred first under the Hongwu Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and again in 1928 with the Kuomintang (KMT) government of the Republic of China.^[3] On each occasion, the name change removed the element meaning "capital" (jing or king, Chinese: 京) to reflect the fact the national capital had changed to Nanjing. The city's name was also twice changed from Beiping (Peiping) to Beijing (Peking). This occurred first under the Yongle Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, who moved the capital from Nanjing back to Beijing, and again in 1949, when the Communist Party of China restored Beijing as China's capital after the founding of the People's Republic of China.^[3]

The history section below outlines other historical names of Beijing.

History

Main article: History of Beijing

Early history

The earliest remnants of human habitation in the Beijing municipality are found in the caves of Dragon Bone Hill near the village of Zhoukoudian in Fangshan District, where the Peking Man lived. Homo erectus fossils from the caves date to 230,000 to 250,000 years ago. Paleolithic homo sapiens also lived there about 27,000 years ago^[7]. There were cities in the vicinities of Beijing by the 1st millennium BC, and the capital of the State of Yan, one of the powers of the Warring States Period (473-221 BC), Ji (薊/蓟), was established in present-day Beijing.^[8]

After the fall of the Yan, the subsequent Qin, Han, and Jin dynasties set-up local prefectures in the area.^[8] In Tang Dynasty it became the headquarter for Fanyang jiedushi, the virtual military governor of current northern Hebei area. An Lushan launched An Shi Rebellion from here in 755 AD.

Medieval period

In 936, the Later Jin Dynasty (936-947) of northern China ceded a large part of its northern frontier, including modern Beijing, to the Khitan Liao Dynasty. In 938, the Liao Dynasty set up a secondary capital in what is now Beijing, and called it Nanjing (the "Southern Capital"). In 1125, the Jurchen Jin Dynasty conquered Liao, and in 1153 moved its capital to Liao's Nanjing, calling it Zhongdu (中都), "the central capital."^[8] Zhongdu was situated in what is now the area centered around Tianningsi, slightly to the southwest of central Beijing. Some of the oldest existing relics in Beijing including the Niujie Mosque and the Tianning Temple date to the Liao era.

Mongol forces burned Zhongdu to the ground in 1215 and rebuilt it to the north of the Jin capital in 1267.^[9] In preparation for the conquest of all of China, Yuan (Mongol) Dynasty founder Kublai Khan made this his capital as Dadu (大都, Chinese for "great capital")^[9], or Khanbaliq to the Mongols, otherwise spelled as Cambuluc in Marco Polo's accounts. Construction of Dadu finished in 1293.^[8] The decision of the Khan greatly enhanced the status of a city that had been situated on the northern fringe of China proper. Dadu was situated north of modern central Beijing. It centered on what is now the northern stretch of the 2nd Ring Road, and stretched northwards to between the 3rd and 4th Ring Roads. There are remnants of Yuan-era wall still standing and are known as the Tucheng (土城 literally, the 'earth wall').^[10]

Ming and Qing period

After the fall of the Yuan Dynasty in 1368, the city was later rebuilt by the Ming Dynasty and Shuntian (順天) prefecture was established in the area around the city.^[11] In 1403, the new (and third) Ming emperor - the Yongle Emperor - designated Beijing to be the co-capital alongside the (then) current capital of Nanjing. The new capital was renamed Beiping (北平), or "northern peace".^[9] Beijing was the subject of a major construction project for a new Imperial residence (now known as the Forbidden City) that lasted nearly 15 years (1406 to 1420)^[9]. When the palace was finished, the Yongle Emperor ceremoniously took up residence. The city was renamed, yet again, as Beijing (北京), or "northern capital"^[9] and from 1421 onwards, Beijing was the "official" capital of the Ming Empire while Nanjing was demoted to the status of "alternative" capital. This system of dual capitals (with Beijing being vastly more important) continued for the duration of the Ming Dynasty. Thirteen of the sixteen Ming Emperors are buried in elaborate tombs near Beijing.

By 1500, Beijing had essentially taken its current shape, the Ming-era city wall served as the Beijing city wall until modern times, when it was pulled down and the 2nd Ring Road was built in its place.^[12] It is believed that Beijing was the largest city in the world from 1425 to 1650 and from 1710 to 1825. It is now the 17th largest city in the world.^[13] Other notable buildings constructed during the Ming period include theTemple of Heaven (built by 1420),^[14]. The Tiananmen gate - now a state symbol of the People's Republic of China and featured on its emblem - was built in 1651.^[15] Jesuits finished building the first Beijing-area Roman Catholic church in 1652 at the Xuanwu Gate, where Italian Jesuit Matteo Ricci lived; the modern Nantang (南堂, Southern Cathedral) has been built over the original cathedral.^[16]

The end of the Ming came in 1644 when, for 40 days, Li Zicheng's peasant army captured Beijing and overthrew the Ming government. When the powerful Manchu army arrived at the outskirts of the city, Li and his followers abandoned the city and as a result the Manchu forces, under Prince Dorgon, captured Beijing without a fight.

Prince Dorgon established the Qing Dynasty as a direct successor to the Ming and Beijing remained China's capital.^[17] The Qing Emperors made some modifications to the Imperial residence, but in large part, the Ming buildings and the general layout remained unchanged. Beijing at this time was also known as Jingshi, which corresponded to the Manchu Gemun Hecen with the same meaning.^[18]. The classic Chinese novel Dream of the Red Chamber is set in Beijing during the early years of Qin rule (the end of the 1600s).

At the end of the Qin rule, Beijing was the scene of the siege of the foreign legations during the Boxer Rebellion in 1900.^[19] Some important Imperial structures in the city were destroyed during the fighting, including the Hanlin Academy and the Summer Palace, just outside the city.

Republican era

The Xinhai Revolution of 1911, aimed at replacing Qing rule with a republic, originally intended to establish its capital at Nanjing. After high-ranking Qing official Yuan Shikai forced the abdication of the Qing emperor in Beijing and ensured the success of the revolution, the revolutionaries in Nanjing accepted that Yuan should be the president of the new Republic of China, and that the capital should remain at Beijing. Yuan gradually consolidated power and became by 1915 the new emperor but died less than a year into his reign.^[20] China then fell under the control of regional warlords, and the most powerful factions fought frequent wars (the Zhili-Anhui War, the First Zhili-Fengtian War, and the Second Zhili-Fengtian War) to take control of the capital at Beijing. Following the success of the Kuomintang (KMT)'s Northern Expedition which pacified the warlords of the north, Nanjing was officially made the capital of the Republic of China in 1928, and Beijing was renamed Beiping (Peip'ing) (北平) on June 28 that year^[21], in English meaning "northern peace" or "north pacified".^[3] During the Second Sino-Japanese War,^[3] Beiping fell to Japan on 29 July 1937,^[22] and was made the seat of the Provisional Government of the Republic of China, a puppet state that ruled the ethnic Chinese portions of Japanese-occupied northern China;^[23] the government was later merged into the larger Wang Jingwei Government based in Nanjing.^[24]

People's Republic

On January 31, 1949, during the Chinese Civil War, Communist forces entered Beiping without a fight. On October 1 of the same year, the Communist Party of China, under the leadership of Mao Zedong, announced in Tiananmen the creation of the People's Republic of China and renamed the city back to Beijing.^[25] Just a few days earlier, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference had decided that Beijing would be the capital of the new government.

At the time of the founding of the People's Republic, Beijing Municipality consisted of just its urban area and immediate suburbs. The urban area was divided into many small districts inside what is now the 2nd Ring Road. The Beijing city wall was torn down to make way for the construction of the 2nd Ring Road, which was finished by 1981 in accords with the 1982 city plan. That road was the first of a series of new ring roads intended for automobiles rather than for bicycles.^[26]

Following the economic reforms of Deng Xiaoping, the urban area of Beijing has expanded greatly. Formerly within the confines of the 2nd Ring Road and the 3rd Ring Road, the urban area of Beijing is now pushing at the limits of the recently-constructed 5th Ring Road and 6th Ring Road, with many areas that were formerly farmland now developed residential or commercial districts.^[27] According to a 2005 newspaper report, the size of the newly developed Beijing land was one and a half times larger than the land of old Beijing within the 2nd Ring Road.^[28] Wangfujing and Xidan have developed into flourishing shopping districts,^[29] while Zhongguancun has become a major centre of electronics in China.^[30] In recent years, the expansion of Beijing has also brought to the forefront some problems of urbanization, such as heavy traffic, poor air quality, the loss of historic neighbourhoods, and significant influx of migrants from poorer regions of the country, especially rural areas.^[31]

On July 13, 2001, the International Olympic Committee selected Beijing as the host for the 2008 Summer Olympics.^[32]

Geography and climate

Main article: Geography of Beijing

Beijing is situated at the northern tip of the roughly triangular North China Plain, which opens to the south and east of the city. Mountains to the north, northwest and west shield the city and northern China's agricultural heartland from the encroaching desert steppes. The northwestern part of the municipality, especially Yanqing County and Huairou District, are dominated by the Jundu Mountains, while the western part of the municipality is framed by the Xishan Mountains. The Great Wall of China, which stretches across the northern part of Beijing Municipality, made use of this rugged topography to defend against nomadic incursions from the steppes. Mount Dongling in the Xishan ranges and on the border with Hebei is the municipality's highest point, with an altitude of 2303 m. Major rivers flowing through the municipality include the Yongding River and the Chaobai River, part of the Hai River system, and flowing in a southerly direction. Beijing is also the northern terminus of the Grand Canal of China which was built across the North China Plain to Hangzhou. Miyun Reservoir, built on the upper reaches of the Chaobai River, is Beijing's largest reservoir, and crucial to its water supply.

The urban area of Beijing is situated in the south-central part of the municipality and occupies a small but expanding part of the municipality's area. It spreads out in bands of concentric ring roads, of which the fifth and outermost (the Sixth Ring Road; the numbering starts at 2) passes through several satellite towns. Tian'anmen (Gate of Heavenly Peace) and Tian'anmen Square are at the centre of Beijing, and are directly to the south of the Forbidden City, former residence of the emperors of China. To the west of Tian'anmen is Zhongnanhai, residence of the paramount leaders of the People's Republic of China. Running through central Beijing from east to west is Chang'an Avenue, one of Beijing's main thoroughfares.

The city's climate is a monsoon-influenced humid continental climate (Koppen climate classification Dwa), characterised by hot, humid summers due to the East Asian monsoon, and generally cold, windy, dry winters that reflect the influence of the vast Siberian anticyclone.^[33] Average temperatures in January are at around 1 °C (33°F), while average temperatures in July are around 30°C (87 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded was 42°C and the lowest recorded was -27°C. ^[34] In 2005, the total precipitation was 410.77 mm; a majority of it occurred in the summer.^[2]

[hide]Weather averages for Beijing
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	1 (33)	3 (38)	11 (52)	19 (67)	25 (78)	29 (85)	30 (86)	29 (85)	25 (78)	18 (66)	9 (49)	2 (37)	17 (63)
Average low °C (°F)	-8 (17)	-5 (22)	0 (33)	8 (47)	13 (57)	18 (66)	22 (72)	20 (69)	15 (59)	8 (47)	0 (32)	-5 (22)	7 (45)
Precipitation cm (inches)	0 (0.2)	0 (0.2)	0 (0.3)	1 (0.7)	3 (1.3)	7 (3.1)	22 (8.8)	17 (6.7)	5 (2.3)	1 (0.7)	1 (0.4)	0 (0.1)	63.7 (25.1)
Source: Weatherbase[35] Feb 2007

Air quality

Air pollution levels on an average day in Beijing are nearly five times above World Health Organization standards for safety.^[36] China's extremely inefficient use of coal - the country's main source of energy - results in much of the pollution. Despite promises to stage a green 2008 Summer Olympics, Beijing has had persistent air pollution - thus city officials are planning to reduce its motor traffic by half during the Games to improve air quality.^[37] In February 2008, the Chinese government announced that it would close 144 gas stations in Beijing, which amounts to about 10% of such stations in the city, to improve air quality in preparation for the Olympics.^[38]

Since 2001, when Beijing won the right to hold the Olympics, nearly $17 billion has been spent to clean the air, but the city remains under smoggy conditions on many days and athletes frequently complain about the air quality.^[39]

Dust from erosion of deserts in northern and northwestern China result in seasonal dust storms that plague the city; the Beijing Weather Modification Office sometimes artificially induces rainfall to fight such storms and mitigate their effects.^[40] In the first four months of 2006 alone, there were no fewer than eight such storms.^[41] In April 2002, one dust storm alone dumped nearly 50,000 tons of dust onto the city before moving on to Japan and Korea.^[42]

Cityscape

Administrative divisions

Major neighbourhoods in urban Beijing include the following. Neighbourhoods may overlap across multiple districts (see below):

Neighborhoods Qianmen 前门 Tian'anmen 天安门 Di'anmen 地安门 Chongwenmen 崇文门 Xuanwumen 宣武门 Fuchengmen 阜成门 Xizhimen 西直门 Deshengmen 德胜门 Andingmen 安定门 Dongzhimen 东直门 Chaoyangmen 朝阳门 Yongdingmen 永定门 Zuo'anmen 左安门 You'anmen 右安门 Guangqumen 广渠门 Guang'anmen 广安门 Dongbianmen 东便门 Xibianmen 西便门 Hepingmen 和平门 Fuxingmen 复兴门 Jianguomen 建国门 Gongzhufen 公主坟 Fangzhuang 方庄 Guomao 国贸 Hepingli 和平里 Ping'anli 平安里 Beixinqiao 北新桥 Jiaodaokou 交道口 Kuanjie 宽街 Wangjing 望京 Wangfujing 王府井 Dengshikou 灯市口 Wudaokou 五道口 Xidan 西单 Dongdan 东单 Zhongguancun 中关村 Panjiayuan 潘家园 Beijing CBD 北京商务中心区 Yayuncun 亚运村

Towns Towns within Beijing Municipality but outside the urban area include (but are not limited to): Changping 昌平 Huairou 怀柔 Miyun 密云 Liangxiang 良乡 Liulimiao 琉璃庙 Tongzhou 通州 Yizhuang 亦庄 Tiantongyuan 天通苑 Beiyuan 北苑 Xiaotangshan 小汤山 Subdivisions See also: List of administrative divisions of Beijing Beijing Municipality comprises 18 administrative sub-divisions, county-level units governed directly by the municipality (second-level divisions). Of these, 16 are districts and 2 are counties. The urban and suburban areas of the city are divided into eight (8) districts:[2] Dongcheng District Xicheng District Chongwen District Xuanwu District Chaoyang District Haidian District Fengtai District Shijingshan District The following six districts encompass the more distant suburbs and satellite towns, constituting part of the metropolitan area: Mentougou District Fangshan District Tongzhou District Shunyi District Changping District Daxing District The other two districts and the two counties located further out govern semirural and rural areas:[43] Pinggu District Huairou DistrictMiyun CountyYanqing County

Several place names in Beijing end with mén (门), meaning "gate", as they were the locations of gates in the former Beijing city wall. Other place names end in cūn (村), meaning "village", as they were originally villages outside the city wall.

Beijing's 18 districts and counties are further subdivided into 273 lower (third)-level administrative units at the township level: 119 towns, 24 townships, 5 ethnic townships and 125 subdistricts.

Architecture

Three styles of architecture predominate in urban Beijing. First, the traditional architecture of imperial China, perhaps best exemplified by the massive Tian'anmen (Gate of Heavenly Peace), which remains the PRC's trademark edifice, the Forbidden City, and the Temple of Heaven. Next there is what is sometimes referred to as the "Sino-Sov" style, built between the 1950s and the 1970s, which have been considered to be tending to be boxy, bland, and poorly made.^[44] Finally, there are much more modern architectural forms — most noticeably in the area of the Beijing CBD. Pictured below are some images of Beijing architecture — blending the old and the new.

A mixture of both old and new styles of architecture can be seen at the 798 Art Zone, which mixes 1950s-design with a blend of the new. The influence of American urban form and social values in manifest in the creation of Orange County, China, a suburban development about one hour north of the city.^[45]

Politics and government

Main article: Politics of Beijing

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (July 2008)

Municipal government is regulated by the local Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in issuing administrative orders, collecting taxes, and operating the economy. The local party authority is headed by the Beijing CPC Secretary (北京市委书记). The local CCP also directs a standing committee of the Municipal People's Congress in making policy decisions and overseeing local government. Local government figures include a mayor, vice-mayor, and numerous bureaus focusing on law, public security, and other affairs. Additionally, as the capital of China, Beijing houses all the important national governmental and political institutions, including the National People's Congress.^[46]

Economy

In 2007, Beijing's nominal GDP was 900.62 billion RMB (118.4 billion USD), a year-on-year growth of 12.3% from the previous year. Its GDP per capita was 56,044 RMB, an increase of 8.9% from the previous year. In 2007, Beijing's primary, secondary, and tertiary industries were worth 10.13 billion RMB, 247.93 billion RMB, and 642.56 billion RMB. In 2007, Urban disposable income per capita was 21,989 yuan, a real increase of 11.2% from the previous year. Per capita pure income of rural residents was 9,559 RMB, a real increase of 8.2%.^[47] Per capita disposable income of the 20% low-income residents increased 16.7%, 11.4 percentage points higher than the growth rate of the 20% high-income residents. The Engel's coefficient of Beijing's urban residents reached 31.8% in 2005 and that of the rural residents was 32.8%, declining 4.5 percentage points and 3.9 percentage points, respectively, compared with 2000.

Beijing's real estate and automobile sectors have continued to bloom in recent years. In 2005, a total of 28.032 million square metres of housing real estate was sold, for a total of 175.88 billion RMB. The total number of cars registered in Beijing in 2004 was 2,146,000, of which 1,540,000 were privately-owned (a year-on-year increase of 18.7%).^[48]

The Beijing CBD, centred at the Guomao area, has been identified as the city's new central business district, and is home to a variety of corporate regional headquarters, shopping precincts, and high-end housing. The Beijing Financial Street, in the Fuxingmen and Fuchengmen area, is a traditional financial centre. The Wangfujing and Xidan areas are major shopping districts. Zhongguancun, dubbed "China's Silicon Valley", continues to be a major centre in electronics- and computer-related industries, as well as pharmaceuticals-related research. Meanwhile, Yizhuang, located to the southeast of the urban area, is becoming a new centre in pharmaceuticals, IT, and materials engineering.^[49] Urban Beijing is also known for being a centre of pirated goods and anything from the latest designer clothing to the latest DVDs can be found in markets all over the city, often marketed to expatriates and international visitors.^[50] It is also a world leader in the production and distribution of melamine and melamine-related compounds.^[51]

Major industrial areas include Shijingshan, located on the western outskirts of the city.^[52] Agriculture is carried out outside the urban area of Beijing, with wheat and maize (corn) being the main crops.^[33] Vegetables are also grown in the regions closer to the urban area in order to supply the city.

Beijing is increasingly becoming known for its innovative entrepreneurs and high-growth start-ups. This culture is backed by a large community of both Chinese and foreign venture capital firms, such as Sequoia Capital, whose head office in China resides in Chaoyang, Beijing. Though Shanghai is seen as the economic centre of China, this is typically based on the numerous large corporations based there, rather than as a centre for Chinese entrepreneurship.

The development of Beijing continues to proceed at a rapid pace, and the vast expansion of Beijing has created a multitude of problems for the city. Beijing is known for its smog as well as the frequent "power-saving" programmes instituted by the government. Citizens of Beijing as well as tourists frequently complain about the quality of the water supply and the cost of the basic services such as electricity and natural gas. The major industrial areas outside of Beijing were ordered to clean their operations or leave the Beijing area in an effort to alleviate the smog that covers the city. Most factories, unable to update, have moved and relocated to other cities such as Xi'an, China.

Demographics

The population of Beijing Municipality, defined as the total number of people who reside in Beijing for 6 months or more per year, was 17.43 million in 2007. 12.03 million people in Beijing Municipality had Beijing hukou (permanent residence) and the remainder were on temporary residence permits.^[53] In addition, there is a large but unknown number of migrant workers (min gong) who live illegally in Beijing without any official residence permit (or unregistered people).^[54] The population of Beijing's urban core (city proper) is around 7.5 million.

Most Beijing's residents belong to the Han Chinese majority. Other ethnic minorities include the Manchu, Hui, and Mongol.^[33] A Tibetan high school exists for youth of Tibetan ancestry, nearly all of whom have come to Beijing from Tibet expressly for their studies.^[55] A sizable international community exists in Beijing, mostly attracted by the highly growing foreign business and trade sector, and many live in the Beijing urban area's densely populated northern, northeastern and eastern sections. In recent years there has also been an influx of South Koreans who live in Beijing predominantly for business and study purpose. Many of them live in the Wangjing area.^[56][57]

Ethnic groups in Beijing, 2000 census
Nationality	Population	Percentage
Han Chinese	12,983,696	95.69%
Manchu Chinese	250,286	1.84%
Hui Chinese	235,837	1.74%
Mongol Chinese	37,464	0.28%
Korean Chinese	20,369	0.15%
Tujia Chinese	8372	0.062%
Zhuang Chinese	7322	0.054%
Miao Chinese	5291	0.039%
Uyghur Chinese	3129	0.023%
Tibetan Chinese	2920	0.022%

Excludes members of the People's Liberation Army in active service.
^[58]

Culture

People native to urban Beijing speak the Beijing dialect, which belongs to the Mandarin subdivision of spoken Chinese. Beijing dialect is the basis for Standard Mandarin, the language used in the People's Republic of China, the Republic of China on Taiwan, and Singapore. Rural areas of Beijing Municipality have their own dialects akin to those of Hebei province, which surrounds Beijing Municipality.

Beijing Opera, or Peking Opera (Jingju京剧), is well-known throughout the national capital. Commonly lauded as one of the highest achievements of Chinese culture, Beijing Opera is performed through a combination of song, spoken dialogue, and codified action sequences, such as gestures, movement, fighting and acrobatics. Much of Beijing Opera is carried out in an archaic stage dialect quite different from modern Standard Mandarin and from the Beijing dialect.^[59]

Siheyuans line Hutongs (胡同), or alleys, which connect the interior of Beijing's old city. They are usually straight and run east to west so that doorways can face north and south for Feng Shui reasons. They vary in width — some are very narrow, enough for only a few pedestrians to pass through at a time.

Once ubiquitous in Beijing, siheyuans and hutongs are now rapidly disappearing, as entire city blocks of hutongs are leveled and replaced with high-rise buildings.^[60] Residents of the hutongs are entitled to apartments in the new buildings of at least the same size as their former residences. Many complain, however, that the traditional sense of community and street life of the hutongs cannot be replaced.^[61] Residents, however, have limited control over their own property, as the government usually owns it.^[62] Some particularly historic or picturesque hutongs are being preserved and restored by the government, especially for the 2008 Olympics.^[63]

Mandarin cuisine is the local style of cooking in Beijing. Peking Roast Duck is perhaps the most well-known dish. The Manhan Quanxi ("Manchu-Han Chinese full banquet") is a traditional banquet originally intended for the ethnic-Manchu emperors of the Qing Dynasty; it remains very prestigious and expensive.

Teahouses are also common in Beijing. Chinese tea comes in many varieties and some rather expensive types of Chinese tea are said to cure an ailing body extraordinarily well.

The cloisonné (or Jingtailan) metalworking technique and tradition is a specialty of Beijing's cultural art, and is one of the most revered traditional crafts in China. Beijing lacquerware is well known for the patterns and images carved into its surface.

The Fuling Jiabing is a traditional Beijing snack food, a pancake (bing) resembling a flat disk with filling, made from fu ling (Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf, or "tuckahoe"), an ingredient common in traditional Chinese medicine.

Younger residents of Beijing have become more attracted to the nightlife, which has flourished in recent times breaking prior cultural traditions that practically restricted it to the upper class.^[64]

Transportation

 

With the growth of the city following economic reforms, Beijing has evolved as an important transportation hub. Encircling the city are five ring roads, nine expressways and city express routes, eleven China National Highways, several railway routes, and an international airport.

Rail

Beijing has two major railway stations: Beijing Railway Station (or the central station) and Beijing West Railway Station. Three other railway stations in Metropolitan Beijing handle regular passenger traffic: Beijing East, Beijing North, and Fengtai. There are also several other small stations serving suburban areas.

As of August 1, 2006, Beijing Railway Station has 167 trains stopping daily, while Beijing West Railway Station has 176 trains.

Beijing is a railway hub. There are railway lines from Beijing to Guangzhou, Shanghai, Harbin, Baotou, Taiyuan, Chengde and Qinhuangdao. Direct trains to Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR also depart from Beijing.

International trains, including lines to cities in Russia and Pyongyang, North Korea (DPRK), all run through Beijing.

Construction on a Beijing-Tianjin high-speed rail began on July 4, 2005, and is scheduled to be completed in August 2008.

Roads and expressways

See: Ring Roads of Beijing, Expressways of Beijing and China National Highways of Beijing for more related information.

Beijing is connected via road links from all parts of China. Nine expressways of China (with six wholly new expressways under projection or construction) connect with Beijing, as do eleven China National Highways. Within Beijing itself, an elaborate network of five ring roads has developed, but they appear more rectangular than ring-shaped. Roads in Beijing often are in one of the four compass directions (unlike, for example, Tianjin).

One of the biggest concerns with traffic in Beijing deals with its apparently ubiquitous traffic jams. Traffic in the city centre is often gridlocked, especially around rush hour. Even outside of rush hour, several roads still remain clogged up with traffic. Urban area ring roads and major thoroughfares especially near Chang'an Avenue, are normally cited as high congestion areas.

Recently expressways have been extended (in some cases reconstructed as express routes) into the territories within the 3rd Ring Road. As they are either expressways or express routes, drivers do not need to pass through intersections with traffic lights. This may finally solve the difficulties in "hopping between one ring and another".

Exacerbating Beijing's traffic problems is its underdeveloped mass transit system. Frequently cited is the city's subway system which has 5 lines for its 17 million citizens. In comparison, New York City has 26 lines for its 8 million citizens. Beijing's urban design layout further complicates the situation of the transportation system.^[65] Compounding the problem is patchy enforcement of traffic regulations, and road rage. Beijing authorities claim that traffic jams may be a thing of a past come the 2008 Olympics. The authorities have introduced several bus lanes where, during rush hour, all vehicles except for public buses must keep clear.

Chang'an Avenue runs east-west through the centre of Beijing, past Tian'anmen. It is a major through route and is often called the "First Street in China" by authorities.^[66]

Air

Beijing's main airport is the Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) near Shunyi, which is about 20 km northeast of Beijing city centre. Most domestic and nearly all international flights arrive and depart at Capital Airport. Capital Airport is the main hub for Air China. It is linked to central Beijing by the Airport Expressway and is a roughly 40-minute drive from the city centre during good traffic hours. In preparation for the 2008 Olympics, another expressway is being built to the Airport, as well as a lightrail system.

Other airports in the city include Beijing Liangxiang Airport, Beijing Nanyuan Airport, Beijing Xijiao Airport, Beijing Shahe Airport and Beijing Badaling Airport. However, these are primarily for military use and less well-known to the public.

Public transit

The evolving Beijing Subway has five lines (two above ground, three underground), with several more being built in preparation for the 2008 Summer Olympics. There were 626 bus and trolleybus routes in Beijing as of 2005.^[67]

Registered Taxis can be found throughout Beijing although a large number of unregistered taxis also exist. As of June 30, 2008 all fares on legal taxis start at 10 Renminbi for the first 3 km and 2.00 Renminbi per additional kilometer not counting idling fees. Most taxis are Hyundai Elantras, Hyundai Sonatas, Peugeot Citroen and Volkswagen Jettas. After 15 km, the base fare is increased by 50% (but only applied to the portion of the distance over 15 km, so that the passenger is not retroactively charged extra for the first 15 km). Between 11pm and 6am, the fee is increased by 20%, starting at 11 RMB and increasing at a rate of 2.4 RMB per km. Rides over 15 km and between 11pm and 6am apply both charges, for a total increase of 80% (120%*150%=180%).

Education

Main article: List of colleges and universities in Beijing

Beijing is home to a great number of colleges and universities, including several well-regarded universities of international stature as Tsinghua University and Peking University .^[3] Owing to Beijing's status as the political and cultural capital of China, a larger proportion of tertiary-level institutions are concentrated here than any other city in China, reaching at least 59 in number. Many international students from Japan, Korea, North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, and elsewhere come to Beijing to study every year. The institutions listed here are administered by China's Ministry of Education.

Primary school

There are many famous primary school in urban area of Beijing.

• Beijing Jingshan School (北京景山学校)
• Beijing First Experiment Primary School (北京第一实验小学)
• Beijing Second Experiment Primary School (北京第二实验小学)
• Beijing Fuxue Primary School (北京府学小学)
• Zhong Guan Cun No.1 Primary School (中关村第一小学)
• Zhong Guan Cun No.2 Primary School (中关村第二小学)
• Beijing Primary School (北京小学)
• The Elementary School Affiliated to Renmin University of China (中国人民大学附属小学)
• The Experimental Primary School Attached to Beijing Normal University (北京师范大学附属实验小学)

Middle school

The oldest middle school of Beijing is Beijing No.1 Middle School.It was built in 1644(Qing dynasty),nearly 360 years history. The most famous middle schools in Beijing are:

• Beijing No.4 Middle School (北京市第四中学)
• The High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China (中国人民大学附属中学)
• Beijing No.2 Middle School (北京市第二中学)
• The Experimental High School Attached to Beijing Normal University (北京师范大学附属实验中学)
• The High School Attached to Beijing Normal University (北京师范大学附属中学)
• The Second High School Attached to Beijing Normal University (北京师范大学第二附属中学)
• The Affiliated High School of Peking University (北京大学附属中学)
• High School attached to Tsinghua University (清华大学附属中学)
• Beijing No.8 Middle School (北京市第八中学)
• Beijing No.5 Middle School (北京市第五中学)
• Beijing No.80 Middle School (北京市第八十中学)
• Beijing Huiwen Middle School (北京汇文中学)
• Beijing Chenjinlun High School (北京市陈经纶中学)

College and university

• Tsinghua University (清华大学) (founded in 1911)
• Peking University (北京大学) or University of Beijing (founded in 1898)
• Renmin University of China (中国人民大学) (founded in 1937)
• Beijing Normal University (北京师范大学) (founded 1902)
• Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics (Beihang University) (北京航空航天大学) (founded in 1952)
• Beijing Institute of Technology (北京理工大学)
• Beijing Foreign Studies University (北京外国语大学)
• Beijing International Studies University (北京第二外国语大学)
• Central University of Finance and Economics (中央财经大学)
• Beijing Forestry University (北京林业大学)
• Beijing Language and Culture University (北京语言大学)
• Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (北京邮电大学)
• Communication University of China (中国传媒大学)
• Beijing Jiaotong University (北京交通大学)
• Beijing Film Academy (北京电影学院)
• Beijing University of Chemical Technology (北京化工大学)
• Beijing University of Chinese Medicine (北京中医药大学)
• Beijing University of Petroleum (北京石油大学)
• Beijing University of Technology (北京工业大学)
• Capital Normal University (首都师范大学)
• Central Academy of Drama (中央戏剧学院)
• Central Academy of Fine Arts (中央美术学院)
• Central Conservatory of Music (中央音乐学院)
• Central University for Nationalities (中央民族大学)
• China Agricultural University (中国农业大学)
• China Conservatory of Music (中国音乐学院)
• China University of Political Science and Law (中国政法大学)
• North China Electric Power University (华北电力大学)
• University of International Business and Economics (对外经济贸易大学)
• University of International Relations (国际关系学院)
• University of Science and Technology Beijing (北京科技大学)

Media

Television and radio

 

Beijing Television (BTV) broadcasts on numbered channels 1 through 10. Three radio stations feature programmes in English: Hit FM on FM 88.7, Easy FM by China Radio International (CRI) on FM 91.5, and the newly launched Radio 774 on AM 774. Beijing Radio Stations is the family of radio stations serving the city audience; its stations include the music station on 97.4 FM as well as a series of other stations focused on news, sports, educational programming, and others.

Press

The well-known Beijing Evening News (Beijing Wanbao) newspaper is distributed every afternoon, covering news about Beijing in Chinese. Other newspapers include The Beijing News (Xin Jing Bao), the Beijing Star Daily, the Beijing Morning News, the Beijing Youth Daily (Beijing Qingnian Bao), as well as English-language weeklies Beijing Weekend and Beijing Today (the English-language edition of Youth Daily). People's Daily and China Daily (English) are also published in Beijing.

Nationally-circulated Chinese newspapers are also available in Beijing.

Publications primarily aimed at international visitors and the expatriate community include the English-language periodicals City Weekend, Beijing This Month, Beijing Talk, that's Beijing and MetroZine.

The international press, including English and Japaneselanguage newspapers and magazines, are available in major international hotels and Friendship stores, and content often appears complete.

Sports

Beijing will host the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2008 Summer Paralympics. City officials removed and relocated 350,000 people for the construction of the Beijing National Stadium,^[68] which was completed on June 28, 2008.^[69]

Professional sports teams based in Beijing include:

• Chinese Football Association Super League
  • Beijing Guoan
• Chinese Football Association Jia League‎
  • Beijing Hongdeng
  • Beijing Institute of Technology FC
• Chinese Basketball Association
  • Beijing Ducks
• Women's Chinese Basketball Association
  • Beijing Shougang
• Asia League Ice Hockey
  • China Sharks
• China Baseball League
  • Beijing Tigers

The Beijing Aoshen Olympians of the ABA, formerly a CBA team, kept their name and maintained a roster of primarily Chinese players after moving to Maywood, California in 2005.

City and regional partnerships

Beijing maintains partnerships or "sister city" status with the following international locations. (Note: some locations are provinces or regional-level units, not cities properly. Beijing itself is not technically a city, being a Chinese municipality).^[70]

Tokyo, Japan (March 14, 1979) New York City, USA (February 25, 1980) Belgrade, Serbia (October 14, 1980) Lima, Peru (November 21, 1983) Washington D.C., USA (May 15, 1984) Madrid, Spain (September 16, 1985) Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (November 24, 1986) Ile-de-France (Paris), France (July 2, 1987) Köln, Germany (September 14, 1987) Ankara, Turkey (June 20, 1990) Cairo, Egypt (November 28, 1990) Jakarta, Indonesia (August 4, 1992) Islamabad, Pakistan (November 8, 1992)

Bangkok, Thailand (May 26, 1993) Buenos Aires, Argentina (July 13, 1993) Seoul, South Korea (October 23, 1993) Kiev, Ukraine (December 13, 1993) Berlin, Germany (April 5, 1994) Brussels, Belgium (September 22, 1994) Hanoi, Vietnam (October 6, 1994) Amsterdam, Netherlands (October 29, 1994) Moscow, Russia (May 16, 1995) Paris, France (October 23, 1997) Rome, Italy (May 28, 1998) Gauteng, South Africa (December 6, 1998)

Ottawa, Canada (October 19, 1999) Bucharest, Romania (June 21, 2005) Havana, Cuba (September 4, 2005) Manila, Philippines (November 14, 2005) London, England (April 10, 2006) Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (April 17, 2006) Wellington, New Zealand (May 10, 2006) Helsinki, Finland (July 14, 2006) Astana, Kazakhstan (November 16, 2006) Tel Aviv, Israel (November 21, 2006) Santiago, Chile (August 7, 2007) Lisbon, Portugal (October 22, 2007)