Wenchuan County
汶川县 
ཝུན་ཁྲོན་རྫོང་།
Kvusa
County
Wenchuan panorama in 2013
Wenchuan panorama in 2013
Location of Wenchuan County (red) in Ngawa Prefecture (yellow) and Sichuan
Location of Wenchuan County (red) in Ngawa Prefecture (yellow) and Sichuan
Wenchuan is located in Sichuan
Wenchuan
Wenchuan
Location of the seat in Sichuan
Wenchuan is located in China
Wenchuan
Wenchuan
Wenchuan (China)
Coordinates: 31°28′37″N 103°35′24″E / 31.477°N 103.590°E / 31.477; 103.590
CountryChina
ProvinceSichuan
Autonomous prefectureNgawa
County seatWeizhou
Area
 • Total4,804 km2 (1,855 sq mi)
Population
 (2020)[1]
 • Total82,971
 • Density17/km2 (45/sq mi)
 • Major nationalities
Qiang - 39.5%
Han - 38.7%
Tibetan - 20.4%
Hui - 1.1%
Others - 0.3%
Time zoneUTC+8 (China Standard)
Postal code
623000
Area code0837
Websitewww.wenchuan.gov.cn
Wenchuan County
Chinese name
Chinese汶川
Tibetan name
Tibetanཝུན་ཁྲོན།
Qiang name
QiangKvusa

Wenchuan County is a county in Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan, China.

The county has an area of 4,084 square kilometres (1,577 sq mi),[5] and a population of 100,771 as of 2010.[6]

Wolong National Nature Reserve is a protected area located in Wenchuan County, which houses more than 150 highly endangered giant pandas. The Wolong Special Administrative Region is also located here.

The county was the site of the epicentre and one of the areas most severely hit by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, also known as the Wenchuan earthquake.[7]

Toponymy

The county is named after the Wenshui River (Chinese: 汶水), now known as the Min River.[5]

History

Wenchuan County was established in 1958, when the former Maowen Qiang Autonomous County (Chinese: 茂汶羌族自治县; pinyin: Màowèn Qiāng Zú Zìzhì Xiàn) was split into Mao County and Wenchuan County.[6]

A number of Neolithic sites have been excavated in the Wenchuan area. The site of Jiangweicheng, located at the northern end of the county town of Weizhou in Wenchuan, has been archaeologically confirmed as a Neolithic site in the upper reaches of the Minjiang River, which extends over a long period divided into three phases. It is estimated to be a new cultural type resulting from the introduction of a late Yangshao culture from the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River into the upper reaches of the Min River. There are similarities between the sarcophagus burial tomb and the Majiayao culture of Gansu and Qinghai.[8]The site of Jiangwei City is in a different spectrum from the painted pottery and jars excavated from sites in the Chengdu Plain, but lace-mouthed yansha jars of the same spectrum have also been excavated.[9]

On 25 August 1933, a massive 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the town of Fuxi in Mao County, north of Wenchuan, where six people were killed by a rock collapse and more than 480 people were killed in Wenchuan in the subsequent floods after the earthquake[10]

Wenchuan earthquake

On May 12, 2008, an earthquake with moment magnitude 7.9 hit the Sichuan Province, with epicentre located in the town of Yingxiu, in Wenchuan county. The county was therefore one of the areas most severely affected by the earthquake. In Chinese, the earthquake is named after the county (the Wenchuan earthquake, 汶川地震), which made its name resonate across the nation. In the county, 15,941 people died, 34,583 were injured, and 7,474 were still missing as of June 6, 2008.[11][12] The seismic intensity was the highest, reaching level XI in the China Seismic Intensity Scale.[13] After the earthquake, the central government enforced stricter requirements for seismic design in this area.[14] The earthquake also caused many landslides, some of which remained active for years and generated destructive debris flows during the summer rainstorms, which increased the death toll and slowed reconstruction and recovery of the communities in the county.[7][15]

Subdivisions

Wenchuan County administers nine towns:[16]

Name Simplified Chinese Hanyu Pinyin Tibetan Wylie Qiang Administrative division code
Towns
Weizhou Town 威州镇 Wēizhōu Zhèn ཝེ་ཀྲོའུ་གྲོང་རྡལ། we krovu grong rdal 513221100
Yingxiu Town 映秀镇 Yìngxiù Zhèn དབྱིངས་ཤིའུ་གྲོང་རྡལ། dbyings shivu grong rdal 513221102
Wolong Town 卧龙镇 Wòlóng Zhèn ཨོ་ལུང་གྲོང་རྡལ། o lung grong rdal Vvolong 513221103
Shuimo Town 水磨镇 Shuǐmó Zhèn ཧྲུའི་མའོ་གྲོང་རྡལ། hruvi mavo grong rdal 513221105
Xuankou Town 漩口镇 Xuánkǒu Zhèn ཞོན་ཁོའུ་གྲོང་རྡལ། zhon khovu grong rdal 513221106
Sanjiang Town 三江镇 Sānjiāng Zhèn སན་ཅང་གྲོང་རྡལ། san cang grong rdal 513221107
Gengda Town 耿达镇 Gěngdá Zhèn ཀུན་ཏ་གྲོང་རྡལ། kun ta grong rdal 513221108
Miansi Town 绵虒镇 Miánsī Zhèn མེན་ཁྲི་གྲོང་རྡལ། men khri grong rdal 513221109
Bazhou Town 灞州镇 Bàzhōu Zhèn བཱ་ཀྲོའུ་གྲོང་རྡལ bā krovu grong rdal 513221111

Demographics

Population census
YearPop.±% p.a.
1990 96,054—    
1996 104,000+1.33%
2000 111,935+1.86%
2005 106,238−1.04%
2010 100,771−1.05%

According to a 2021 publication by the county government, Wenchuan County's ethnic composition is 39.5% Qiang, 38.7% Han, 20.4% Tibetan, 1.1% Hui, and 0.3% belonging to other ethnic minorities.[5]

The 2010 Chinese Census reported the county's population as 100,771 people.[6]

In 2005, the county reported a population of 106,238, with 34.16% of the population being ethnically Qiang.[17]

The 2000 Chinese Census reported the county's population as 111,935.[6]

In 1996, the county's population was estimated to be about 104,000, up from the 96,054 reported in 1990.[6]

The monumentale sculpture on the place is Yu the Great (大禹), Qiang people hero and founder of the Xia dynasty.

Economy

As of 2019, Wenchuan County's gross domestic product totaled ¥7.264 billion, a 6.2% increase from the previous year.[5] Consumer retail sales totaled ¥1.082 billion.[5] The annual per capita disposable income of the county reached ¥34,513 for its urban residents, and ¥15,049 for its rural residents, an increase of 8.2% and 12.0%, respectively.[5]

According to the county government, there were 4,440 people in the county living in poverty in 2014.[5] The county government claims that all its citizens were lifted out of poverty in 2019.[5]

Tourism

A Giant panda cub in Wolong National Nature Reserve

Wenchuan County is home to the Wolong National Nature Reserve, as well as the Sichuan Caopo Nature Reserve (Chinese: 四川草坡自然保护区).[5] Other tourist attractions in the county include the AAAAA-rated Wenchuan Special Tourist Area (Chinese: 汶川特别旅游区) and the AAAA-rated Yu the Great Cultural Tourist Area (Chinese: 大禹文化旅游区).[5]

In 2019, the county received 6,277,800 visitors, bringing the county ¥2.87 billion in revenue.[5]

Transport

Road traffic in Wenchuan County is dominated by National Highway 213 and National Highway 317. In 2012, the 82 km long G4217 Duwen Expressway, which connects the city of Dujiangyan and leads to cities in the Sichuan basin, was fully opened to traffic, and the Wenchuan-Markang motorway, the Wenma Expressway, was fully opened to traffic on 31 December 2021.[18]Wenchuan County Bus Station is located in Weizhou Town, Wenchuan, with daily buses to Chengdu, Dujiangyan, Peng County, Li County, Markang, Jiuzhaigou and other places. All scenic spots can be reached by bus, except for Qipanggou Forest Park and Xiqiang Grand Canyon, which are not yet open to traffic.[19]In 2013, bus lines covering 11 towns and townships in the county, including Yingxiu, Xuankou, Shuimo and Sanjiang, were put into operation.[20]By the end of 2014, the total mileage of roads in Wenchuan County was 696 kilometers, 619 kilometers of high-grade highways and 51 kilometers of expressways.

Climate

Climate data for Wenchuan (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1981–2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 16.9
(62.4)		 23.6
(74.5)		 32.7
(90.9)		 32.7
(90.9)		 33.9
(93.0)		 35.1
(95.2)		 37.1
(98.8)		 35.5
(95.9)		 34.4
(93.9)		 27.9
(82.2)		 24.2
(75.6)		 22.0
(71.6)		 37.1
(98.8)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 8.9
(48.0)		 11.8
(53.2)		 16.4
(61.5)		 21.7
(71.1)		 24.6
(76.3)		 26.8
(80.2)		 29.2
(84.6)		 29.1
(84.4)		 24.6
(76.3)		 19.7
(67.5)		 15.5
(59.9)		 10.4
(50.7)		 19.9
(67.8)
Daily mean °C (°F) 4.0
(39.2)		 6.4
(43.5)		 10.5
(50.9)		 15.3
(59.5)		 18.6
(65.5)		 21.1
(70.0)		 23.4
(74.1)		 23.3
(73.9)		 19.6
(67.3)		 15.0
(59.0)		 10.5
(50.9)		 5.4
(41.7)		 14.4
(58.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 0.6
(33.1)		 2.9
(37.2)		 6.7
(44.1)		 11.1
(52.0)		 14.4
(57.9)		 17.1
(62.8)		 19.3
(66.7)		 19.3
(66.7)		 16.4
(61.5)		 12.0
(53.6)		 7.1
(44.8)		 2.0
(35.6)		 10.7
(51.3)
Record low °C (°F) −7.0
(19.4)		 −6.4
(20.5)		 −4.4
(24.1)		 2.5
(36.5)		 6.6
(43.9)		 10.5
(50.9)		 13.4
(56.1)		 12.6
(54.7)		 9.3
(48.7)		 3.2
(37.8)		 −1.4
(29.5)		 −7.4
(18.7)		 −7.4
(18.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 2.6
(0.10)		 6.1
(0.24)		 20.9
(0.82)		 52.5
(2.07)		 70.5
(2.78)		 83.1
(3.27)		 72.6
(2.86)		 78.9
(3.11)		 60.4
(2.38)		 43.1
(1.70)		 10.0
(0.39)		 1.6
(0.06)		 502.3
(19.78)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 4.6 6.2 11.3 16.2 18.2 18.6 16.6 14.9 15.5 15.4 6.6 2.2 146.3
Average snowy days 7.6 4.2 0.7 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.2 2.2 15
Average relative humidity (%) 62 62 62 63 64 68 69 68 71 72 67 63 66
Mean monthly sunshine hours 121.1 112.3 130.7 148.8 138.4 109.8 135.5 140.4 98.4 93.5 112.3 118.7 1,459.9
Percent possible sunshine 38 36 35 38 32 26 32 35 27 27 36 38 33
Source: China Meteorological Administration[21][22]

References

  1. ↑ "阿坝州第七次全国人口普查公报第二号——县（市）人口情况" (in Chinese). Government of Ngawa Prefecture. 2021-06-11.
  2. ↑ 现代汉语词典(第七版). [A Dictionary of Current Chinese (Seventh Edition).]. 北京. Beijing: 商务印书馆. The Commercial Press. 1 September 2016. p. 1376. ISBN 978-7-100-12450-8. 2 汶川（Wèn- chuān），地名，在四川。
  3. ↑ 现代汉语规范词典(第3版). [A Standard Dictionary of Current Chinese (Third Edition).]. 北京. Beijing: 外语教学与研究出版社. Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press. May 2014. p. 1378. ISBN 978-7-513-54562-4. 汶 wèn{...}2 用于地名。如汶川，在四川。
  4. ↑ 夏征农; 陈至立, eds. (September 2009). 辞海：第六版彩图本 [Cihai (Sixth Edition in Color)] (in Chinese). 上海. Shanghai: 上海辞书出版社. Shanghai Lexicographical Publishing House. p. 2389. ISBN 9787532628599.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 汶川简介 [Wenchuan Introduction] (in Chinese). Wenchuan County People's Government. 2021-05-06. Archived from the original on 2021-05-18. Retrieved 2021-05-18.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 汶川县历史沿革 [Wenchuan County Organizational History]. xzqh.org (in Chinese). 2015-03-27. Archived from the original on 2021-05-18. Retrieved 2021-05-18.
  7. 1 2 Fan, Xuanmei; Juang, C. Hsein; Wasowski, Janusz; Huang, Runqiu; Xu, Qiang; Scaringi, Gianvito; van Westen, Cees J.; Havenith, Hans-Balder (2018-07-26). "What we have learned from the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake and its aftermath: A decade of research and challenges". Engineering Geology. 241: 25–32. doi:10.1016/j.enggeo.2018.05.004. ISSN 0013-7952. S2CID 134786927.
  8. ↑ HAO, LI (2008). 城市规划 (in Chinese). pp. 32（11）.
  9. ↑ Jiaxiang, Huang (2005). 成都考古发现 (in Chinese). 科学出版社.
  10. ↑ Shizhong, Hong (2014). Some textual research and analysis on the death toll of Diexi Earthquake (in Chinese). pp. 7–8.
  11. ↑ "Casualties in Wenchuan Earthquake" (in Chinese). Sina.com. 2008-06-02. Retrieved 2008-06-02.
  12. ↑ "Death Toll in Ngawa Prefecture Rose to 20,258 as of June 6, 18:00 CST" (in Chinese). Official website of Ngawa Prefecture Government. 2008-06-07. Archived from the original on 2008-06-09. Retrieved 2008-06-07.
  13. ↑ "Seismic intensity map of the M8.0 Wenchuan earthquake (汶川8.0级地震烈度分布图)" (in Simplified Chinese). CEA. 2008-08-29. Retrieved 2008-09-10.
  14. ↑ XU, Zhengzhong; WANG, Yayong; et al. (徐正忠、王亚勇等) (2001). "Code for seismic design of buildings (GB 500011-2001) (partially revised in 2008), Appendix A ( 《建筑抗震设计规范》（GB 500011－2001） （2008 年局部修订） 附录 A 我国主要城镇抗震设防烈度、设计基本地震加速度和设计地震分组)" (in Simplified Chinese). Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of PRC (MOHURD, 中华人民共和国住房和城乡建设部). Retrieved 2008-09-29. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ↑ Fan, Xuanmei; Scaringi, Gianvito; Yang, Fan; Domènech, Guillem; Guo, Xiaojun; Dai, Lanxin; He, Chaoyang; Xu, Qiang; Huang, Runqiu (2018-09-20). "Two multi-temporal datasets to track the enhanced landsliding after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake". Earth System Science Data. 11 (1): 35–55. doi:10.5194/essd-2018-105. ISSN 1866-3508.
  16. ↑ "District codes and urban/rural division codes for statistical purposes in 2022: Wenchuan County" [2022年统计用区划代码和城乡划分代码：汶川县]. 2022-10-31.
  17. ↑ 县情概况 [County Overview] (in Chinese). Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture People's Government. Archived from the original on 2008-05-16. Retrieved 2021-05-18.
  18. ↑ The official account of CCTV News of China Central Radio and Television, CCTV (2020-12-31). "The Wenmakun Expressway from Chengdu to Markang has been opened to traffic in 3.5 hours" [汶马高速实现通车 成都到马尔康缩短至3.5小时] (in Chinese).
  19. ↑ "Transport in Wenchuan County" [汶川县交通] (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2008-05-17.
  20. ↑ Fuli, Shi (2014-02-15). "2013年汶川县着力完善基础设施，改善城乡面貌" [2013 Wenchuan County focuses on improving infrastructure and urban and rural landscape] (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 2016-02-22.
  21. ↑ 中国气象数据网 – WeatherBk Data (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 13 April 2023.
  22. ↑ 中国气象数据网 (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 13 April 2023.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wenchuan County.
Look up Wenchuan in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Wenchuan.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.