Nanchong, Sichuan Province, China

🇨🇳 Nanchong (南充; Nánchōng; Nan-ch'ung; lan2cong1) is a prefecture-level city in the north-east of Sichuan province, China, with an area of 12,479.96 km² (4,818.54 sq mi). At the 2020 census it was home to 5,607,565 people, of whom 1,936,534 lived in the built-up (or 'metro') area made of three urban districts. It is the second most populated city of Sichuan Province, after Chengdu. The administrative centre is Shunqing District.

History Nanchong was in the territory of the state of Ba before it was conquered by the Qin in 314 BC. The Qin set up an administrative centre at Langzhong City. Anhan City was established in Shunqinq district at the beginning of the Han Dynasty.

In 202 BC, Emperor Gaozu of Han instituted the Anhan (安汉; 安漢) County in this place. Anhan literally means "to establish or stabilize Han". In 8 AD, the name was changed to Anxin (安新) when Wang Mang seized the throne of the Han Dynasty, but it reverted to Anhan in 25 AD. It was again changed to Guozhou (果州; 'fruit state') in 621 AD (Tang dynasty), and then to Nanchong in 742 AD. The nickname of Nanchong is Guocheng (果城), derived from Guozhou.

Geography Nanchong is in the north-east of Sichuan Province. To the east of Nanchong is Dazhou, to the west are Mianyang and Suining, and to the north is Guangyuan.

The vast majority of this area is hilly. The woodland coverage is 25%.

The Jialing River, a tributary of the Yangtze River, crosses the prefecture from north to south. There are another 30 rivers in the prefecture with a drainage basin of more than 30 km² (12 sq mi).

Demographics The Han people are the largest ethnic group in this area, contributing to 99.88% of its population; another 48 ethnic groups can be found in the city. Langzhong has a large Hui Muslim community.

As in other cities of China, the population of Nanchong can be divided into two parts: upper urban population and lower rural population. The registered urban population is about 1.2 million.

Shunqing District, downtown, is the most dense area in Nanchong. At the centre of Shunqing District, and the proverbial heart of the city, is Five Star Garden (五星花园); a large roundabout with five exits leading to other sections of the city.

Agriculture Agriculture is the pillar of Nanchong's economy, with 80% of Nanchong's population in rural areas and committed to traditional agricultural activities. Nanchong's manufacturing industry also relies on raw materials which are provided by agriculture.

Nanchong's main agricultural product is food. A large quantity of rice, orange, silk worms, and pork are produced to support related manufacturers.

Manufacturing Nanchong's main manufacturing outputs are petroleum products, automobiles and parts, mechanical equipment, textiles, and building materials.

Natural resources There is a large quantity of rock oil and natural gas found in Nanchong, and it has the largest slate mine in the west of China. The dams on Jialing River and its branches have a large potential to increase electric power generation. But the largest resource of Nanchong is human: Nanchong is one of the main providers of Chinese cheap migrant workers.

Transport Transportation in Nanchong is quite convenient compared with other cities in Sichuan province because of its extensive express railway network, shipping, and air service.

Nanchong is a transport hub of the north-east Sichuan Province. It is crossed by the strategic China National Highway 318, built by the Chinese government in the 1930s, and China National Highway 212 and newly built expressways — Cheng-Nan and Nan-Guang expressway — which link the city to Chengdu and another prefecture-level city: Guang'an. The expressway to Chongqing is under construction.

The Dazhou–Chengdu Railway through Nanchong links Chengdu and Dazhou. The Chongqing–Lanzhou Railway, in 2015, will link Lanzhou (Gansu) and Chongqing, and turn Nanchong into a railway hub in north-east Sichuan province. The Nanchong railway station provides passenger and cargo services to regional and national economic centres such as Shanghai, Beijing, Chongqing, Wuhan, Chengdu and Shenzhen.

The old Nanchong airport was built in the 1950s and closed in 2003. The new Nanchong Gaoping Airport which has capacity to land bigger planes, provides regular air services to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Kunming, Xi'an and Sanya.

Nanchong is suggested as a tradition shipping hub in ancient times. Ships from Gansu could reach Chongqing along the Jialing river, but the river is not suitable for modern shipping.

Education: University There are five academic institutions in Nanchong that provide higher education. • Southwest Petroleum University • China West Normal University • North Sichuan Medical College • Nanchong Professional Technic College • Hope College of Southwest Jiaotong University.