Aral
阿拉尔市 (Chinese)
ئارال شەھىرى (Uyghur)
County-level & Sub-prefectural city
Aral (red) in Xinjiang Province (orange) and China
Aral (red) in Xinjiang Province (orange) and China
Map
Aral is located in Southern Xinjiang
Aral
Aral
Location of the seat within Xinjiang
Aral is located in Xinjiang
Aral
Aral
Aral (Xinjiang)
Aral is located in China
Aral
Aral
Aral (China)
Coordinates (Aral municipal government): 40°32′53″N 81°16′52″E / 40.548°N 81.281°E / 40.548; 81.281
CountryChina
Autonomous regionXinjiang
Municipal seatJinyinchuan Road Subdistrict
Government
 • CCP SecretaryDing Yiqiang (Political Commissar of the 1st Division)
 • MayorXiao Yong (Commander of the 1st Division)
Area
 • Total5,258.739 km2 (2,030.410 sq mi)
Population
 (2020)[1]
 • Total328,241
 • Density62/km2 (160/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+8 (China Standard[a])
Websitewww.ale.gov.cn
Aral, Xinjiang
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese阿拉尔
Traditional Chinese阿拉爾
Uyghur name
Uyghurئارال‎

Aral[2][3] is a sub-prefecture-level city surrounded by Aksu Prefecture in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China. Aral means "island" in Uyghur.[4] The city's name is often written as Alar.[5]

Aral is the headquarter of the 1st Division of Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and currently administered by the 1st Division. Aral implemented the "division and city integration" (师市合一, shī shì héyī) management system, it shares the same leader group with the 1st Division.

History

According to Radio Free Asia, a United States government-funded news service, Aral was created in the 1950s by the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps to facilitate Han Chinese immigration to the region.[6]

Aral became a city in 2002 and its population increased to 166,205 in 2010.

On January 23, 2013, 474.208 km2 (183.093 sq mi) of territory was transferred from Awat County (Awati) to Aral city[7] and 802.733 km2 (309.937 sq mi) of territory was transferred from Aksu city (Akesu) to Aral city.[8]

Administrative divisions

Aral contains 3 subdistricts, 15 towns, a township, and two township-equivalent regions:

Name Simplified Chinese Hanyu Pinyin Uyghur (UEY) Uyghur Latin (ULY) Administrative division code Notes
Subdistricts
Jinyinchuan Road Subdistrict 金银川路街道 Jīnyínchuānlù Jiēdào جىنيىنچۇەن يولى كوچا باشقارمىسى‎ Jinyinchuen yoli kocha bashqarmisi 659002001
Xingfu Road Subdistrict 幸福路街道 Xìngfúlù Jiēdào بەخت يولى كوچا باشقارمىسى‎ Bext yoli kocha bashqarmisi 659002002
Qingsong Road Subdistrict 青松路街道 Qīngsōnglù Jiēdào چىڭسۇڭ يولى كوچا باشقارمىسى‎ Chingsung yoli kocha bashqarmisi 659002003
Towns
Jinyinchuan Town
(1st Regiment Farm)* 		金银川镇
(一团) 		Jīnyínchuān Zhèn جىنيىنچۇەن بازىرى‎ Jinyinchuen baziri 659002100 de facto administered by the 7th Division since May 2017
Xinjingzi Town
(2nd Regiment Farm)* 		新井子镇
(二团) 		Xīnjǐngzǐ Zhèn 659002101
Ganquan Town
(3rd Regiment Farm)* 		甘泉镇
(三团) 		Gānquán Zhèn 659002102
Yongning Town
(4th Regiment Farm)* 		永宁镇
(四团) 		Yǒngníng Zhèn يۇڭنىڭ بازىرى‎ Yungning baziri 659002103
Shahe Town
(5th Regiment Farm)* 		沙河镇
(五团) 		Yǒngníng Zhèn 659002104 de facto administered by the 11th Division (Construction Engineer Division) since May 2017
Shuangcheng Town
(6th Regiment Farm)* 		双城镇
(六团) 		Shuāngchéng Zhèn 659002105
Huaqiao Town
(11th Regiment Farm)* 		花桥镇
(十一团) 		Huāqiáo Zhèn 659002106
Xingfu Town
(13th Regiment Farm)* 		幸福镇
(十三团) 		Xìngfú Zhèn 659002107
Jinyang Town
(14th Regiment Farm)* 		金杨镇
(十四团) 		Jīnyáng Zhèn 659002108
Matan Town
(7th Regiment Farm)* 		玛滩镇
(七团) 		Mǎtān Zhèn 659002109
Tamen Town
(8th Regiment Farm)* 		塔门镇
(八团) 		Tǎmén Zhèn 659002110
Lihua Town
(9th Regiment Farm)* 		梨花镇
(九团) 		Líhuā Zhèn 659002111
Chang'an Town
(10th Regiment Farm)* 		昌安镇
(十团) 		Chāng'ān Zhèn 659002112
Tanan Town
(12th Regiment Farm)* 		塔南镇
(十二团) 		Tǎnán Zhèn 659002113
Xinkailing Town
(16th Regiment Farm)* 		新开岭镇
(十六团) 		Xīnkāilǐng Zhèn 659002114
Township
Tokay Township 托喀依乡 Tuōkāyī Xiāng توقاي يېزىسى‎ Toqay yëzisi 659002200
township-equivalent regions
Aral Industrial Park 工业园区 Gōngyè Yuánqū 659002402
Aral Western Industrial Park 西工业园区 Xī Gōngyè Yuánqū 659002518
* One institution with two names. See also Tuntian#People's Republic of China.

Geography

The city has an administrative area of 5,258.739 km2 (2,030.410 sq mi). It is bordered by mountainous regions to the north and northwest and the Taklamakan Desert to the east and south.

Demographics

As of 2015, 167,697 (93.6%) of the 179,214 residents of the county were Han Chinese, 6,036 (3.4%) were Uyghur and 5,481 were from other ethnic groups.[9]

Climate

Climate data for Aral (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1981–2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 9.4
(48.9) 		15.8
(60.4) 		28.1
(82.6) 		35.7
(96.3) 		37.2
(99.0) 		38.5
(101.3) 		39.5
(103.1) 		40.6
(105.1) 		35.5
(95.9) 		30.0
(86.0) 		22.2
(72.0) 		10.6
(51.1) 		40.6
(105.1)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) −0.1
(31.8) 		6.5
(43.7) 		15.4
(59.7) 		24.0
(75.2) 		28.7
(83.7) 		31.6
(88.9) 		32.6
(90.7) 		31.4
(88.5) 		27.4
(81.3) 		20.8
(69.4) 		10.8
(51.4) 		1.7
(35.1) 		19.2
(66.6)
Daily mean °C (°F) −8.1
(17.4) 		−1.5
(29.3) 		7.7
(45.9) 		16.0
(60.8) 		20.8
(69.4) 		23.8
(74.8) 		24.7
(76.5) 		23.5
(74.3) 		18.7
(65.7) 		10.3
(50.5) 		1.5
(34.7) 		−5.7
(21.7) 		11.0
(51.8)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −14.6
(5.7) 		−8.7
(16.3) 		0.4
(32.7) 		8.1
(46.6) 		13.0
(55.4) 		16.2
(61.2) 		17.6
(63.7) 		16.6
(61.9) 		11.3
(52.3) 		2.6
(36.7) 		−4.8
(23.4) 		−11.0
(12.2) 		3.9
(39.0)
Record low °C (°F) −25.4
(−13.7) 		−24.9
(−12.8) 		−12.3
(9.9) 		−3.3
(26.1) 		3.3
(37.9) 		7.2
(45.0) 		9.3
(48.7) 		7.9
(46.2) 		2.9
(37.2) 		−6.0
(21.2) 		−14.1
(6.6) 		−23.4
(−10.1) 		−25.4
(−13.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 1.0
(0.04) 		1.1
(0.04) 		0.9
(0.04) 		0.9
(0.04) 		6.6
(0.26) 		11.3
(0.44) 		11.9
(0.47) 		11.7
(0.46) 		6.8
(0.27) 		1.8
(0.07) 		0.9
(0.04) 		1.2
(0.05) 		56.1
(2.22)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 1.8 0.7 0.5 0.9 2.9 5.2 6.1 5.0 2.5 0.7 0.6 1.3 28.2
Average snowy days 3.7 1.1 0.2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.4 3.7 9.1
Average relative humidity (%) 67 56 45 37 40 49 56 59 61 62 65 71 56
Mean monthly sunshine hours 193.2 192.9 213.3 230.7 269.3 283.9 291.4 272.2 256.0 260.8 212.1 180.0 2,855.8
Percent possible sunshine 64 63 57 57 60 63 65 65 70 78 73 63 65
Source: China Meteorological Administration[10][11]

Education

Tarim University is located in Aral.

Transportation

Ala'er Talimu Airport is a regional airport located at 12 km south from Aral city.

Aral Railway Station is located at southwest suburban of the city.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Locals in Xinjiang frequently observe UTC+6 (Xinjiang Time), 2 hours behind Beijing.

References

  1. ^ Xinjiang: Prefectures, Cities, Districts and Counties
  2. ^ The official spelling according to Zhōngguó dìmínglù, 中国地名录 (Beijing, SinoMaps Press 中国地图出版社 1997); ISBN 7-5031-1718-4
  3. ^ The official spelling is Aral, according to the Zhōngguó dìmínglù, 中国地名录 (Beijing, SinoMaps Press 1997); ISBN 7-5031-1718-4; p. 1, 299.
  4. ^ "Free Uighur Dictionary". Archived from the original on 2015-10-18. Retrieved 2014-05-03.
  5. ^ Sharma, Yojana (18 July 2014). "Government rushes through Kashgar university plan". University World News. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  6. ^ Gulchehre Hoja, Joshua Lipes (2020-04-13). "Subsidies For Han Settlers 'Engineering Demographics' in Uyghur-Majority Southern Xinjiang". Radio Free Asia. Translated by Elise Anderson. Archived from the original on 14 April 2020. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  7. ^ 阿瓦提县历史沿革 [Awat County Historical Development] (in Simplified Chinese). XZQH.org. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2019. 2013年1月23日，自治区政府（新政函[2013]17号）批复同意将阿瓦提县474.208平方千米区域划归阿拉尔市管辖。
  8. ^ 阿克苏市历史沿革 [Aksu City Historical Development] (in Simplified Chinese). XZQH.org. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 18 May 2019.
  9. ^ 3-7 各地、州、市、县(市)分民族人口数 (in Simplified Chinese). شىنجاڭ ئۇيغۇر ئاپتونوم رايونى 新疆维吾尔自治区统计局 Statistic Bureau of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. 15 March 2017. Archived from the original on 11 October 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  10. ^ 中国气象数据网 – WeatherBk Data (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  11. ^ 中国气象数据网 (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
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