Xichang 西昌市 · ꀒꎂꏃ
County-level city
Location of Xichang City jurisdiction (red) within Liangshan Prefecture (yellow) and Sichuan
Xichang Location in Sichuan Show map of Sichuan Xichang Xichang (China) Show map of China
Coordinates: 27°53′40″N 102°15′52″E / 27.89444°N 102.26444°E / 27.89444; 102.26444
Country	China
Province	Sichuan
Prefecture	Liangshan
Municipal seat	Beicheng Subdistrict
Area
• Total	2,655 km2 (1,025 sq mi)
Elevation	1,542 m (5,059 ft)
Population  (2020)[1]
• Total	955,041
• Density	360/km2 (930/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+8 (China Standard)
Postal code	615000
Area code	0834
Website	www.xichang.gov.cn

Xichang
Chinese name
Chinese	西昌
Literal meaning	Western Prosperity
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Xīchāng
Yi name
Yi	ꀒꎂ Romanisation: Op Rro

Xichang is a city in and the seat of the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, in the south of Sichuan, China. In 2012 it had a population of 481,796.^{[citation needed]}

History

The Qiongdu were the local people at the time of contact with China. The county of Qiongdu is attested in the area from the Han dynasty. Under the Song dynasty, a local lord was given the title of "King of the Qiongdu" (Qiongdu Wang). The area formed part of the medieval Kingdom of Dali and was subdued by the Mongolians from 1272–4, after which it was incorporated into Yunnan of the Yuan dynasty. It was organized as the Jiandu Ningyuan duhufu, qianhufu, or wanhufu but continued to be often known as Jiandu.^[2] In the book of his travels, Marco Polo recorded that the people of Jiandu and its hinterland used no coins but rods of gold bullion reckoned in saggi. Small change was made using half-catty pieces of molded salt, each reckoned as one-eightieth of a saggio of pure gold.^[3] Under the Qing, it was officially known as Ningyuan Commandery^[2] but also continued to be referenced under the old name Jianchang. In the 19th century, it was the center of Sichuan's production of "white wax".^[4]

Roman Catholicism (see also Catholic Church in Sichuan) was introduced to Ningyuan in the 18th century by Paris Foreign Missions Society. The Apostolic Vicariate of Kienchang was established in 1910, which was elevated to a diocese in 1946.^[5] The episcopal residence is located next to the Cathedral of the Angels, Xichang.

Xichang was devastated by a magnitude 7.5 earthquake in 1850, which killed more than 20,000 people.^[6]

Geography

Xichang lies in a mountainous region of far southern Sichuan. The city is just northeast of the prefecture-level city of Panzhihua. The Anning River is the main river in the area. It is an affluent of the Yalong, Jinsha, and Yangtze rivers. It lies near Qiong Lake.

Climate

Owing to its low latitude and high elevation, Xichang has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cwa) milder and far sunnier than the Sichuan Basin, with mild, very sunny and dry winters, and very warm, rainy summers. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from 9.9 °C (49.8 °F) in January to 22.6 °C (72.7 °F) in July, and the annual mean is 17.15 °C (62.9 °F). Over 60% of the 1,025 mm (40.4 in) annual precipitation occurs from June to August. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 36% in September to 72% in January, the city receives 2,367 hours of bright sunshine annually.

Administrative divisions

Xichang comprises 7 subdistricts, 11 towns, 6 townships and 2 ethnic townships.

Transportation

Xichang Railway Station (西昌站) is a main station on the Chengdu–Kunming railway. Construction of a fast express train line has been completed, and has considerably shortenened travelling times to Panzhihua, Chengdu and Guangyuan. There are also some other stations in the city, including the Xichang North railway station and Xichang South railway station.

The city possesses its own airport, Xichang Qingshan Airport, which is attached to the spaceport by a railroad line and a motorway directly.

Xichang lies on the G5 Beijing–Kunming Expressway.

Spaceport

Xichang's spaceport is located about 64 kilometres (40 mi) northwest of the city and went into operation in 1984. Communications satellites are the most common payload to be inserted into orbit from the Xichang spaceport.

Explanatory notes