Zhumadian
Description
Zhumadian is a prefecture-level city in southern Henan province, China. It borders Xinyang to the south, Nanyang to the west, Pingdingshan to the northwest, Luohe to the north, Zhoukou to the northeast, and the province of Anhui to the east.
Its population is 7,230,744 at the 2010 census of whom 721,678 live in the built-up or metro area made up of Yicheng District.
History
Zhumadian was previously known as Yicheng, for it used to be a relay station. In the Tang Dynasty, the emperor ordered his soldiers carry lychees from Guangdong to his charming princess Yang who loved to eat lychees. And Zhumadian was one of the relay stations.
This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.Geography
Zhumadian is situated at 32° 18'−33° 35' N latitude, and 113° 10'−115° 12' E longitude, with a maximum east-west width of 191.5 kilometres (119.0 mi), and at most 137.5 kilometres (85.4 mi) long from south to north. The area of the prefecture is 15,083 square kilometres (5,824 sq mi), occupying 8.9% of the total provincial area. Neighbouring prefectures are:
- Fuyang, Anhui (E)
- Xinyang (S)
- Nanyang (W)
- Pingdingshan (NW)
- Luohe (N)
- Zhoukou (NE)
The terrain is dominated by mountains, hills, hillocks, and plains.
Agriculture
Mainly wheat, maize, peanut, sesame, green beans and tobacco.
Culture
Zhumadian has a rich cultural history and the birthplace of many great people in ancient times. There is an old site of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai who are the characters in the Butterfly Lovers, a famous Chinese story.
Dams
Zhumadian has 62 different dams including Banqiao Dam within its territory.
Transportation
One of the Chinese main highways, China National Highway 107, runs through Zhumadian. Zhumadian also has its own transportation system.