As of the 2020 census,the city's population stood at 6,981,236 (6,994,832 in 2010),of whom 1,931,455 resided in the built-up,urban center consisting of four urban districts:Chikan,Xiashan,Potou,and Mazhang.[3] In 2007,the Chinese Cities Brand Value Report listed Zhanjiang among China's ten most liveable cities.[6]
History
The Imperial China era
Under the rule of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC),the area was part of the old administrative division of Xiang Shire. During the reign of the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD),the imperial government appointed Xuwen County as the administrative seat of the whole Leizhou Peninsula. The port of Zhanjiang was one of the earliest departure points on the Maritime Silk Road,its commerce spurring the growth of the urban center. During the Song dynasty (960 AD-1270 AD),great numbers of Putian (Hinghwa) colonists settled in the area and would become the ethnolinguistic majority in the Leizhou (Luichow) Peninsula. Large minority groups included the Baiyue,Cantonese,Tanka,and foreign merchants.
The region served as a small fishing port when it was occupied by the French in 1898. The next year,the French forced the Chinese to lease a small enclave of Zhanjiang for 99 years as the concessionary port of Guangzhouwan,historically known in English as Kwangchowan or Kwangchow Wan. Much of the local population fled before the arrival of the French,so upon French invitation,Cantonese peasants from north of Leizhou came to repopulate the empty French possession,thus the local language became Yue Chinese. The French wanted to develop the port,which they called Fort Bayard,to serve as a logistical center for France's concessions in southern China,namely inland areas where France had exclusive rights to railway and mineral development. Their efforts,however,were hindered by the poverty and underdevelopment of the surrounding land. The French controlled the small enclave until 1943,when the Japanese invaded and occupied the area during World War II. At the end of the war,the enclave was briefly ceded to the French before being formally returned to China in 1946 by General Charles de Gaulle,then the French head of state.
Return to China
Upon recovering the territory from the French,the Republic of China government decided to rename the area,which was historically under the jurisdiction of Zhanchuan county,with a Zhanchuan customs post on the eastern island of the territory. As "Zhanjiang" was a historical variant of "Zhanchuan",it was decided to name the city "Zhanjiang".
In the early 1990s,a new rail line was completed linking Zhanjiang with Guangzhou,the provincial capital. The line was later extended to Hai'an,at the southernmost tip of Leizhou Peninsula,where trains could be transported by the Guangdong–Hainan Ferry (part of the Guangdong–Hainan Railway) across the Hainan Strait to Haikou city.
Zhanjiang has a humid subtropical climate (KöppenCwa),with short,mild,overcast winters and long,very hot,humid summers. From April to September,rainfall is the heaviest and most frequent. The summer and winter temperatures are moderated due to the influence of the nearby ocean.[8]
Climate data for Zhanjiang,elevation 53m (174ft),(1991–2020 normals,extremes 1913–present)
This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: This article only provides information from 2013 and 2014, and talks about events that happend then as current.. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(October 2025)
Zhanjiang is a port city and trade center with a diversified industrial base, including a shipyard, textile plants, sugar refineries, automobile industries, chemicals, and electrical appliances, as well as rice mills. From 2012 to 2014, Zhanijang's economy grew significantly. In 2013, Zhanjiang received a total of 306.9million yuan of investment into 92 different projects.[19] In 2014, the GDP of Zhanjiang was 225.87billion yuan, representing a 10% increase from the previous year. Fixed Investment contributed 102billion yuan into the economy, a 30% increase from the previous year. The total retail sales of consumer goods amounted to 116million yuan, representing a 13% increase from the previous year.[20] The government believes that the GDP growth of Zhanjiang will remain at around 12%.[21] With the completion of the Wushi oil field off the coast of Zhanjiang in 2016, the city has assumed further importance as a center of oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea, servicing offshore support vessels.[22][23]
Port of Zhanjiang
The Port of Zhanjiang was historically known as the Guangzhouwan. The port of Zhanjiang, built in 1956, was the first modern port designed and developed after the founding of the People's Republic of China and serves as the headquarters for the People's Liberation Army Navy's South Sea Fleet.[24] The Zhanjiang Port is one of the eight major ports in China, with an annual throughput of more than 2,600million tons. As a natural deep water port, it has a depth of approximately 605 kilometers (376mi)and three islands outside to provide further support to shipping activities. The port provides access to the ocean from provinces in South and West China, opening Zhanjiang to trade with more than 100 countries. This is important to the development of the steel industry in Zhanjiang.[citation needed]
Agriculture
In 2007, sugarcane was Zhanjiang's most prominent agricultural product. 9,135,500 tons were produced in 2006, while 10,000,000 tons were produced in 2007. In addition, Zhanjiang's agricultural base includes the harvest of Akoya cultured pearls, pineapples, bananas, papayas, seafood, farm-raised prawns, and fish.
In 2014, there were 14 new agricultural enterprises in the city and 24,000 acres of farmland were created.[25]
With the effect of the Guangdong and Taiwan Agricultural Cooperation Project, Zhanjiang and Taiwan have maintained a steady commercial relationship. This trade cooperation includes knowledge sharing of techniques related to development of industries producing products related to tropical fruits, fishing, animal husbandry, and ecological agriculture.[26]
Industry
In 2007, Zhanjiang's total industrial output value amounted to 112.134billion yuan, representing an increase of 17.1 percent, a four-year high representing a 15.3billion net increase over the previous year. In 2007 the city's major industrial enterprises 714, 71 more than the year before, with an industrial output value of over 100million for 132 enterprises.
The Zhanjiang Economic and Technological Development Zone was founded in 1984. Its total planned area is 9.2km2 (3.6sqmi), on a site chosen for its proximity to the airport, the G325 national highway, as well as the port. The major industries in the zone include automobile manufacturers, biotechnology, and computer software.[27]
The steel industry was still in development from 2010 to 2013. The large-scale project of iron, steel, and petrochemical production began in 2013. Since 2017, This project, the steel industry aimed to boost the local economy by producing 15million metric tons of crude oil and 1million tons of ethylene annually, which would represent an output of around 300billion yuan. The steel industry will primarily focus serving markets in South China and Southeast Asia. However, ameliorating the environmental impact of steel production also became an important issue regarding the growth of the industry[19], with manufacturers agreeing to allocate 8% of the 50billion yuan total to investment environmental protection and energy efficiency.[28]
Zhanjiang has also seen the development of a plastics industry. In November 2019, BASF announced the start of a US$10billion investment project. A "Verbund" site for the production of engineering plastics and thermoplastic polyurethane is expected to be operational by 2022. The site would be the third-largest BASF site worldwide, following Ludwigshafen, Germany, and Antwerp, Belgium.[29][30]
Business
In 2007, the total value of retail sales of consumer goods in Zhanjiang totaled 38.216billion yuan, an increase of 19.5% over the previous 12 years.
In 2014, Zhanjiang constructed a French-style street with the theme of travel and leisure. In addition to protecting renovating the old French-style buildings, this led the development of the city's fashion sector. The whole street was separated into five areas: a shopping area, a food area, a culture area, a special commerce area, and an area for public art installations and galleries. According to statistics, the number of visitors reached 110,000 people during Christmas 2014, spending 300million yuan.[31]
The well-known tourist attractions, the "Zhanjiang Eight", are as follows:
East Island
Huguangyan National Geopark:[32] This scenic area is a national geological park famous for its natural volcano relic. It has the most typical and largest maar (volcanic) lake in the world.[8]
Zhanjiang Port: in the southeast part of the city proper. It once had passenger liners to reach Haikou. However, there are no longer passenger liners directly from the city proper to Haikou. Visitors should go to the Hai'an Dock in Xuwen County for this connection.[8]
Donghai Island: It ranks as the fifth-largest island in China. A popular holiday resort has been built on the east side. In addition to the forest and beautiful sea, it has a 28-kilometer (17mi)-long beach.[8]
Naozhou Island: It has favorable weather in every season. The Naozhou Lighthouse, with over a hundred years' history, is the highlight of the island.[8]
Zhanjiang University of Science and Technology(湛江科技学院)
ZhanJiang Preschool Education College(湛江幼儿师范专科学校)
Guangdong Institute of Arts and Sciences(广东文理职业学院)
Demographics
According to the Seventh National Census in 2020, the city's Permanent Population (hukou) was 6,981,236.[38]Compared with 6,993,304 people in the Sixth National Census in 2010, a total of 12,068 people decreased over the past ten years, representing a decline of 0.17%.[38]
Among the permanent residents of the city, the population aged 0-14 is 1,820,622, accounting for 26.08%. The population aged 15-59 was 3,988,641, accounting for 57.13%. The population aged 60 and above was 1,171,973, accounting for 16.79%, among which the population aged 65 and above was 832,753, accounting for 11.93%. Compared with the Sixth National Census in 2010, the proportion of the population aged 0-14 increased by 3.09 percentage points, the proportion of the population aged 15-59 decreased by 7.73 percentage points, the proportion of the population aged 60 and above increased by 4.64 percentage points, and the proportion of the population aged 65 and above increased by 3.11 percentage points.[39]
↑ Theodore Shabad (1956). China's Changing Map: A Political and Economic Geography of the Chinese People's Republic. New York: Frederick A. Praeger. p.166. LCCN55-11530. OCLC916993074. With the exception of Shiukwan on the Canton-Hankow railroad, Kwangtung's regional centers are situated along the coast, notably in the Canton delta. There, in addition to Canton, are the cities of Fatshan, Kongmoon, and Shekki. The metropolis of western Kwangtung is Tsamkong, and Pakhoi is the chief town of the western panhandle.
↑ 湛江市国土资源局. 《湛江市土地利用总体规划（2006–2020年）》 (in Simplified Chinese).
↑ Census Office of the State Council of the People's Republic of China; Population and Employment Statistics Division of the National Bureau of Statistics of the People's Republic of China (2012). 中国2010人口普查分乡、镇、街道资料 (1ed.). Beijing: China Statistics Print. ISBN978-7-5037-6660-2.
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