Xiamen

"Amoy" redirects here. For other uses, see Amoy (disambiguation).
For other uses, see Xiamen (disambiguation).
Xiamen
厦门市
Sub-provincial city

From top: Xiamen's CBD, Xiamen University, colonial houses on Gulangyu Island, South Putuo Temple, beach on Gulangyu Island, and Haicang Bridge
Motto: 温馨城市·海上花园 (Comfortable city, oceanfront garden)

Location of Xiamen City jurisdiction in Fujian
Xiamen

Location in China

Coordinates: 24°28′47.41″N 118°05′21.91″E / 24.4798361°N 118.0894194°E / 24.4798361; 118.0894194Coordinates: 24°28′47.41″N 118°05′21.91″E / 24.4798361°N 118.0894194°E / 24.4798361; 118.0894194
Country China
Province Fujian
County-level
divisions		 6 districts
Area
 • Sub-provincial city 1,699.39 km2 (656.14 sq mi)
 • Urban 281.6 km2 (108.7 sq mi)
 • Metro 3,217.98 km2 (1,242.47 sq mi)
Population (2010 Census)
 • Sub-provincial city 3,531,347
 • Density 2,100/km2 (5,400/sq mi)
 • Urban 1,861,289
 • Metro 5,114,758 Xiamen-Zhangzhou Metro area (including Xiamen city, Zhangzhou City and Longhai City)
 • Major nationalities Han: 96%
Manchu: 2%
Hui: 2%
Mongolian: 0.3%
Time zone China Standard (UTC+8)
Postal code 361000
Area code(s) 592
GDP 2012
 - Total CNY 301.816 billion (USD 44.79 billion)
 - Per capita CNY 77,392 (USD 12,260)
 - Growth Increase 12.1%
License plate prefixes 闽D
Local dialect Min Nan: Amoy dialect
Website www.xm.gov.cn
Xiamen

"Xiamen" in Simplified (top) and Traditional (bottom) Chinese characters
Simplified Chinese 厦门
Traditional Chinese 廈門
Hokkien POJ Ē-mn̂g/Ē-mûiⁿ
Literal meaning "Mansion Gate" (earlier "Lower Gate")

Xiamen ([ɕi̯âmə̌n]), also historically known as Amoy (/əˈmɔɪ/,[1]), is a major city on the southeast (Taiwan Strait) coast of China. It is administered as a sub-provincial city of Fujian province,[2] with an area of 1,699.39 square kilometres (656.14 sq mi) and population of 3,531,347 at the 2010 Census.[3] The city's urban area includes the old urban island area and covers all six districts of Xiamen (Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong'an, Haicang and recently Xiang'an), and has a total urban population of 1,861,289.[4] It also borders Quanzhou to the north and Zhangzhou making this a unique built-up area of more than five million people. The Jinmen (Kinmen) Islands administered by the Republic of China are less than 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) away.

Being one of the major Hokkien-speaking cities in China and the world, Xiamen and the surrounding southern Fujian cities and counties such as Zhangzhou and Quanzhou are the ancestral homes to large communities of overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia, especially Singapore, various parts of Malaysia as well as the Indonesian Riau Province. The city was a treaty port in the 19th century and one of the four original Special Economic Zones opened to foreign investment and trade when China began economic reforms in the early 1980s. It is endowed with educational and cultural institutions supported by the overseas Chinese diaspora. In 2006, Xiamen was ranked as China's second "most suitable city for living",[5] as well as China's "most romantic leisure city" in 2011.[6]

City name

The area where Xiamen now exists was known as Tong'an in some Han Dynasty records, though the area was not significantly settled by Han Chinese until several centuries later. Xiamen Island itself was known as Jiahe-Yu (Chinese: 嘉禾屿; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Ka-hô-sū) up until Ming Dynasty General Zhou Dexing built the "Xiamen Castle" on the island in 1387 AD to defend against Japanese pirates.[7]

The city's former Chinese name (下門) may have referred to the position at the mouth of the Nine Dragon River. The vernacular reading of these characters in Zhangzhou Hokkien (ε̄-mûi) is the source of the English name "Amoy". The Zhangzhou dialect is still spoken in the west and southwest of the city. Later, the authorities found the former name too unrefined and changed it to the modern toponym (廈門), which has the same pronunciation in Mandarin — but not necessarily in Hokkien — and literally means "the Gate of the Grand Mansion". In Hokkien, the name continues to be pronounced ε̄-mûiⁿ / Ē-mn̂g, effectively using the older name.

History

During the early Jin Dynasty, the place was made Tong'an County (同安縣) in 282. During the Song Dynasty (960–1279 AD), the city was a seaport open to foreign trade. The Chinese scientist and statesman Shen Kuo (1031–1095) spent some of his youth there while his father was a local bureaucrat on the government staff.

1885 illustration of Xiamen from Gulangyu by Edwin Joshua Dukes in Along River and Road in Fuh-kien, China.

In 1387, the Ming Dynasty built a fort in Xiamen, then part of Quanzhou, to guard against pirates. After the Manchu Qing Dynasty overthrew the Ming in 1644, Ming loyalist Koxinga, used Xiamen as a base to launch counterattacks against the invading Manchus from 1650 to 1660.[8] In 1656, he named Xiamen Island, Siming (思明洲), or "Remembering the Ming". In 1661, Koxinga drove the Dutch from Taiwan and moved his operations there. The Manchus renamed the island Xiamen. The city was renamed by the Manchus in 1680 to Xiamen Subprefecture. The name "Siming" was changed back after the 1912 Xinhai Revolution overthrew the Qing Dynasty and the settlement was made a county. Later it reverted to the name Xiamen City. In 1949, Xiamen became a provincially administered city (省辖市), then was upgraded to a vice-province-class city (副省级市), or a municipality. Today, Siming is the name of main city district of downtown Xiamen.

In 1541, European traders (mainly Portuguese) first visited Xiamen, which was China's main port in the nineteenth century for exporting tea. As a result, Hokkien (also known as the Amoy dialect) had a major influence on how Chinese terminology was translated into European languages. For example, the words "Amoy", "tea" (茶; tê), "cumshaw" (感謝; kám-siā), and "Pekoe" (白毫; pe̍h-hô), kowtow (磕頭; khàu-thâu), and possibly Japan (Ji̍t-pún) and "ketchup" (茄汁; kiô-chap) originated from the Hokkien.

During the First Opium War between Britain and China, the British captured the city in the Battle of Amoy on 26 August 1841. Xiamen was one of the five Chinese treaty ports opened by the Treaty of Nanking (1842) at the end of the war. As a result, it was an early entry point for Protestant missions in China. European settlements were concentrated on the islet of Gulangyu off the main island of Xiamen. Today, Gulangyu is known for colonial architecture and the tradition of piano-playing and organized sports.

A Krupp gun at the Hulishan Battery, built in the late Qing Dynasty to defend Xiamen.
Large characters saying "Peaceful Reunification" and "One Country Two System" on Xiamen Island's west coast facing Jinmen (Kinmen) an island controlled by the Republic of China on Taiwan. On Jinmen, a similar propaganda sign facing Xiamen says, "Three Principles of the People Unite China".

Many natives of Xiamen and southern Fujian emigrated to Southeast Asia and Taiwan during the 19th and early 20th century, spreading Hokkien language and culture overseas. Some of the diaspora later returned to fund universities and cultural institutions in Xiamen. An estimated 220,000 Xiamen residents are returning overseas Chinese and their kin.[9] Some 350,000 overseas Chinese trace their ancestry to Xiamen.[9]

During World War II, Xiamen was occupied by Japan from May 1938 to September 1945. In the Chinese Civil War that followed, the islands of Xiamen and Gulangyu were captured by Communist forces in October 1949 but an assault on the island of Jinmen was repelled by Nationalist defenders. The battle line of the war remained in the narrow channel between Xiamen and Jinmen. In 1955 and 1958, mainland China escalated Cold War political tensions by shelling offshore islands held by Taiwan including Jinmen in what became known as the First and Second Taiwan Strait Crisis. The Nationalists responded by reinforcing Jinmen and shelling Xiamen. Due to political tensions, the eastern half of Xiamen Island and much of the Fujian Coast facing the offshore islands remained undeveloped in the 1960s and 1970s. The Water Police and Post-Office were situated directly across the water from the American embassy.

When China began to reform its economy, Xiamen was made one of the original Special Economic Zones in 1980, to attract foreign investment, particularly from overseas Chinese.[10] The city grew and prospered from foreign investment and trade. On April 18, 1988, Xiamen was approved a sub-provincial administrative status, and is specifically designated in the state plan. In 2001, the governments of mainland China and Taiwan agreed to initiate the "Three Mini-Links" and restored ferry, commercial and mail links between the mainland and offshore islands. Trade and travel between Xiamen and Jinmen was restored and later expanded to include direct air travel to Taiwan. In 2010, travelers between Xiamen and Jinmen made 1.31 million trips.[11]

In 1999, the largest corruption scandal in China's history was uncovered in Xiamen, implicating up to 200 government officials. Lai Changxing is alleged to have run an enormous smuggling operation, which financed the city's football team, film studios, largest construction project, and a vast brothel rented to him by the local Public Security Bureau. According to Time, "locals used to joke that Xiamen should change its name to Yuanhua, the name of Lai's company." They subsequently claimed that potential investors were discouraged by the taint of corruption.[12]

Gulangyu Island in the foreground and Xiamen Island in the background

Geography

Aerial photography of Xiamen Island

Xiamen comprises Xiamen Island (longitude 118° 04' 04" E, latitude 24° 26' 46" N), Gulangyu Island, and part of the rugged mainland coastal region from the left bank of the Jiulong River in the west to the islands of Xiang'an in the northeast. The city centers on Xiamen Island, which is divided between Huli District and Siming District (which also encompasses Gulangyu). The city's four other districts, Haicang, Jimei, Tong'an and Xiang'an, are all located on the mainland.

The Gaoji Causeway (Gaoqi-Jimei) built in 1955–1957 transformed Xiamen Island into a peninsula, and so it was termed in the heady propaganda of the time.

Just east of Xiamen Island are the Jinmen Islands, also spelled "Kinmen" and known as "Quemoy". At their nearest points, Greater Jinmen is about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Xiamen Island and Lesser Jinmen, also known as Lieyu, is about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) away. The Republic of China based in Taiwan governs the Jinmen Islands.[13]

Climate

Xiamen
Climate chart (explanation)
JFMAMJJASOND
 
 
34
 
 
17
10
 
 
99
 
 
17
10
 
 
125
 
 
19
12
 
 
157
 
 
23
16
 
 
162
 
 
27
20
 
 
187
 
 
30
23
 
 
138
 
 
32
25
 
 
209
 
 
32
25
 
 
141
 
 
30
23
 
 
36
 
 
27
20
 
 
31
 
 
24
16
 
 
28
 
 
19
12
Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
Precipitation totals in mm
Source: CMA[14]

Xiamen has a monsoonal humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa), characterised by long, hot and humid summers (but moderate compared to much of the rest of the province) and short, mild and dry winters. The warmest month is July, with a 24-hour average of 27.8 °C (82.0 °F), and oddly, the coolest month is February, averaging 12.4 °C (54.3 °F); the annual mean is 20.42 °C (68.8 °F). Extremes since 1951 have ranged from 1.5 °C (35 °F) on 29 December 1991 to 39.2 °C (103 °F) on 20 July 2007.[15] Spring, both by humidity and percentage of sunshine, is the dampest season but typhoons in late summer and early autumn can make the latter period wetter overall. Summer and autumn are marked by comparatively sunny conditions, while autumn is warm and dry. The annual rainfall is 1,350 millimetres (53 in). With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 24% in March to 56% in July, the city receives 1,853 hours of bright sunshine annually. Frost occurs very rarely, and the last snowfall in the city took place in January 1893, when snow also fell at Guangzhou, Macau, in the inland parts of Hong Kong and in the hills of Taipei.

Demographics

According to the 2010 Census, Xiamen has a population of 3,531,347 inhabitants, almost 1.8 times the population counted for the last census in 2000 (which was of 2,053,070 inhabitants). The annual average population growth was of 5.57% for the period 2000–2010.,[16] however this masks the population explosion in Jimei District, which quadrupled since the prior census; Huli District's population more than doubled,[17] The resident population was 1,967,800 in 2013 yearend, and with a population of 3.73 million (those residing at least half a year).[18] The total resident population is said to be 4,255,000 in December 2014, without specifying what counts as a resident.[19]

Administration

The sub-provincial city of Xiamen has direct jurisdiction over 6 districts (区 qu). The information here presented uses data from 2010 Census.

Huli District of Xiamen south of Yundang Lake
Map Name Simplified Chinese Hanyu Pinyin Population
(2010 census)		 Area
(km2)		 Density
(/km2)
Huli District 湖里区 Húlǐ Qū 931,291 73.77 14,782
Siming District 思明区 Sīmíng Qū 929,998 83.99 12,740
Haicang District 海沧区 Hǎicāng qū 288,739 186.46 1,863
Jimei District 集美区 Jíměi Qū 580,857 274.29 2,105
Tong'an District 同安区 Tóng'ān Qū 496,129 669.36 754
Xiang'an District 翔安区 Xiáng'ān Qū 304,333 411.50 865

The districts of Siming and Huli form the Special Economic Zone.

In May 2003, Gulangyu District and Kaiyuan District were merged into Siming District, Xinglin District (杏林区) was merged into Jimei District, and Xiang'an District was created out of a section of Tong'an District.

Economy

Xiamen International Bank Building
Xiamen China Construction Bank (CCB) Building
Zuanshihaian (钻石海岸, lit. "Diamond Coast") Building on Lujiang Road
Sheraton Hotel Xiamen

Xiamen has a diverse and well-developed economy. Primary economic activities include fishing, shipbuilding, food processing, tanning, textiles, machine tool manufacturing, chemical industries, telecommunications and financial services. The city has economic and trade relations with 162 countries and regions worldwide, and benefits from foreign investment, particularly capital from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

In 2008, a total of 356 projects with foreign direct investment had been approved in the city, with a contractual foreign investment amount of US$1.896 billion and an actual foreign investment amount of US$2.042 billion.[20] In 1992, Xiamen was ranked among the top 10 Chinese cities in relation to comprehensive strengths with its GDP increasing by an average of over 20% annually. In 2008, Xiamen's GDP amounted to 156 billion Yuan, an increase of 11.1% over the previous year; and the per-capita GDP was 62,651 yuan (US$9,017). Further economic reforms were introduced, and this brought the total volume of imports and exports in 2008 to US$45.4 billion, while that of exports totalled US$29.4 billion.[20]

Xiamen is also the host of the China International Fair for Investment and Trade held annually in early September to attract foreign direct investment into the Chinese mainland.

Xiamen has excellent road, rail, air and port infrastructure. In the last few years, Xiamen has invested more than RMB30 billion in infrastructure construction.

Financial services

Xiamen has highly developed banking services. The biggest bank is the state-owned commercial bank, Sino-foreign joint venture Xiamen International Bank, and solely foreign-funded Xiamen Bank.

Various foreign banks that have established representative offices in Xiamen.

There are more than 600 financial institutions in operation in Xiamen.

Industrial Zones

Xiamen Export Processing Zone is located in the south part of Haicang Development Zone only 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) from Haicang Port Area, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Gaoqi International Airport and 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from Haicang railway station. It has a favorable geographical location and well-developed transportation network, especially sea transportation. It has a total planned area of 2.4 square kilometres (0.93 sq mi) with 1.46 square kilometres (0.56 sq mi) for the first phase. Industries encouraged in the zone include Biotechnology/Pharmaceuticals, Chemicals Production and Processing, Heavy Industry, Instruments & Industrial Equipment Production, Medical Equipment and Supplies, Research and Development, Shipping/Warehousing/Logistics, Telecommunications Equipment, Trading and Distribution.[21]

Xiamen Haicang Taiwanese Investment Zone is situated to the southeast of Xiamen Island, at the tip of the Xiamen-Zhangzhou-Quanzhou Delta in South Fujian bordering Zhangzhou City to the west, Jimei District to the north, and overlooking Xiamen Island across the narrow water. The 100-square-kilometer Haicang Taiwanese Investment Zone is the largest national Taiwanese investment zone authorized by the State Council in 1989. It is situated close to Xiamen Port.[22]

Xinglin Taiwan Merchants Development Zone was approved to be established on 20 May 1989 by the State Council. The planned area is 19.36 square kilometres (7.47 sq mi) and the current area is 12.5 km2. The zone is located in Jimei, Xiamen. The main industries set up in the zone are chemistry, machinery, textile and electronics. The zone is 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from the Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport and 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from the 319 National Highway.[23]

Torch Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone was approved by the State Council as one of China's national level high-tech industrial development zones in March 1999. In 2001, the zone became the first to achieve 10 billion yuan per square kilometer target output level. It is located close to Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport.[24]

In 1992, Xiamen Xiangyu Free Trade Zone is established and approved by The State Council. The overall planning area is 0.63 square kilometres (0.24 sq mi). In 2008, there are 1100 enterprises in this park. Industries encouraged in the zone include Electronics Assembly & Manufacturing, Garment and Textiles Production, Trading and Distribution, Research and Development, Shipping/Warehousing/Logistics.[25]

Transportation

Local transportation

Gaoji Causeway, Four main road bridges, the Jimei, Xiamen, Xinglin and Haicang Bridges, and one undersea tunnel, Xiangan Tunnel, link Xiamen Island with the mainland.

The main forms of public transportation in Xiamen are bus and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Xiamen's Bus Rapid Transit system features a dedicated bus-only closed road system with stations and ticketing system similar to light rail. Most of the 115 kilometres (71 mi) BRT network consist of bus lanes along expressways and elevated BRT viaducts on Xiamen Island. BRT routes have no traffic lights and travel speed is limited by design to 60 kilometres per hour (37 mph). Five BRT routes are currently in service: BRT-1 Route, BRT-2 Route, Huandao Avenue BRT Route, Chenggong Avenue BRT Route and Connecting BRT Route. The fare is 0.6 RMB per km for the air-conditioned buses. The BRT is supplemented by 20 shuttle bus services that connect nearby places to the BRT stations. The shuttle bus service has a flat rate of 0.5 RMB. Fare discount is available when pre-paid e-card is used.

Taxis can be easily hailed in most areas of the city. Bicycles are commonly used by residents, especially on Xiamen Island. Unlike most Chinese cities, motorcycles and mopeds are not permitted in Xiamen. . On the small island of Gulangyu off Xiamen Island, automobiles are also banned.

Xiamen Metro has been under construction since 2013 and the first line is scheduled to start operation in 2017. A system of three lines has been approved so far, with plans to eventually expand to six lines including service to surrounding suburban areas.

Road

The Fuzhou-Xiamen and Zhangzhou-Xiamen Express Highways link Xiamen with the highway network of Fujian and the neighboring provinces of Guangdong, Jiangxi and Zhejiang. There are also container freight services available between Xiamen and Shenzhen and Hong Kong.[26]

Railways

Xiamen is served by the Yingtan-Xiamen Railway, Longyan-Xiamen Railway and the Fuzhou-Xiamen High-Speed Railway, which are connected to China's national railway network. Direct passenger trains are available from Xiamen to Shanghai, Nanjing, Hefei, Fuzhou, Nanchang and Yingtan. The completion of the Xiamen-Shenzhen High-Speed Railway in late 2013 expanded train services to destinations to the west and southwest.

The Xiamen Railway Station on the island of Xiamen is connected to the mainland by a railway bridge.

The Xiamen North Railway Station is located in Jimei District.

The Xiamen East Railway Station will be located in Xiang'an District.[27]

Air

The Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport on the island of Xiamen is a main air hub in East China with flights to over 60 domestic and international destinations. Among airports in China, Gaoqi ranked among the top 11 for passenger traffic, top 8 for cargo traffic and top 10 for air traffic. It can handle 27 million passengers and 666,666 tons of cargo annually. The airport is the headquarters hub of Xiamen Airlines.

Xiamen has direct flights to most major cities in China and the Chinese special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao. Flights to Amsterdam, Bangkok, Penang, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Jakarta, and Singapore, connect Xiamen with large communities of southern Fujian's overseas diaspora. The city also direct flights to international commercial hubs Osaka, Nagoya, Tokyo, Seoul and Amsterdam, which commenced on 29 March 2011. Xiamen also has direct flights to Taipei, Kaohsiung and Taichung on Taiwan across the Taiwan Strait. Some Taiwanese travelers will fly to nearby Jinmen and take the ferry to Xiamen.

Gaoqi Airport is located on the northern coast of Xiamen Island. A cab ride from downtown to the airport can take as little as ten minutes.

Sea

Passenger Ferry

Xiamen has passenger ferry service to cities along the coast of China as well as the neighbouring island of Kinmen (Jinmen) to the east, which is administered by the Republic of China on Taiwan. These ferries are all served from the Wutong Ferry Terminal to Shuitou Pier, Kinmen on the north-east side of the Xiamen Island (quite distant from downtown Xiamen), ferries to Jinmen take 60 minutes. There are facilities in both directions allowing for quick transfers between Xiamen Gaoqi Airport (for Mainland destinations) and Kinmen Airport (for Taiwanese destinations), which is very popular with large tour groups.

The Heping Wharf Ferry Terminal on the south-west side of Xiamen Island offers short 5 minute boat rides to the island of Gulangyu however this is only accessible by Xiamen residents. Tourists and non-locals must now take a longer 20 minute ferry ride from the main International Ferry Terminal, also called the Dongdu International Terminal, on the south-west side of Xiamen Island., as of October 20, 2014 with a fare increase from 8RMB to 35RMB. This has been in order to reduce tourist numbers accessing the island in an effort to conserve it. This terminal used to have ferries, taking 90 minutes, to Kinmen Island but were ceased in 2014.

Xiamen Port

The Port of Xiamen is a large deepwater port situated on the northern part of Xiamen Island. It has an excellent natural harbour and well connected to the mainland by road and rail. The Port of Xiamen has since the early 1980s been one of the busiest in China.[27] In 2013, the Port of Xiamen ranked among the top 17 ports in the world for container freight.

The natural coastline in the port area is 64.5 kilometres (40.1 mi) while the water is over 12 m in depth. There are 81 berths for vessels of large, medium or small tonnage, including 16 deep-water berths, of which 6 operate containers of over 10,000 tonnes. Among other cargoes handled, Xiamen is the world's largest supply base for raw tungsten materials.[26] It is the world's largest sunglasses manufacturing base, exporting 120 million pairs each year.[26]

Xiamen is also an important base in Fujian province for making medium-sized and large modern container vessels and yachts[26]

Tourism

Walkway on Gulangyu
A local store on Gulangyu
Buddhist library, Nanputuo Temple
Painted roofs at Nanputuo Temple
Xiamen local handicraft, gold plated lacquer ware

Xiamen and its surrounding countryside is known for its scenery and tree-lined beaches. Gulangyu, also known as Piano Island, is a popular weekend getaway with views of the city and features many Victorian-era style European edifices. Xiamen's Botanical Garden is a nature lover's paradise. The Buddhist Nanputuo Temple, dating back to the Tang Dynasty, is a national treasure. Xiamen is also famous for its history as a frontline in the Chinese Civil War with Taiwan over Jinmen (also known as Kinmen or Quemoy) 50 years ago. One attraction for tourists is to view Kinmen, a group of islands a few kilometres away and under Taiwanese control, from Xiamen island.

Xiamen University is a beautiful campus with old traditional buildings and a tranquil lake outside the foreign language department. Nowadays the University is open to anyone, though some form of registration may be needed during peak holidays. To avoid long registration procedure, you may enter the university from three smaller gates which are across the Baicheng beach.

Water Garden Expo Park has a planning area of about 6.76 km2 (2.61 sq mi) (land area of 3.03 km2 (1.17 sq mi)), which consists of five exhibition park islands, four ecological landscapes islands and two peninsulas, including the main pavilion, Chinese Education Park, Marine Culture Island, Spa Island and other functional areas and related facilities

Culture

The local vernacular is Amoy, a dialect of Southern Min, also called Hokkien. Amoy is widely used and understood across the southern region of Fujian province as well as overseas. While it is widely spoken in and around Xiamen, the Amoy dialect has no official status, and the official language of all government business is Mandarin. Xiamen is famous for South Music, Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, puppet show, Gezi Opera, temple celebration events, and the world famous singer, Ivy,

Music

Gulangyu in Xiamen is an island of 1.78 square kilometres (0.69 sq mi). It is also called "Piano Island" by locals. Piano music drifts from the villas and lingers throughout the island's narrow streets, many famous Chinese musicians hail from Xiamen. Every May there's an international music festival, and piano competitions and music festivals are also frequently held. On Huangyan Lu, on the way to Sunlight Rock, there's a concert hall where classical concerts are regularly held on weekends.

Art

Wushipu Oil Painting Village, Xiamen

Xiamen Wushipu oil painting village has been named as “the second of the world oil painting industry base” and the second batch of national cultural (art) industry base” by the China artist association and the culture property department of Culture Ministry.

Xiamen has strong industry advantage in hand painted oil painting, which has two main manufacturing bases here, Xiamen Wushipu Oil Painting Village and Xiamen Haicang Oil Painting Village. 80% market shares in European and American market is taken up by products exported from Xiamen. As the main manufacturing base of hand painted oil painting in China, Xiamen Wushipu Oil Painting Village has more than 5,000 artists. It has the ability to produce all kinds of oil paintings with different specifications and styles. With the support of Xiamen Municipal Government, it has formed a powerful industrial chain, provided related accessories such as frames, brushes and paint colors and formed stable target customers composed by hotels, villas, high-class departments, galleries and so on. As another mail manufacturing base of oil painting, Xiamen Haicang Oil Painting Village has more than 3,000 painters. The scale of Xiamen Haicang Oil Painting Village has developed rapidly in recent years, which is from originally 28 enterprises to more than 250 enterprises at the moment. The combination of manufacturing, sales and distribution makes it become industrial base of commercial oil painting.

Media

Xiamen is served by Xiamen Media Group, which broadcasts news and entertainment such as movies and television series by AM/FM radio, close circuit television and satellite television. Media in Xiamen were temporarily blocked by the Government in June 2007 when about 10,000 people participated in protests against the building of a paraxylene factory by Tenglong Aromatic PX (Xiamen) Co. Ltd., which is owned by Taiwanese businessman Chen Yu-hao.[28] The incident, however, was solved smoothly later that year.

Shopping

Zhongshan Road is the main commercial street in Xiamen
Zhongshan Road in 2009
Zhongshan Road at night

Xiamen has a wide variety of department stores. There are also supermarkets run by Metro and Wal-Mart, Robinsons Galleria Xiamen, and the SM City Xiamen which is owned and operated by Filipino businessman Henry Sy. There are also supermarkets on university campuses and they have delivery services for many goods. In the university campus, there are many bookstores. Both the supermarkets and bookstores are open seven days a week from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. In Xiamen, there are also night markets.

Zhongshan Road

Zhongshan Road is the main commercial street in Xiamen. A large section of the street (between the ferry landing and Siming Street) has recently been fully pedestrianized. Between Zhongshan Road and Shengping Road, across Shuixian Road, is the old street Zhenbang Road (镇邦路), where the popular Chinese movie Crazy Racer (《疯狂的赛车》) was filmed.

Qixingxi Road

Qixingxi Road is (七星西路乐购) a newly established busy shopping park in Xiamen. Supermarket Icon Tesco has located its shopping mall there with lots of shops, restaurants and cafes for leisure and shopping.

Xiahe Road

Xiahe Road is a newly established busy commercial precinct in Xiamen. Shopping centres located here include Railway Station World Trading Mall, Chengda Mall, Holiday World for Women and Children, Eupa and 3C.

Bailuzhou Shopping and Recreational Centre

Bailuzhou Shopping and Recreational Centre is situated in the upper Hubin Zhonglu and has a large assortment of shops and restaurants.

Xiamen University Street

Xiamen University Street is actually half a street because the other half is part of Nanputuo Temple. Hundreds of shops line the street which is only a few hundreds meters. Most of these shops sell garments and cultural things. The local book stores, however, have recently declined due to rising rent and many street vendors have taken their place.

Dragon Head Road

Dragon Head Road (Longtou Road) in Gulangyu Island is one of the major commercial roads of Xiamen and also the only way to Gulangyu Island. Shops along this street sell art, handicrafts and paintings. Beads, lacquer threaded sculptures, color bar, ceramics, plus Chinese antiques, jade and ceramics are also available for purchase. Nanguo nuts shop is popular, it is a good choice for the tourists to take back some dried food and nuts and present to friends and relatives.

Xiamen International Conference & Exhibition Center

Xiamen International Conference & Exhibition Center is located on the southeast coast of Xiamen, which has beautiful scenery and convenient traffic, with a strict distance of 4,600 m facing to Kinmen Island, Taiwan. With a total exhibition space of 100,000 m³ net (indoor) and 50,000 m³ (outdoor), where is the main venue for China International Investment and Trade Fair and hundreds of trade fairs every year.

It has total 15 exhibition halls various from 2,000 to 11,000 square meters and the storey height can range from 7 to 15 meters. The exhibition area can be divided and combined as well, the flexibility of which lets it meet different customers’ needs and be able to suitable for holding large-scale concerts and other performances. In addition, it has two lobbies with 4,500 square meters and 2,500 square meters and more than 20 high-end conference rooms, VIP rooms and meeting rooms, including multi-function hall with more than 2,100 square meters, international conference hall holding 600 people and all kinds of conference rooms ranging from 50 people to 200 people. The venue is equipped with customs, commodity inspection, banking, insurance, civil aviation, shipping, telecommunication and other service points, in order to show customers a full range of services.

The plaza area of Conference & Exhibition Center is 100,000 square meters, with 1,000 parking spaces. Except as an outdoor exhibition venue for all kinds of outdoor activities, it can also provide as the use of large-scale opening ceremony.

Xiamen International Conference Center is a world-class high grade conference venue, adjacent to Xiamen International Conference & Exhibition Center. With a total construction area of 140,000 square meters, it is composed by three parts, a conference center, a five-star leisure resort hotel, and a concert hall. The building area of International Conference Center and Concert Hall is 50,000 square meters. The International Conference Center has more than 20 meeting rooms with accessory facilities, such as large Conference Hall, medium and small meeting rooms, lounge, VIP lounge, and presence chamber. It includes an international conference hall that can accommodate 1,800 people, different types of conference rooms accommodating 500, 300, 200, 100 people, as well as the luxurious banquet hall accommodating 2,000 people, which will be an ideal place for high-end meetings and banquets. International Conference Center Hotel is positioned as high grade leisure resort hotel, which has more than 500 guest rooms,various restaurants, indoor swimming pool, fitness center and other facilities.

Xiamen Conference & Exhibition Concert Hall is one of the largest and highest grade concert halls for Symphony in Fujian Province. It was built and put into use in 2007. The ground part of the construction area is 5,000 square meters, where can accommodate more than 800 spectators. The concert hall’s architectural model is designed as oval ball curtain wall structure, which looks novel, unique, elegant and can provide first-class sound as well.

Colleges and universities

A view of the Xiamen University campus
A view of the Xiamen University
Jiannan Auditorium at Xiamen University

National

The first two universities below were founded by Tan Kah Kee.

Public

Private

Vocational College

Military

Xiamen is headquarters of the 31st Group Army of the People's Liberation Army, one of the three group armies under the Nanjing Military Region, which is responsible for the defense of the eastern China, including any military action in the Taiwan Strait.

Notable people

Cultural references

Xiamen features prominently in Neal Stephenson's 2011 novel REAMDE.

See also

References

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  9. 1 2 (Chinese) "侨乡厦门" 厦门市华侨博物院 Accessed 2011-06-11
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  18. ↑ http://www.whatsonxiamen.com/news36687.html
  19. ↑ http://www.whatsonxiamen.com/news37938.html
  20. 1 2 Archived 26 April 2006 at the Wayback Machine.
  21. ↑ Xiamen Export Processing Zone | China Industrial Space. Rightsite.asia. Retrieved on 2011-08-28.
  22. ↑ Xiamen Haicang Taiwanese Investment Zone. RightSite.asia. Retrieved on 2011-08-28.
  23. ↑ Xinglin Taiwan Merchants Development Zone. RightSite.asia (1989-05-20). Retrieved on 2011-08-28.
  24. ↑ Xiamen Torch Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone. RightSite.asia. Retrieved on 2011-08-28.
  25. ↑ Xiamen Xiangyu Free Trade Zone. RightSite.asia. Retrieved on 2011-08-28.
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  27. 1 2 "China Briefing Business Reports". Asia Briefing. 2009. Archived from the original on 18 February 2009. Retrieved 8 February 2009.
  28. ↑ Text Messages Giving Voice to Chinese Washington Post

Further reading

External links

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