| Longyan | |
| Other Name: | Lungyen |
| Native Name: | 龙岩市 |
| Native Name Lang: | zh-Hans |
| Settlement Type: | Prefecture-level city |
| Image Map1: | Locator map Longyan in Fujian.svg |
| Pushpin Map: | China Fujian#China |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | China |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Fujian |
| Seat Type: | Municipal seat |
| Seat: | Xinluo |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 19069 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 2723627 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Urban: | 1,712,623 |
| Demographics Type2: | GDP[2] |
| Demographics2 Info1: | CN¥ 287 billion US$ 41.6 billion |
| Demographics2 Title2: | Per capita |
| Demographics2 Info2: | CN¥ 105,548 US$ 16,575 |
| Timezone: | CST |
| Utc Offset: | +08:00 |
| Coor Pinpoint: | Longyan municipal government |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Postal Code: | 364000, 366000 |
| Area Code: | 597 |
| Blank4 Name: | License plate |
| Blank4 Info: | Chinese: 闽F |
| Blank5 Name: | Administrative division code |
| Blank5 Info: | 350800 |
| Iso Code: | CN-FJ-08 |
| Blank6 Name: | Local dialect |
| Blank6 Info: | Longyan Min and Hakka Chinese |
Longyan (; Hakka: Liùng-ngàm; Longyan dialect: Liông-nâ [liɔŋ˩nã˩]) is a prefecture-level city in south-western Fujian Province, China, bordering Guangdong to the south and Jiangxi to the west.
In 736 AD (during the Tang dynasty), the prefecture of Tingzhou was established in western Fujian, or Minxi (Chinese: 闽西), administering Changting, Huanglian and Xinluo counties. Six years later Xinluo was named Longyan for the nearby cavern, a famous scenic site.[3]
Due to the ancient conflicts in central China and aggression from northern tribes, many Han people moved from central China to Longyan.
in 1734, the Hokkien-speaking counties of Longyan city and Zhangping were ceded from Zhangzhou to form the Longyan Prefecture within the Hakka peasant Tingzhou prefecture, a typical Hakka peasant society culturally distinct from the Minnanese by the imperial court. In 1913, it reverted to its former name Longyan County and in 1981, Longyan City was established.
Minxi was a strategic base during the Chinese Civil War.
It is said that tens of thousands of people were recruited from the Hakka peasantry from the western Longyan to join the PLA during the Chinese Civil War, and nearly every Hakka family had someone sacrificed lives on behalf of CCP side especially during Mao's early purges in Tingzhou and Ganzhou which killed roughly 700,0000 Hakka people and some ethnic minorities. There are more than 26,000 locals that took part in the Long March which in total was carried out by 86,000. Moreover, during 1955 and 1968, 68 people from Longyan were awarded Brigadier General or above, which accounts for 82% of all generals from Fujian province at the time, therefore, Longyan is also named as "The Home of Generals".
Unlike many Chinese cities, the forest coverage of Longyan reaches an unusually high 77.9%, which is unparalleled in Fujian province. Meihuashan National Nature Reserve, a part of the China Biosphere Reserve Network, is located in Longyan.
Goby Rhinogobius longyanensis was first described from Longyan and named after it. Presumably also the prehistoric bivalve Claraia longyanensis got its name from Longyan.[4]
Longyan is situated in the upper reaches of the Jiulong and Ting Rivers. It borders the prefecture-level cities of Sanming to the north, Quanzhou to the east, Zhangzhou to the southeast, Meizhou (Guangdong) to the southwest, and Ganzhou (Jiangxi) to the west and northwest.[5]
Longyan has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa), with short, mild winters, and long, hot and humid summers. Despite its inland location, the city's summers rank among the mildest in the province, averaging lower than even Xiamen and the islands of Pingtan County, both of which receive significant maritime moderation. Rainfall is greatest in spring and early summer and at its least in autumn and early winter.
The prefecture-level city of Longyan had a population of 2,559,545 inhabitants as of 2010, according to the 2010 National Census.[6] The population of Longyan in 2010 was 4.65% inferior than in 2000 (when the inhabitants of the city stand at 2,684,310), giving an average annual rate of growth of -0.47%.[6]
The municipal executive, legislature, and judiciary are in Xinluo District (Chinese: 新罗区), together with the CPC and Public Security Bureau.[7] The information about population uses the 2010 Census data.
| Map | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English name | Simplified | Pinyin | Hakka | Area | Population | Density | |
| Xinluo District | Chinese: 新罗区 | Xīnluó Qū | Sîn-lò-khî | 2,685 | 662,429 | 247 | |
| Yongding District | Chinese: 永定区 | Yǒngdìng Qū | Yún-thin-khî | 2,216 | 362,658 | 164 | |
| Zhangping City | Chinese: 漳平市 | Zhāngpíng Shì | Chông-phìn-sṳ | 2,975 | 240,194 | 81 | |
| Changting County | Chinese: 长汀县 | Chángtīng Xiàn | Tshòng-tin-yen | 3,099 | 393,390 | 127 | |
| Liancheng County | Chinese: 连城县 | Liánchéng Xiàn | Lièn-sàng-yen | 2,596 | 248,645 | 96 | |
| Shanghang County | Chinese: 上杭县 | Shàngháng Xiàn | Sông-hông-yen | 2,879 | 374,047 | 130 | |
| Wuping County | Chinese: 武平县 | Wǔpíng Xiàn | Vú-phìn-yen | 2,630 | 278,182 | 106 | |
Longyan is inhabited by Hoklo people and Hakka peasants. The Hoklo people live in the urban areas and cities of Xinluo and Zhangping districts in the eastern Longyan prefecture and speak Longyan Min while Hakka peasants live in rural village areas of the countryside of the western part of the prefecture, making western Longyan famous for being named as the "Home of Hakka People".[8] The rural county of Changting is often referred to as the home of the Hakka, while the Ting River is known as the "mother river" of the Hakka people.
Longyan is a recent artificial construct of the Chinese government, having never been united together before the creation of Modern China. The two culturally distinct and separate Hoklo eastern city areas and Hakka western rural peasant areas have almost nothing in common in terms of language, culture and living habits, and were only forcibly merged into a single administrative region recently in history by the communist government.
Longyan serves as a strategic center for the distribution of goods to Xiamen, Quanzhou and Zhangzhou. It also acts as a gateway for trade with Guangdong and Jiangxi province. It is the main connection between the inland and coastal area.
Longyan is rich in natural resources such as important mineral deposits and forest zones. The Septwolves tobacco business is an important contributor to the local economy, as is the Zijin Mining group. The largest construction equipment maker Lonking Holdings is based in the city.