Prefecture-level divisions of China explained

Prefecture-level division

Chinese: p=Dì Jí Xíngzhèngqū|labels=no
Category:Second level administrative division of a unitary state
Territory:China
Current Number:339 prefecture-level divisions including 6 in Taiwan Province
Population Range:444 (Sansha) – 14,047,625 (Chengdu)
Area Range:13sqkm (Sansha) – 472472sqkm (Bayingolin)
Government:Various, provincial government, central government
Subdivision:Counties
Collapse:yes
Order:st
Prefecture-level divisions
T:地級行政區
S:地级行政区
P:Dì Jí Xíngzhèngqū
T2:地區
S2:地区
P2:Dìqū
Tib:ས་ཁུལ་
Wylie:sa khul
Zwpy:Sakü
Zha:Dagih
Mon:Translate as League (盟)
Monr:ayimaɣ
Uig:ۋىلايىت
Uly:Wilayit
Uyy:Vilayit
Sgs:Vilayit
Mnc:ᠪᠠ

China is officially divided into 339 prefecture-level divisions, which rank below provinces and above counties as the second-level administrative division in the country. Of these, 333 are located in territory controlled by the People's Republic of China, while 6 are located in land controlled by Taiwan.

There are four types of prefecture-level divisions:

Of these, leagues and prefectures are in the process of being abolished and transformed into one of the other two types of prefecture-level divisions.

History

See also: History of the administrative divisions of China. Modern prefectures emerged out of successive attempts by Yuan Shikai and later the Nationalist Government of the Republic of China to abolish the second level of administrative divisions. When these attempts eventually failed, modern prefectures were created in 1936. Chinese provinces are relatively large by international standards, and provincial administrations have difficulty administering counties without an intermediary level of government. However, prefecture-level divisions are still not a formally recognized level of government in the same way as provinces and counties.

Types

Prefecture-level cities

By far the most common type of prefecture-level division, prefecture-level cities are cities with the right to administer surrounding counties. This arrangement is known as "cities governing counties." Although there have been at least a few prefecture-level cities since the beginning of the PRC, they were relatively uncommon until the 1980s. Since then, hundreds of prefectures have been converted into prefecture-level cities. They are each headed by a People's Government, whose officials are appointed by the province but subject to approval by the local People's Congress. As with other levels of Chinese government, the People's Congress can adopt local regulations and elects a standing committee to exercise its powers when not in session.

Prefectures

Until the 1980s, the most common prefecture-level division was the prefecture, which operated as the field agencies of the provincial government. Unlike other prefecture-level governments, they do not have their own People's Governments or People's Congresses. They are instead the field agencies of the province whose role is to supervise the local county governments. However, the number of prefectures has declined rapidly since the 1980s. There are now only six prefectures left, mainly in rural areas of outlying provinces.

Autonomous prefectures

Unlike other prefecture-level divisions, autonomous prefectures are a formal part of the Chinese administrative structure. They were established in 1953 as part of a series of administrative reforms giving greater autonomy to ethnic minorities. Like leagues and prefecture-level cities, autonomous prefectures have a locally elected People's Government and People's Congress.

Leagues

Leagues are similar to autonomous prefectures but are unique to Inner Mongolia. Their numbers have been declining in recent years as most are converted to prefecture-level cities. Only three leagues remain.

List of prefecture-level divisions

Notes:

NameProvinceTypePopulation (2010)Area (km2)Prefecture Seat
HefeiAnhuiCity7,457,02711,323Shushan District
AnqingCity5,311,00015,398Daguan District
BengbuCity3,164,0005,952Bengshan District
BozhouCity4,851,0008,394Qiaocheng District
ChizhouCity1,403,0009,423Guichi District
ChuzhouCity3,938,00013,398Langya District
FuyangCity7,600,00013,300Yingzhou District
HuaibeiCity2,114,0002,725Xiangshan District
HuainanCity3,342,0005,533Tianjia'an District
HuangshanCity1,359,0009,807Tunxi District
Lu'anCity4,610,00015,447Jin'an District
Ma'anshanCity1,366,0001,686Yushan District
Suzhou, AnhuiCity5,353,0009,939Yongqiao District
TonglingCity724,0001,113Tongguanshan District
WuhuCity2,263,0003,317Jiujiang District
XuanchengCity2,533,00012,340Xuanzhou District
Fuzhou, FujianFujianCity7,115,37012,000Gulou District
XiamenCity3,531,3471,573Siming District
LongyanCity2,559,54519,069Xinluo District
NanpingCity2,645,54926,300Yanping District
NingdeCity2,821,99613,452Jiaocheng District
PutianCity2,778,5084,200Chengxiang District
QuanzhouCity8,128,53011,015Fengze District
SanmingCity2,503,38822,929Meilie District
ZhangzhouCity4,809,98312,607Xiangcheng District
JiuquanGansuCity1,095,947191,342Suzhou District
JiayuguanCity231,8531,133Xiongguan District
ZhangyeCity1,199,51516,216Ganzhou District
JinchangCity464,0508,896Jinchuan District
WuweiCity1,815,05433,000Liangzhou District
BaiyinCity1,708,7518,185Baiyin District
LanzhouCity3,616,16313,100Chengguan District
Gannan689,13240,898Hezuo City
DingxiCity2,698,6227,837Anding District
Linxia1,946,6778,169Linxia City
LongnanCity2,567,71827,000Wudu District
TianshuiCity3,262,54814,300Qinzhou District
PingliangCity2,068,03311,325Kongtong District
QingyangCity2,211,19110,470Xifeng District
QingyuanGuangdongCity3,698,39419,000Qingcheng District
ShaoguanCity2,826,61218,645Zhenjiang District
HeyuanCity2,953,01915,478Yuancheng District
MeizhouCity4,240,13915,836Meijiang District
ChaozhouCity2,669,8443,614Xiangqiao District
ZhaoqingCity3,918,08522,322Duanzhou District
YunfuCity2,360,1287,813Yuncheng District
FoshanCity7,194,3113,813Chancheng District
Guangzhou
City12,700,8007,434Yuexiu District
DongguanCity8,220,2372,465Nancheng District
HuizhouCity4,597,00211,158Huicheng District
ShanweiCity2,935,7175,271Cheng District
JieyangCity5,877,0255,240Rongcheng District
ShantouCity5,391,0282,064Jinping District
ZhanjiangCity6,993,30412,490Chikan District
MaomingCity5,817,75311,458Maonan District
YangjiangCity2,421,8127,813Jiangcheng District
JiangmenCity4,448,8719,443Pengjiang District
ZhongshanCity3,120,8841,800Dong District
ZhuhaiCity1,560,2291,653Xiangzhou District
ShenzhenCity10,357,9382,050Futian District
BaiseGuangxiCity3,466,80036,252Youjiang District
HechiCity3,369,20013,706Jinchengjiang District
LiuzhouCity3,758,70016,877Liubei District
GuilinCity4,748,00027,809Lingui District
HezhouCity1,954,10011,854Babu District
ChongzuoCity1,994,30017,345Jiangzhou District
NanningCity6,661,60022,293Qingxiu District
LaibinCity2,099,70013,400Xingbin District
GuigangCity4,118,80010,595Gangbei District
WuzhouCity2,882,20012,588Changzhou District
FangchenggangCity866,9002,386Gangkou District
QinzhouCity3,079,7005,250Qinbei District
BeihaiCity1,539,3001,288Haicheng District
Yulin, GuangxiCity5,487,40012,839Yuzhou District
BijieGuizhouCity6,536,37026,853Qixingguan District
ZunyiCity6,127,00911,877Huichuan District
TongrenCity3,092,36518,006Bijiang District
LiupanshuiCity2,851,1809,926Zhongshan District
AnshunCity2,297,3399,269Xixiu District
GuiyangCity4,324,5618,034Guanshanhu District
Qianxinan2,805,85716,804Xingyi City
Qiannan3,231,16126,207Duyun City
Qiandongnan3,480,62630,339Kaili City
DanzhouHainanCity932,3623,400Nada Town
HaikouCity2,046,1892,304Longhua District
SanyaCity685,4081,919Jiyang District
SanshaCity44413Xisha District (Xisha Islands)
ShijiazhuangHebeiCity9,547,86914,771Chang'an District
BaodingCity10,029,19720,911Xinshi District
CangzhouCity7,134,05314,383Yunhe District
ChengdeCity3,473,19739,519Shuangqiao District
HandanCity9,174,67912,068Congtai District
HengshuiCity4,340,7738,815Taocheng District
LangfangCity4,358,8396,417Guangyang District
QinhuangdaoCity2,987,6057,812Haigang District
TangshanCity7,577,28417,040Lubei District
XingtaiCity7,104,11412,486Qiaodong District
ZhangjiakouCity4,345,49136,947Qiaoxi District
Harbin
HeilongjiangCity10,635,97153,068Songbei District
DaqingCity2,904,5328,556Sartu District
HegangCity1,058,66514,784Xiangyang District
HeiheCity1,673,89854,390Aihui District
JiamusiCity2,552,09712,173Jiao District
JixiCity1,862,16122,351Jiguan District
MudanjiangCity2,798,72340,435Dong'an District
QiqiharCity5,367,00342,469Jianhua District
QitaiheCity920,4196,221Taoshan District
ShuangyashanCity1,462,62610,225Jianshan District
SuihuaCity5,416,43913,595Beilin District
Yichun, HeilongjiangCity1,148,12615,064Yichun District
Daxing'anlingPrefecture511,56446,755Jiagedaqi District
ZhengzhouHenanCity8,626,5057,446Zhongyuan District
AnyangCity5,172,8347,355Wenfeng District
HebiCity1,569,1002,182Qibin District
JiaozuoCity3,539,8604,071Jiefang District
KaifengCity4,676,1596,444Gulou District
LuoheCity2,544,1032,617Yancheng District
LuoyangCity6,549,48615,208Luolong District
NanyangCity10,263,00626,600Wolong District
PingdingshanCity4,904,3677,882Xinhua District
PuyangCity3,598,4944,188Hualong District
SanmenxiaCity2,233,87210,496Hubin District
ShangqiuCity7,362,47210,704Liangyuan District
XinxiangCity5,707,8018,169Weibin District
XinyangCity6,108,68318,819Shihe District
XuchangCity4,307,1994,996Weidu District
ZhoukouCity8,953,17211,959Chuanhui District
ZhumadianCity7,230,74415,083Yicheng District
Wuhan
HubeiCity9,785,3928,494Jiang'an District
EzhouCity1,048,6721,504Echeng District
HuanggangCity6,162,07217,446Huangzhou District
HuangshiCity2,429,3184,630Xialu District
JingmenCity2,873,68712,404Dongbao District
JingzhouCity5,691,70714,067Shashi District
ShiyanCity3,340,84323,600Maojian District
SuizhouCity2,162,2229,636Zengdu District
XiangyangCity5,500,30719,700Xiangcheng District
XianningCity2,462,5839,861Xian'an District
XiaoganCity4,814,5428,910Xiaonan District
YichangCity4,059,68621,227Xiling District
Enshi3,290,2949,266Enshi City
ChangshaHunanCity7,044,11811,820Yuelu District
ChangdeCity5,747,21818,189Wuling District
ChenzhouCity4,581,77819,317Beihu District
HengyangCity7,141,46215,310Zhengxiang District
HuaihuaCity4,741,94827,600Hecheng District
LoudiCity3,785,6278,107Louxing District
ShaoyangCity7,071,82620,829Daxiang District
XiangtanCity2,748,5525,015Yuetang District
YiyangCity4,313,08412,144Heshan District
YongzhouCity5,180,23522,255Lengshuitan District
YueyangCity5,477,9115,799Yueyanglou District
ZhangjiajieCity1,476,5219,516Yongding District
ZhuzhouCity3,855,60911,262Tianyuan District
Xiangxi2,547,83315,486Jishou City
AlxaInner MongoliaLeague231,334267,574Bayanhot Elute Subdistrict, Alxa Left Banner
BayannurCity1,669,91565,788Linhe District
WuhaiCity532,9021,754Haibowan District
OrdosCity1,940,65387,000Dongsheng District
BaotouCity2,650,36427,768Hondlon District
HohhotCity2,866,61517,224Xincheng District
UlanqabCity2,143,59054,491Jining District
XilingolLeague1,028,022202,580Xilinhot City
ChifengCity4,341,24590,275Hongshan District
TongliaoCity3,139,15359,535Horqin District
HingganLeague1,613,25059,806Ulanhot City
HulunbuirCity2,549,278263,953Hailar District
Nanjing
JiangsuCity8,004,6806,598Xuanwu District
ChangzhouCity4,591,9724,385Xinbei District
Huai'anCity4,799,88910,072Qinghe District
LianyungangCity4,393,9147,444Xinpu District
NantongCity7,282,8358,001Chongchuan District
SuqianCity4,715,5538,555Sucheng District
Suzhou, JiangsuCity10,465,9948,488Gusu District
Taizhou, JiangsuCity4,618,5585,790Hailing District
WuxiCity6,372,6244,787Binhu District
XuzhouCity8,580,50011,258Yunlong District
YanchengCity7,260,24016,920Tinghu District
YangzhouCity4,459,7606,658Guangling District
ZhenjiangCity3,113,3843,847Runzhou District
NanchangJiangxiCity5,042,5657,402Donghu District
Fuzhou, JiangxiCity3,912,3127,258Linchuan District
GanzhouCity8,368,44039,400Zhanggong District
Ji'anCity4,810,34025,300Jizhou District
JingdezhenCity1,587,4775,256Changjiang District
JiujiangCity4,728,76318,823Xunyang District
PingxiangCity1,854,5101,477Anyuan District
ShangraoCity6,579,71422,791Xinzhou District
XinyuCity1,138,8731,227Yushui District
Yichun, JiangxiCity5,419,5757,208Yuanzhou District
YingtanCity1,124,9067,208Yuehu District
Changchun
JilinCity7,677,08920,532Chaoyang District
BaichengCity2,033,05825,683Taobei District
BaishanCity1,295,75017,485Hunjiang District
JilinCity4,414,68127,700Chuanying District
LiaoyuanCity1,176,6455,125Longshan District
SipingCity3,386,32514,323Tiexi District
SongyuanCity2,881,08222,000Ningjiang District
TonghuaCity2,325,24215,195Dongchang District
Yanbian2,271,60043,509Yanji City
Shenyang
LiaoningCity8,106,17112,924Shenhe District
DalianCity6,690,43213,237Xigang District
AnshanCity3,645,8849,252Tiedong District
BenxiCity1,709,5388,411Pingshan District
ChaoyangCity3,044,64119,698Shuangta District
DandongCity2,444,69714,981Zhenxing District
FushunCity2,138,09010,816Shuncheng District
FuxinCity1,819,33910,445Xihe District
HuludaoCity2,623,54110,415Longgang District
JinzhouCity3,126,46310,111Taihe District
LiaoyangCity1,858,7684,731Baita District
PanjinCity1,392,4934,071Xinglongtai District
TielingCity2,717,73213,000Yinzhou District
YingkouCity2,428,5345,402Zhanqian District
YinchuanNingxiaCity1,993,0884,467Jinfeng District
ShizuishanCity725,4825,209Dawukou District
WuzhongCity1,273,79220,733Litong District
ZhongweiCity1,080,83216,986Shapotou District
GuyuanCity1,228,15614,412Yuanzhou District
HaixiQinghai489,338325,785Delingha
Haibei273,30434,700Sanjiaocheng Town, Haiyan County
XiningCity2,208,7087,372Chengzhong District
HaidongCity1,396,84612,810Ledu District
Hainan441,68946,000Qabqa Town, Gonghe County
Huangnan256,71617,921Rongwo Town, Tongren County
Yushu378,439188,794Yushu City
Golog181,68276,312Dawu Town, Maqên County
Xi'an
ShaanxiCity8,467,8379,983Weiyang District
AnkangCity2,629,90623,529Hanbin District
BaojiCity3,716,73118,712Jintai District
HanzhongCity3,416,19627,246Hantai District
ShangluoCity2,341,74219,292Shangzhou District
TongchuanCity834,4373,882Yaozhou District
WeinanCity5,286,07713,000Linwei District
XianyangCity4,894,83410,196Qindu District
Yan'anCity2,187,00937,000Baota District
Yulin, ShaanxiCity3,351,43743,578Yuyang District
Jinan
ShandongCity6,814,0008,177Lixia District
QingdaoCity8,715,10010,654Shinan District
BinzhouCity3,748,5009,444Bincheng District
DezhouCity5,568,20010,356Decheng District
DongyingCity2,035,3007,923Dongying District
HezeCity8,287,80012,238Mudan District
JiningCity8,081,90010,685Shizhong District
LiaochengCity5,789,9008,715Dongchangfu District
LinyiCity10,039,40017,251Lanshan District
RizhaoCity2,801,1005,310Donggang District
Tai'anCity5,494,2007,762Taishan District
WeifangCity9,086,20015,800Kuiwen District
WeihaiCity2,804,8005,436Huancui District
YantaiCity6,968,20013,739Laishan District
ZaozhuangCity3,729,3004,550Shizhong District
ZiboCity4,530,6005,938Zhangdian District
TaiyuanShanxiCity4,201,5916,956Xinghualing District
ChangzhiCity3,334,56413,864Cheng District
DatongCity3,318,05714,176Cheng District
JinchengCity2,279,1519,484Cheng District
JinzhongCity3,249,42516,408Yuci District
LinfenCity4,316,61220,275Yaodu District
LüliangCity3,727,05721,000Lishi District
ShuozhouCity1,714,8575,737Shuocheng District
XinzhouCity3,067,50125,180Xinfu District
YangquanCity1,368,5024,452Cheng District
YunchengCity5,134,79414,106Yanhu District
GarzêSichuan1,091,872151,078Kangding City
Ngawa898,71383,201Barkam Town, Barkam County
MianyangCity4,613,86220,249Fucheng District
GuangyuanCity2,484,12316,313Lizhou District
NanchongCity6,278,62212,479Shunqing District
BazhongCity3,283,77112,301Bazhou District
DazhouCity5,468,09216,591Tongchuan District
Ya'anCity1,507,26415,300Yucheng District
Chengdu
City14,047,62512,390Qingyang District
DeyangCity3,615,7595,818Jingyang District
SuiningCity3,252,5515,326Chuanshan District
Guang'anCity3,205,4766,344Guang'an District
MeishanCity2,950,5487,186Dongpo District
ZiyangCity3,665,0647,962Yanjiang District
LeshanCity3,235,75612,826Shizhong District
NeijiangCity3,702,8475,386Shizhong District
ZigongCity2,678,8984,372Ziliujing District
YibinCity4,472,00113,283Cuiping District
LuzhouCity4,218,42612,247Jiangyang District
Liangshan4,532,80960,423Xichang City
PanzhihuaCity1,214,1217,440Dong District
NgariTibetPrefecture95,465304,683Sênggêzangbo Town, Gar County
NagquCity462,382450,537Nagqu Town, Nagqu County
QamdoCity657,505110,154Karub District
XigazêCity703,292182,000Samzhubzê District
LhasaCity559,42331,662Chingoin District
Lhoka328,99079,699Zêtang Town, Nêdong County
NyingchiCity195,109116,175Bayi District
AltayXinjiangPrefecture603,280117,988Altay City
Bortala443,68024,896Bole (Börtala) City
TarbaĝatayPrefecture1,219,21294,891Tacheng (Qoqek) City
KaramayCity391,0087,734Karamay District
Changji1,428,59273,659Changji (Sanji) City
Ürümqi*ÜrümqiCity3,110,28014,217Tianshan District
TurpanCity622,67969,620Gaochang District
HamiCity572,400138,919Yizhou District
Ili2,482,627269,502Yining (Ĝulja) City
Kizilsu525,59970,916Atux City
KaxgarPrefecture3,979,362112,058Kashi (Kaxgar) City
AksuPrefecture2,370,887128,099Aksu City
Prefecture2,014,365248,946Hotan City
Bayingolin1,278,492472,472Korla City
KunmingYunnanCity6,432,00021,473Chenggong District
QujingCity5,855,00028,904Qilin District
YuxiCity2,304,00015,285Hongta District
BaoshanCity2,506,00019,040Longyang District
ZhaotongCity5,213,00023,192Zhaoyang District
LijiangCity1,245,00021,219Gucheng District
Pu'erCity2,543,00045,385Simao District
LincangCity2,430,00024,469Linxiang District
Dehong1,211,00011,526Mangshi
Nujiang534,00014,703Liuku Town, Lushui County
Dêqên400,00023,870Shangri-La City
Dali3,456,00029,459Dali City
Chuxiong2,684,00029,256Chuxiong City
Honghe4,501,00032,929Mengzi City
Wenshan3,518,00032,239Wenshan City
Xishuangbanna1,134,00019,700Jinghong City
Hangzhou
ZhejiangCity8,700,40016,847Jianggan District
NingboCity7,605,7009,365Yinzhou District
HuzhouCity2,893,5005,818Wuxing District
JiaxingCity4,501,7003,915Nanhu District
JinhuaCity5,361,60010,918Wucheng District
LishuiCity2,117,00017,298Liandu District
QuzhouCity2,122,7008,846Kecheng District
ShaoxingCity4,912,2008,256Yuecheng District
Taizhou, ZhejiangCity5,968,8009,411Jiaojiang District
WenzhouCity9,122,10011,784Lucheng District
ZhoushanCity1,121,3001,440Dinghai District

See also

Sources

Bibliography