Huitong County ( zh, t=會同縣 , s=会同县 , p=Huìtóng Xiàn) is a county of

Hunan Hunan is an inland Provinces of China, province in Central China. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the Administrative divisions of China, province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to the east, Gu ...

Province, China. It is under the administration of

Huaihua Huaihua () is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Hunan province, China. It is known as the "Western Gate" of Hunan and is the largest prefecture-level city in the province.It covers and is bordered by Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous P ...

Prefecturel-level City. Huitong County covers . As of 2015, it had a registered population of 365,800 and a resident population of 330,500.the population of Huitong County in 2015, according to the Statistical Communiqué of Huitong County on the 2015 National Economic and Social Development – (2015年会同县国民经济和社会发展统计公报)
huaihua.gov.cn
o
huitong.gov.cn
/ref> Huitong County has eight

towns A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and 10

townships A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

under its jurisdiction, the government seat is Lincheng ().the divisions of Huitong County in 2015, according to the result on adjustment of township-level administrative divisions of Huitong County on November 19, 2015 - 《湖南省民政厅关于同意会同县乡镇区划调整方案的批复》(湘民行发〔2015〕51号)
rednet.cn
; also see 《湖南省乡镇区划调整改革109个县市区批复方案》

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/ref>

History

The earliest evidence of human settlement in the territory of Huitong County dates back to the

Neolithic Age The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wid ...

. During the Xia,

Shang The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty that ruled in the Yellow River valley during the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and followed by the Western Zhou dyn ...

and Zhou dynasties (2070 BC–256 BC), it was a part of Jingzhou ( zh, s=荆州, labels=no). During the

Spring and Autumn period The Spring and Autumn period () was a period in History of China, Chinese history corresponding roughly to the first half of the Eastern Zhou (256 BCE), characterized by the gradual erosion of royal power as local lords nominally subject t ...

and

Warring States period The Warring States period in history of China, Chinese history (221 BC) comprises the final two and a half centuries of the Zhou dynasty (256 BC), which were characterized by frequent warfare, bureaucratic and military reforms, and ...

(770 BC–221 BC), it was under the jurisdiction of Chu State (1115 BC–223 BC). After conquering all the states, Emperor

Qin Shi Huang Qin Shi Huang (, ; February 25912 July 210 BC), born Ying Zheng () or Zhao Zheng (), was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of China. He is widely regarded as the first ever supreme leader of a unitary state, unitary d ...

implemented the system of prefectures and counties in 221 BC. Huitong County belonged to Qianzhongjun ( zh, s=黔中郡, hp=, labels=no) and Xiangjun ( zh, s=象郡, hp=, labels=no). In the

Western Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) and a warring in ...

(206 BC–8 AD), Huitong County was under the jurisdiction of Wulingjun ( zh, s=武陵郡, hp=, labels=no). In the

Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu dominated China from AD 220 to 280 following the end of the Han dynasty. This period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and followed by the Jin dynasty (266–420), Western Jin dyna ...

period (220–280), Huitong County was under the rule of Wu State (222–280). In the

Southern dynasties The Northern and Southern dynasties () was a period of political division in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589, following the tumultuous era of the Sixteen Kingdoms and the Eastern Jin dynasty. It is sometimes considered as ...

(420–589), it came under the jurisdiction of Tancheng County ( zh, s=镡城县, labels=no) of Wuyang County ( zh, s=舞阳县, labels=no). In 581,

Emperor Wen of Sui Emperor Wen of Sui (; 21 July 541 – 13 August 604), personal name Yang Jian (), Xianbei name Puliuru Jian (), was the founding Emperor of China, emperor of the Chinese Sui dynasty. As a Buddhist, he encouraged the spread of Buddhism through ...

established the Sui Empire, it was under the jurisdiction of Longbiao County of Yuanlingjun ( zh, s=沅陵郡, labels=no). In 634, in the 8th year of Zhenguan period of the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...

(618–907), Langxi County ( zh, s=朗溪县, labels=no) split from Huitong County. In 1102, Sanjiang County ( zh, s=三江县, labels=no) was set up and renamed "Huitong County" in the following year. In 1914, Jingzhou was revoked and it came under the jurisdiction of Chenyuandao ( zh, s=辰沅道, labels=no). From 1936 to 1949, it successively belonged to the 4th Administrative Inspection Area, 7th Administrative Inspection Area, and 10th Administrative Inspection Area. On 4 October 1949, the

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...

took control of the county and renamed Huitong Special District ( zh, s=会同专区, labels=no). The county became a part of Zhijiang Special District ( zh, s=芷江专区, labels=no) in August 1952, Qianyang Special District ( zh, s=黔阳专区, labels=no) in December 1952, Qianyang Prefecture ( zh, s=, 黔阳地区, labels=no) in 1970, Huaihua Prefecture ( zh, s=怀化地区, labels=no) in 1981, and Huaihua City ( zh, s=怀化市, labels=no) in November 1997.

Administrative divisions

As of 2023, Huitong County has 6 ethnic townships, 4 townships and 8 towns under its jurisdiction. The county seat is the town of Lincheng.

Geography

Located on the west central margin of the province, Huitong County lies to the east of the border of

Guizhou ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = , image_map = Guizhou in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_alt = Map showing the location of Guizhou Province , map_caption = Map s ...

. It is bordered to the north by

Zhijiang County Zhijiang Dong Autonomous County (), usually referred to as Zhijiang County () ( Dong language: Zix jangh) is an autonomous county of the Dong people in Hunan Province, China. It is under the administration of Huaihua prefecture-level city. Zhi ...

and

Hongjiang Hongjiang (), formerly Qianyang County () is a county-level city in Hunan Province, China. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Huaihua. Located on the southwest of the province and the south of Huaihua, the city is bo ...

City, to the east and southeast by Suining County, to the south by Jingzhou County, to the west by Tianzhu County of Guizhou.

Rivers

There are 725 rivers and streams in the county. The Qushui River ( zh, s=渠水河, labels=no) and Wu River, both are tributaries of the

Yuan River The Yuan River, also known by its Chinese name as the Yuanjiang, is one of the four largest rivers in Hunan province in southeast-central China. It is a tributary of Yangtze River. It is long and rises in Guizhou province in the Miao Mountain ...

, flow through Huitong County south to north.

Mountains

The highest point in the county is Xuefengjie Mountain ( zh, s=雪峰界, labels=no) which stands above sea level. The Golden Dragon Mountain ( zh, s=金龙山, labels=no) is the second highest peak within the county, with a height of .

Climate

Huitong County is in the central subtropical monsoon humid climate zone, with an average annual temperature of , total annual rainfall of , a frost-free period of 303 days and annual average sunshine hours in 1405.7 hours.

Demographics

As of 2021, the

National Bureau of Statistics of China The National Bureau of Statistics () is a deputy-ministerial level agency directly under the State Council of China. Established in August 1952, the bureau is responsible for collection, investigation, research and publication of statistics c ...

estimates the county's population now to be 365,200, including 193,000 males and 172,200 females, with a sex ratio of 112:100. The birth population is 2,501, with a birth rate of 6.5‰, a death rate of 2,186, a mortality rate of 5.7‰, and a natural population growth rate of 0.8‰.

Language

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

is the official language. The local people speak

Kam language The Kam or Gam language (), also known as Dong (), is a Kam–Sui language spoken by the Dong people. ''Ethnologue'' distinguishes three Kam varieties as separate but closely related languages. Demographics Southern Dong Almost 1.5 million sp ...

and

Hmongic languages The Hmongic languages, also known as Miao languages ( zh, s=苗语, p=Miáoyǔ), include the various languages spoken by the Miao people (such as Hmong, Hmu, and Xong). Hmongic languages also include various languages spoken by non- Mienic-spe ...

Religion

The Dong and Miao people believe in

animism Animism (from meaning 'breath, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Animism perceives all things—animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather systems, human handiwork, and in ...

and worship ancestors.

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

and

Taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...

are the two major religions in Huitong County.

Transportation

Highway

The G65 Baotou–Maoming Expressway, also popularly known as Baomao Expressway, is a north-south highway passing through the east of the county limits. The

China National Highway 209 China National Highway 209 (G209) runs from Sonid Left Banner, Inner Mongolia to Beihai, Guangxi province. It is 3,435 kilometres in length and runs south from Huhhot towards Shanxi province, Henan province, Hubei province, Hunan province, and ...

runs north to south through the west of the county. The Provincial Highway S342 is a north-south highway passing through the county's downtown, commercial, and industrial districts.

Railway

The

Jiaozuo–Liuzhou railway The Jiaozuo–Liuzhou railway or Jiaoliu railway (), is a major trunkline railroad in China between Jiaozuo in central China and Liuzhou in southern China. The line is long and runs north–south through four provinces.(Chinese焦柳铁路简� ...

runs north-south through the downtown county and the Huitong Railway Station serves the county.