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Nei or Inner Lingding Island, formerly romanized as Lintin or is an island in the Pearl River
/ref> Tamão was fortified by Simão de Andrade and reclaimed by the Chinese during the expulsion of the Portuguese in the 1520s. Western scholarship, following J. M. Braga, generally contends that this "Tamão" is Nei Lingding, the main island in the mouth of the Pearl River, 6 km off the coast of the mainland. Recent Chinese scholarship finds this identification to be insufficiently proven, however, and suggests a number of other potential islands including the nearby and far larger
NEILINGDING ISLAND AND FUTIAN NATURE RESERVE
Nei or Inner Lingding Island, formerly romanized as Lintin or is an island in the Pearl River estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...
in the southeastern Chinese province of Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...
. Although it is located closer to the eastern (Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...
and Shenzhen
Shenzhen (; ; ; ), also historically known as Sham Chun, is a major sub-provincial city and one of the special economic zones of China. The city is located on the east bank of the Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern provi ...
) shore of the estuary, it was until 2009 administratively part of the prefecture-level city
A prefecture-level city () or prefectural city is an administrative division of the People's Republic of China (PRC), ranking below a province and above a county in China's administrative structure.
During the Republican era, many of Chi ...
of Zhuhai
Zhuhai (, ; Yale: ''Jyūhói''), also known as Chuhai is a prefecture-level city located on the west bank of Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern Guangdong province, People's Republic of China, on the southeastern edge of P ...
, whose main administrative center is located on the west shore of the river. The jurisdiction of Nei Lingding Island was handed over to Shenzhen in 2009.
History
In May 1513, the Portuguese explorer Jorge Álvares arrived at an island near the coast of China they called " Tamão". This was the first contact of Europeans with China via the sea route around the Cape of Good Hope.Construction of Lung Kwu Chau Jetty - Cultural Heritage Impact Assessment/ref> Tamão was fortified by Simão de Andrade and reclaimed by the Chinese during the expulsion of the Portuguese in the 1520s. Western scholarship, following J. M. Braga, generally contends that this "Tamão" is Nei Lingding, the main island in the mouth of the Pearl River, 6 km off the coast of the mainland. Recent Chinese scholarship finds this identification to be insufficiently proven, however, and suggests a number of other potential islands including the nearby and far larger
Lantau Island
Lantau Island (also Lantao Island, Lan Tao) is the largest island in Hong Kong, located West of Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula, and is part of the New Territories. Administratively, most of Lantau Island is part of the Islands ...
.
As of 1814 Nei Lingding ( then romanized as "Lintin") was called the "outer anchorage" for European ships traveling to Canton
Canton may refer to:
Administrative division terminology
* Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland
* Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French
Arts and ente ...
(Guangzhou). They would have to stop at the island, have their cargo inspected and measured by the Chinese customs officials stationed at the island, and pay customs duties. In 1821, when the Chinese government prohibited importation of opium into the country's ports, Lintin became a base for drug smugglers; hulks of old boats, anchored near the island, served as warehouses and depots where imported opium would be reloaded onto smaller boats to be smuggled into Guangzhou and other ports. Edmund Roberts visited the island in 1832, and noted that there were "seven to eight ships" smuggling opium, including American boats. From the 1830s until the cession of Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...
in the 1840s, Lintin Island was the main base for British merchants in the Pearl River Delta area. The island was also a stopping point during monsoon
A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscil ...
season for ship repair. Ships would stay on the island upwards of six months.
Demographics
As of 1814, the population was estimated to be less than 60; in 1821, just under 2,000. When Edmund Roberts visited in 1832, he noted a population of approximately 5,000.Nature reserve
Since 1984, a part of the island has been designated the "Neilingding Island and Futian (福田) Nature Reserve". The reserve covers , including of land area and of mangrove forest, and was created to protect some 300 rhesus macaques and other animals, such as pangolins and pythons.See also
* Wai Lingding Island ('Outer Lingding Island') lies some to the southeast in the Wanshan Archipelago.References
{{coord, 22, 24, 46, N, 113, 48, 13, E, display=title Islands of Guangdong Islands of the Pearl River (China) Nature reserves in China Geography of Shenzhen