Langfang () is a

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 China' ...

Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, and ...

Province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

, which was known as Tianjin Prefecture until 1973. It was renamed Langfang Prefecture after Tianjin became a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality ...

and finally upgraded into a prefecture-level city in 1988. Langfang is located approximately midway between

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

and

Tianjin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popu ...

. At the 2020 census, the population of Langfang was 5,464,087, of whom 1,147,591 lived in the built-up (''or metro'') area made of Guangyang and Anci districts; its total area is around . Langfang borders Baoding to the southwest, Cangzhou to the south (both prefecture-level cities of Hebei), Beijing to the north and Tianjin to the east. Sanhe City and Dachang Hui County are now conurbated with Beijing, so that they form part of the same built-up area. Langfang is the smallest prefecture-level city of Hebei Province by land area.

Administrative divisions

Langfang consists of 2 county-level districts, 2

county-level cities A county-level municipality (), county-level city or county city, formerly known as prefecture-controlled city (1949–1970: ; 1970–1983: ), is a county-level administrative division of the People's Republic of China. County-level ...

, 5

counties A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

, 1

autonomous county Autonomous counties () and autonomous banners () are county-level autonomous administrative divisions of China Chinese autonomous administrative divisions are associated with one or more ethnic minorities that are designated as autonomous w ...

, and one economic development zone (). Development district: * ()

Geography

Considering Langfang's position between these two prominent cities, it is a relatively green city. Every along the city's major streets are parks where local people stroll and take exercise. Langfang's five-kilometer long pedestrian street is now the longest in China. On the other hand, air pollution is a severe problem and in 2013 it was ranked among the 10 worst cities in China for air pollution, along with 6 other cities in Hebei including Xingtai, Shijiazhuang, Baoding,

Handan Handan is a prefecture-level city located in the southwest of Hebei province, China. The southernmost prefecture-level city of the province, it borders Xingtai on the north, and the provinces of Shanxi on the west, Henan on the south and Shan ...

, Hengshui and Tangshan, are among China's 10 most polluted cities.

The "Northern Three Counties" Exclave

The "Northern Three Counties of Langfang"

exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

, separated from the rest of the province, is a part of Langfang City. The exclave comprises Sanhe City, Xianghe County, and Dachang Hui Autonomous County and is located between the municipalities of Beijing and Tianjin.

Climate

History

On June 26, 1900, during the Boxer Movement, belligerent European forces heading towards Beijing were stopped by Boxers at the Battle of Langfang, and were defeated and forced to turn back to Tianjin. The Chinese forces were victorious. It was the site of another battle during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Thea ...

Economy

Langfang's economy emphasizes computers and technology and manufacturing. To that effect Langfang is home to an Export Processing Zone, an area for factories, and the Oriental University City, a 4-billion yuan investment that began construction in 1999, where some 30 universities enroll about 50,000 students. There are two national oil and gas companies based in Langfang. The

China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau The China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering Co., Ltd. (CPP) is a subsidiary of the China National Petroleum Corporation and the primary builder of pipelines in China. The company has built much of the cross-country pipeline infrastructure in China a ...

, the primary builder of pipelines in China, and the

ENN Group ENN Group () is a Chinese energy company and one of China's largest private companies. Founded by Wang Yusuo Wang Yusuo (; born 1964) is a Chinese billionaire businessman. He is the founder and chairman of ENN Group, a natural gas distribu ...

, a natural gas company, are both based in the city.

Development Zone

*Langfang Export Processing Zone The Langfang Export Processing Zone (Langfang EPZ) was established by the State Council in 2005. It has a planned area of 0.5 km2 and commenced operation in October 2008. It is the only state-level development zone in Langfang. Langfang EPZ is located in the Langfang Economic and Technical Development Zone (Langfang ETDZ), which is a province-level development zone. It is from Beijing's third ring-road, and from down-town Tianjin. It is from Beijing Capital International Airport, and from Tianjin Binhai International Airport, airports which are China's first and twelfth largest airports in terms of cargo transport, respectively. The nation's fourth largest seaport, Tianjin Port, is from Langfang EPZ.

Transport

Langfang contains part of the

Beijing Daxing International Airport Beijing Daxing International Airport , is one of two international airports serving Beijing, the other one being Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK). It is located on the border of Beijing and Langfang, Hebei Province. It has been ...

, opened in September 2019. It is also only a one-hour drive from

Beijing Capital International Airport Beijing Capital International Airport is one of two international airports serving Beijing, the other one being Beijing Daxing International Airport (PKX). It is located northeast of Beijing's city center, in an exclave of Chaoyang District ...

and the Tianjin New Port. The

Langfang North railway station Langfang North railway station (), formerly known as Langfang railway station before June 1, 2011, is a railway station situated between Beijing and Tianjin, in Langfang, Hebei. It is served by the conventional Beijing–Shanghai railway and is ...

serves the older

Beijing–Shanghai railway The Beijing–Shanghai railway or Jinghu railway () is a railway line between Beijing and Shanghai. The line has a total length of and connects the municipalities of Beijing, Tianjin, and Shanghai, as well as the provinces of Hebei, Shandong, ...

, while the newer

Langfang railway station The Langfang railway station () is a high-speed railway station in Anci District, Langfang, Hebei, situated between Beijing and Tianjin. It is served by the Beijing–Shanghai high-speed railway. The railway is situated adjacent to Langfang Nor ...

opened in July 2011 as the penultimate stop on the

Beijing–Shanghai high-speed railway The Beijing–Shanghai high-speed railway (or Jinghu high-speed railway, from its name in Mandarin) is a high-speed railway that connects two major economic zones in the People's Republic of China: the Bohai Economic Rim and the Yangtze Riv ...

References

External links

Official website
* http://www.langfang.net/ * https://web.archive.org/web/20090122140613/http://www.langfangtv.com/ - TV station * http://www.lfnews.cn - news * http://www.lfsfxy.edu.cn Langfang Teachers College {{Authority control Cities in Hebei Prefecture-level divisions of Hebei Enclaves and exclaves