Xichang (Northern Yi: /o̝˨˩dʐo̝˧/) is a city in and the seat of the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture in the south of Sichuan , China.
8-608: The Qiongdu were the local people at the time of contact with China. The county of Qiongdu is attested in the area from the Han dynasty . Under the Song dynasty , a local lord was given the title of " King of the Qiongdu" ( Qiongdu Wang ). The area formed part of the medieval Kingdom of Dali and was subdued by the Mongolians from 1272–4, after which it was incorporated into Yunnan of
16-475: A mountainous region of far southern Sichuan. The city is just northeast of the prefecture -level city of Panzhihua . The Anning River is the main river in the area. It is an affluent of the Yalong , Jinsha , and Yangtze rivers . It lies near Qiong Lake . Owing to its low latitude and high elevation, Xichang has a monsoon -influenced humid subtropical climate ( Köppen Cwa ) milder and far sunnier than
24-588: The Qing , it was officially known as Ningyuan Commandery but also continued to be referenced under the old name Jianchang. In the 19th century, it was the center of Sichuan 's production of " white wax ". In 1850, a magnitude-7.5 earthquake killed more than 20,600 people in Xichang. The city walls in Xichang County, three gate towers—the west, south and north—and some prisons collapsed. Roman Catholicism
32-679: The Sichuan Basin , with mild, very sunny and dry winters, and very warm, rainy summers. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from 9.9 °C (49.8 °F) in January to 22.6 °C (72.7 °F) in July, and the annual mean is 17.15 °C (62.9 °F). Over 60% of the 1,025 mm (40.4 in) annual precipitation occurs from June to August. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 36% in September to 72% in January,
40-544: The Yuan dynasty . It was organized as the Jiandu Ningyuan duhufu, qianhufu, or wanhufu but continued to be often known as Jiandu. In the book of his travels , Marco Polo recorded that the people of Jiandu and its hinterland used no coins but rods of gold bullion reckoned in saggi . A small change was made using half- catty pieces of molded salt, each reckoned as one-eightieth of a saggio of pure gold. Under
48-555: The Xichang North railway station and Xichang South railway station. The city possesses its own airport, Xichang Qingshan Airport , which is attached to the spaceport by a railroad line and a motorway directly. Xichang lies on the G5 Beijing–Kunming Expressway . Xichang's spaceport is located about 64 kilometres (40 mi) northwest of the city and went into operation in 1984. Communications satellites are
56-464: The city receives 2,367 hours of bright sunshine annually. Xichang comprises 7 subdistricts , 11 towns , 6 townships and 2 ethnic townships . Xichang Railway Station (西昌站) is a main station on the Chengdu–Kunming railway . Construction of a fast express train line has been completed. It connected Panzhihua , Chengdu and Guangyuan . There are also some other stations in the city, including
64-607: Was introduced to Ningyuan in the 18th century by the Paris Foreign Missions Society . The Apostolic Vicariate of Kienchang was established in 1910 and was elevated to a diocese in 1946. The episcopal residence is located next to the Cathedral of the Angels, Xichang . In the 1980s, its population was thought to be around 140,000 people. In 2012, it had an estimated population of 481,796. Xichang lies in
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