Beijing, the capital of the People’s Republic of China, is the center of the nation’s politics, culture and international exchanges and a modern metropolis full of vitality. The beauty of the city has for hundreds of years attracted numerous people to visit this ancient capital in the East.

History and Relics

Beijing is home to the well-known “Peking Man (Sinanthropus pekinensis)” relic that dated back 200,000 to 700,000 years ago. Evidence of historical record and excavated relics has proved that the city has stood on its current site for well over 3,000 years. It was the capital city for Liao, Jin, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties in ancient and contemporary Chinese history.

With the founding of People’s Republic of China on October 1st, 1949, Beijing became the capital of the new republic and has since developed itself into a political and cultural center of China and international exchange hub. Cultural relics in Beijing like the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, Zhoukoudian Peking Man Relics, the Temple of Heaven, the Summer Place and the Ming Tombs are World Cultural and Natural Heritage approved by the United Nations. There are a total of 7,309 historical and relic sites in Beijing among which 60 are classified as national cultural heritages and another 234 are Beijing cultural heritages.

Natural Geography

Beijing Municipality is located between 116° 20′ east longitude and 39°56′ north latitude, with Tianjin City on its eastern border and Hebei Province on the other three sides.

Lying in the northern part of North China Plain, Beijing is surrounded by mountains on the west, the north and the northeast. The northeastern part of the city is high while the southwestern part is low topographically, with a southeastern plain tilted gradually downward to the Bohai Sea. Major rivers flowing through Beijing include Yongding River, Chaobai River, North Canal and Juma River that mostly originated in the northeastern mountainous areas of Beijing. These rivers flow through rugged mountains towards southeastern plain of Beijing and in the end join the Bohai Sea.

Beijing has a continental monsoon climate with four distinct seasons. Spring and autumn are short while winter and summer are long. The average temperature of Beijing in year 2002 is 13.2oC. December was the coldest month with an average temperature of -2.9oC while July was the hottest month with an average temperature of 27.5oC. Average annual rainfall in 2002 equaled 370.4 millimeters, which was relatively low. The frost-free period of Beijing for year 2002 was 199 days.

Beijing occupies a total area of 16,807.8 square kilometers. Around 10,417.5 square kilometers are mountainous areas, which constitute 62 percent of the total space of Beijing. The plain area of Beijing covers 6,390.3 square kilometers, which accounts for 38 percent of the city’s total area. Beijing municipality has 16 subordinate districts and 2 counties.

Population and Nationalities

By the end of 2002, Beijing has a total of 14.23 million residents among which 11.363 million people are registered permanent ones. The population density of Beijing is 847 people per square kilometer.

According to the Fifth Census conducted in year 2000, average life expectancy of Beijing residents reached 76.7 years. Beijing boasts all 56 ethnic nationalities of the country, with nationality of Hui, Manchu, Mongolia and Korea exceeding 10,000 people.