Xinxiang


Xinxiang is a prefecture-level city in northern Henan province, China.
It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to its southwest, Kaifeng to its southeast, Hebi and Anyang to its north, Jiaozuo to its west, and the provinces of Shanxi and Shandong to its northwest and east respectively.
Its total population was 6,251,929 as of the 2020 Chinese Census. As of the 2018 estimation, 2,743,200 lived in the built-up area made of 4 urban districts, Yanjin county, Xinxiang county and Huixian City which are now being conurbated as the city is expanding very quickly.
Xinxiang is an industrial city in northern Henan, an important city on the Beijing-Guangzhou Railway and a city in the Central Plains urban agglomeration, and was once one of the eight major towns in northern China. In ancient times, there were major events that influenced the course of Chinese history, such as the Battle of Mingtiao, the Battle of Muye, and the Chenqiao Mutiny. Modern Xinxiang is China's excellent tourist city, national health city, national garden city, national forest city, and one of the top 100 cities in China in terms of comprehensive urban competitiveness.

History

During the period of Yao and Shun, China was divided into nine prefectures, and the city's territory belonged to Jizhou, Yanzhou and Yuzhou. At the end of the Xia Dynasty, Shang Tang attacked Xia Jie, and the Battle of Mingtiao took place between Fengqiu County and Changyuan County, resulting in the defeat of Jie and the death of Xia.
Xinxiang was the site of the Battle of Muye, where the Shang dynasty was overthrown by the armies of King Wu of Zhou. The region was first named Xinxiang in the 6th year of the Kaihuang era of the Sui dynasty, when Xinxiang county was established in the territories of southwestern and eastern Huojia County. In 960 AD, Later Zhou forces loyal to Zhao Kuangyin mutinied against the rule of Guo Zongxun at, located in modern-day Fengqiu County, and declared Zhao emperor, marking the beginning of the Song dynasty.
Xinxiang served as the capital of the short-lived Pingyuan Province, which administered the neighboring cities of Anyang, Hebi, Puyang, Jiaozuo and Heze between 1949 and 1952. In July 2021, Xinxiang was harshly impacted by the flooding in Henan, which affected about 470,000 people and over of cropland.

Geography

Climate

Geographic location

Xinxiang is located in the northern part of Henan Province, between 113 degrees 23 minutes and 114 degrees 59 minutes east longitude and 34 degrees 53 minutes and 35 degrees 50 minutes north latitude. It is 600 kilometers away from the capital Beijing and 80 kilometers away from the provincial capital Zhengzhou. It is connected to the oil city Puyang in the east and to the west of Luxi. Bordering the Yellow River to the south, it is separated from Zhengzhou and Kaifeng by the river; to the west, it is connected to Jiaozuo and shares a border with Shanxi. To the north, it relies on the Taihang and is adjacent to Hebi and Anyang.

Pollution

According to a 2015 report by Greenpeace, Henan has the most severe air pollution of all the provinces in China, with an average PM2.5 concentration of 103.3 μg/m3. The report found that Xinxiang has the 13th most polluted city air in China, with a PM2.5 concentration of 114.6 μg/m3 during the first quarter of 2015. Swiss firm IQAir reported that Xinxiang suffered from an average PM2.5 concentration of 51.5 μg/m3 in 2020, ranking 31st in China, and 89th in the world.
In 2015, environmental non-governmental organization Airman purchased wheat samples farmed in the town of Wangcun, in Xinxiang, near a battery factory, and found it had cadmium levels up to 17 times the national safe limit. The following year, the group again purchased wheat samples in the towns of and Wangcun, and found cadmium levels up to 34.1 times the national safe limit. Following this report, the Xinxiang municipal government launched a program to purchase contaminated wheat, and convert the farmland to other purposes. However, again in 2017, the group purchased additional wheat samples, and found them to have cadmium levels up to 18 times the national limit, with all samples purchased exceeding national safety limits. In response, government officials from the town of Dakuai met with the group, and pledged to further investigate the samples and stop growing wheat on contaminated farmland.

Religion

Xinxiang Roman Catholics are served by the Apostolic Prefecture of Xinxiang, which was established on July 7, 1936, on missionary territory split off from the then Apostolic Vicariate of Weihuifu . It is a pre-diocesan jurisdiction, which is exempt, and not part of any ecclesiastical province.
It has had the following incumbent Apostolic Prefects of Xinxiang :
Xinxiang is the headquarters of the 83rd Group Army of the People's Liberation Army, one of the three group armies that comprise the Jinan Military Region responsible for the defense of the Yellow River plain.

Administration

The prefecture-level city administers 4 districts, 3 county-level cities and 5 counties.
  • District:
  • *Hongqi District
  • *Weibin District
  • *Muye District
  • *Fengquan District
  • County-level city:
  • *Huixian City
  • *Weihui City
  • *Changyuan City
  • County:
  • *Xinxiang County
  • *Huojia County
  • *Yuanyang County
  • *Yanjin County
  • *Fengqiu County
Map

Population

By the end of 2022, the city's permanent population was 6.166 million, including 3.639 million urban residents and 2.527 million rural residents; The urbanization rate of permanent residents was 59.01%, an increase of 0.62 percentage points over the end of the previous year. 43,000 people were born, with a birth rate of 6.90 per thousand. 46,000 people died, with a mortality rate of 7.40 per thousand. The natural decrease of population was 0.3 million, and the natural growth rate was -0.5%.
According to the seventh National Census in 2020, as of 0:00 on November 1, 2020, the city's permanent population was 6,251,929. Among them, male population accounted for 50.23%; The female population is 49.77%. The sex ratio of the total population was 100.91.
The population aged 0–14 accounted for 23.17%; The population aged 15–59 accounted for 59.15%; 17.68% of the population was 60 years of age or older, of which 13.04% were 65 years of age or older.
For every 100,000 population, 11,743 people had a university degree ; The population with high school education was 20163; 37,885 people with secondary education; The population with a primary education level is 20,994.
Surnames from Xinxiang are: Major Zuo, Ning, Yan, etc.

Economy

, a major home appliance company, was located in Xinxiang prior to its liquidation in 2018. One of the business units spun off in Frestech's dissolution, Xinfei Electric Group, continues to operate in Xinxiang. Xinfei Electric Group, now a wholly owned subsidiary of Aviation Industry Corporation of China, produces refrigerated trucks, military vehicles, RVs, modular building structures, precision equipment, refrigerators, air conditioners, and environmental control equipment.
Other important enterprises located in Xinxiang include Golden Dragon Copper Group, Bailu Chemical Fibre, Henan Kelong Group, and AVIC XINHANG Industry Corporation.

Agriculture and textiles

Textiles and processed food are also major products of Xinxiang. As an old textiles base, the cotton industry is very developed in Xinxiang.

Transport

Xinxiang serves as a rail junction and industrial center at the head of navigation on the Wei River. The Wei River, made navigable for small vessels by river improvements in the 1950s, links the city with Tianjin.

Railways

Xinxiang is located at the junction of the Beijing-Guangzhou, Xinxiang-Yueshan, Xinxiang-Yanzhou, and Zhengzhou–Jinan Railways. The Xinxiang metro area has two major railway stations: Xinxiang Railway Station in Weibin and Xinxiang East Railway Station in Muye.

Expressways

Xinxiang is a major city for research, ranking as the 138th city in the world by scientific research outputs as of 2025, as tracked by the Nature Index.
There are several universities and colleges located in the prefecture-level city.