Ordos (city)

Ordos
鄂尔多斯市 • ᠣᠷᠳᠣᠰ ᠬᠣᠲᠠ
Prefecture-level city

Genghis Khan Memorial in Ordos City

Ordos City (red) in Inner Mongolia (orange)
Ordos

Location of the city centre in Inner Mongolia

Coordinates: 39°36′N 109°47′E / 39.600°N 109.783°E / 39.600; 109.783Coordinates: 39°36′N 109°47′E / 39.600°N 109.783°E / 39.600; 109.783
Country China
Region Inner Mongolia
Municipal seat Dongsheng District
Area
 • Prefecture-level city 86,752 km2 (33,495 sq mi)
 • Urban 2,137 km2 (825 sq mi)
 • Metro 2,137 km2 (825 sq mi)
Elevation 1,305 m (4,281 ft)
Highest elevation 2,149 m (7,051 ft)
Lowest elevation 850 m (2,790 ft)
Population (2014 est.)
 • Prefecture-level city 2,035,653
 • Density 23/km2 (61/sq mi)
 • Urban 582,544
 • Urban density 270/km2 (710/sq mi)
 • Metro 582,544
 • Metro density 270/km2 (710/sq mi)
Time zone China Standard (UTC+8)
Postal code 017000
GDP
(2015)		 CNY 422.61 billion
(US$ 67.85 billion)
GDP per capita
(2015)		 CNY 207,569
(US$ 31,200)
Licence plate prefixes 蒙K
Administrative division code 150600
ISO 3166-2 CN-15-06
Website www.ordos.gov.cn
Ordos
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese 鄂尔多斯
Traditional Chinese 鄂爾多斯
Mongolian name
Mongolian Cyrillic Ордос хот
Mongolian script ᠣᠷᠳᠣᠰ ᠬᠣᠲᠠ

Ordos (Mongolian: ᠣᠷᠳᠣᠰ ᠬᠣᠲᠠ Ордос қота Ordos qota; simplified Chinese: 鄂尔多斯市; traditional Chinese: 鄂爾多斯市; pinyin: È'ěrduōsī) is one of the twelve major subdivisions of Inner Mongolia, China. It lies within the Ordos Loop of the Yellow River. Although mainly rural, Ordos is administered as a prefecture-level city. Its administrative seat is situated in Dongsheng which had a population of 582,544 inhabitants as of the 2010 census. Another Banner is being urbanized quickly around the city of Ejin Horo with about 251,894 inhabitants at the 2010 census which is the seat of Ordos Airport.

Ordos is known for its lavish government projects, including the new Kangbashi District, a large District with abundant infrastructure, seldom used by residents and frequently described as a "ghost city".[1][2] It hosted the 2012 Miss World Final.

Etymology

The area had been administered under the Ih Ju League, also spelled Ikh Juu (Mongolian: ᠶᠡᠬᠡ ᠵᠤᠤ ᠠᠶᠢᠮᠠᠭ Yeke Juu ayimaγ; Chinese: 伊克昭盟; pinyin: Yīkèzhāo Méng) since the 17th century, and was redesignated a prefecture-level city and renamed to Ordos on 26 February 2001. "Ordos" means "palaces" in the Mongolian language.[3] Ordos originally referred to a tribe belonging to the Yeke Juu (Ike Chao ‘great monastery’) league and later included the tribe’s area, hence the Ordos, or Ordus, the area within the big bend of the Yellow River. Mongolian ordu(n), ord ‘court, residence of a ruler; palace; camp’, also for 'camp bodyguards'. According to Ramstedt -s is a plural suffix; further: ordu, orda; Turkic orta ‘a center’; Mongolian > Turkish orda ‘camp’ > Hindi urdū > English "horde." [4] The name is sometimes claimed to be related to the eight white yurts of Genghis Khan.[5] Linguistically, the Ordos dialect of Mongolian is quite different from neighboring Chakhar Mongolian.

Geography and climate

Ordos's prefectural administrative region occupies 86,752 square kilometres (33,495 sq mi) and covers the bigger part of the Ordos Desert, although the urban area itself is relatively small. It borders the prefecture-level divisions of Hohhot to the east, Baotou to the northeast, Bayan Nur to the north, Alxa League to the northwest, Wuhai to the west, the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region to its southwest, and the provinces of Shaanxi and Shanxi to the south. The maximal north-south extent is 340 km (210 mi), while from east to west it stretches for 400 km (250 mi).[6]

The area of Ordos Shi can roughly be divided into a hilly area in the east, high plateaus in the west and center, sandy deserts in the north and south, and plains at the southern bank of the Yellow River. The highest elevation, at 2,149 metres (7,051 ft), is located in the west, the lowest point, at 850 m (2,790 ft), is in the east.

There are two large deserts in the territory of Ordos Shi: Kubuqi Desert (库布其沙漠) in the north and the Maowusu Desert (毛乌素沙漠) in the south. The Kubuqi Desert occupies 19.2% of Ordos, or 16,600 km2 (6,400 sq mi), while the Maowusu Desert takes up 28.8% of the area, or 25,000 km2 (9,700 sq mi).

Ordos features a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk), marked by long, cold and very dry winters; very warm, somewhat humid summers; and strong winds, especially in spring. The annual precipitation is 300 to 400 millimetres (11.8 to 15.7 in) in the eastern part of the city and 190 to 350 mm (7.5 to 13.8 in) in the western part. Most of the rain falls between July and September, with very little snow in winter; average annual evaporation reaches 2,000 to 3,000 mm (79 to 118 in). In the city proper, the monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from −10.5 °C (13.1 °F) in January to 21.0 °C (69.8 °F) in July, while the annual mean is 6.16 °C (43.1 °F). Sunshine duration averages 2,700 to 3,200 hours annually.[6]

Climate data for Ordos (1971−2000)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 7.8
(46)		 13.9
(57)		 19.4
(66.9)		 32.2
(90)		 32.9
(91.2)		 32.2
(90)		 35.3
(95.5)		 33.3
(91.9)		 33.3
(91.9)		 24.4
(75.9)		 18.2
(64.8)		 10.6
(51.1)		 35.3
(95.5)
Average high °C (°F) −4.8
(23.4)		 −1.3
(29.7)		 5.2
(41.4)		 14.1
(57.4)		 20.8
(69.4)		 25.0
(77)		 26.7
(80.1)		 24.5
(76.1)		 19.4
(66.9)		 12.6
(54.7)		 4.0
(39.2)		 −2.9
(26.8)		 11.9
(53.5)
Daily mean °C (°F) −10.5
(13.1)		 −7.2
(19)		 −0.5
(31.1)		 7.7
(45.9)		 14.6
(58.3)		 19.1
(66.4)		 21.0
(69.8)		 19.1
(66.4)		 13.8
(56.8)		 6.8
(44.2)		 −1.7
(28.9)		 −8.3
(17.1)		 6.16
(43.08)
Average low °C (°F) −14.7
(5.5)		 −11.5
(11.3)		 −5.4
(22.3)		 1.9
(35.4)		 8.4
(47.1)		 13.0
(55.4)		 15.8
(60.4)		 14.3
(57.7)		 8.8
(47.8)		 2.1
(35.8)		 −5.9
(21.4)		 −12.3
(9.9)		 1.2
(34.2)
Record low °C (°F) −28.4
(−19.1)		 −27.5
(−17.5)		 −22.8
(−9)		 −11.6
(11.1)		 −4.8
(23.4)		 1.7
(35.1)		 9.1
(48.4)		 4.3
(39.7)		 −2.1
(28.2)		 −13.6
(7.5)		 −21.8
(−7.2)		 −25.3
(−13.5)		 −28.4
(−19.1)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 2.1
(0.083)		 4.4
(0.173)		 10.8
(0.425)		 11.4
(0.449)		 25.8
(1.016)		 44.8
(1.764)		 105.7
(4.161)		 105.5
(4.154)		 44.7
(1.76)		 19.4
(0.764)		 5.3
(0.209)		 1.3
(0.051)		 381.2
(15.009)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 2.1 2.9 4.3 3.4 5.9 8.7 12.2 11.9 8.1 4.4 2.6 1.9 68.4
Source: Weather China[6]

Economy

Ordos is one of the richest regions of China. With a nominal per-capita GDP of US$14,500 in 2008, it is ranked ahead of Beijing.[7] It is extremely rich in natural resources, having one sixth of the national coal reserves. The pillars of its economy are textiles (wool), coal mining, petrochemicals, electricity generation, and production of building materials.

Administrative subdivisions

Ordos Shi is divided into two districts and seven banners:

Map
Name Mongolian Hanzi Hanyu Pinyin Population (2010) Area (km²) Density (/km²)
Dongsheng District ᠳ᠋ᠦᠩᠱᠧᠩ ᠲᠣᠭᠣᠷᠢᠭ
(Düŋšėŋ toɣoriɣ)		 东胜区 Dōngshèng Qū 582,544 2,137 108
Hia'bagx District ᠬᠢᠶ᠎ᠠ ᠪᠠᠭᠰᠢ ᠲᠣᠭᠣᠷᠢᠭ
(Kiy-a baγsi toɣoriɣ)		 康巴什区 Kāngbāshí Qū
Dalad Banner ᠳᠠᠯᠠᠳ ᠬᠣᠰᠢᠭᠤ
(Dalad qosiɣu)		 达拉特旗 Dálātè Qí 322,101 8,192 40
Jungar Banner ᠵᠡᠭᠦᠨᠭᠠᠷ ᠬᠣᠰᠢᠭᠤ
(Jegünɣar qosiɣu)		 准格尔旗 Zhǔngé'ěr Qí 356,501 7,535 36
Otog Front Banner ᠣᠲᠣᠭ ᠤᠨ ᠡᠮᠦᠨᠡᠳᠦ ᠬᠣᠰᠢᠭᠤ
(Otoɣ-un Emünedü qosiɣu)		 鄂托克前旗 Ètuōkè Qián Qí 68,282 12,318 6
Otog Banner ᠣᠲᠣᠭ ᠬᠣᠰᠢᠭᠤ
(Otoɣ qosiɣu)		 鄂托克旗 Ètuōkè Qí 148,844 20,064 4
Hanggin Banner ᠬᠠᠩᠭᠢᠨ ᠬᠣᠰᠢᠭᠤ
(Qaŋɣin qosiɣu)		 杭锦旗 Hángjǐn Qí 111,102 18,903 7
Uxin Banner ᠦᠦᠰᠢᠨ ᠬᠣᠰᠢᠭᠤ
(Üüsin qosiɣu)		 乌审旗 Wūshěn Qí 124,527 11,645 9
Ejin Horo Banner ᠡᠵᠢᠨ ᠬᠣᠷᠣᠭ᠎ᠠ ᠬᠣᠰᠢᠭᠤ
(Ejin Qoroɣ-a qosiɣu)		 伊金霍洛旗 Yījīnhuòluò Qí 226,752 5,958 23

Kangbashi New Area

Main article: Kangbashi New Area

A large, sparsely inhabited urban real estate development has been constructed 25 km (16 mi) from Dongsheng District. Intended to house a million people, it remains mostly uninhabited.[8][9] Intended to have 300,000 residents by 2010, government figures stated it had 28,000.[10] It has been the subject of several well publicized articles, including a feature illustrated series conducted by Al Jazeera in 2010.[11] The Daily Mail has documented Ordos/Kangbashi and other similar urban developments in China.[12][13]

Ordos Museum

Ordos Museum

In 2011, a 41,000-square-foot museum, entitled Ordos Museum (Chinese: 鄂尔多斯博物馆), was opened in Kangbashi. The museum, designed by China-based architectural practice MAD Studio, is focused on the history of the Ordos area, as well as on the culture and traditions of Inner Mongolia.[14]

Transportation

Travel within Ordos City is primarily made by car or bus, using the city's network roads. Two tolled expressways, the G18 Rongcheng–Wuhai Expressway and the G65 Baotou–Maoming Expressway, provide connections with other towns and cities including Dongsheng.

There are no direct rail lines to the city. The closest is the Baoshen Line in Dongsheng.

Ordos Airport is to the south of the city.

Demographics

In the 2000 census, there were 1,369,766 inhabitants:

ethnic group population share
Han 1,207,971 88.19%
Mongols 155,845 11.38%
Manchu 2,905 0.21%
Hui 1,861 0.14%
Tibetans 1,023 0.07%

Most people come from the Shanxi province, 30 km South of this city.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Al-Jazeera (2009-11-09). "China's Empty City" (video). YouTube.
  2. ↑ Chohan, Usman W. "Erdos City – 鄂尔多斯市 The "Horde" That Wasn't". McGill University. Retrieved 2014-05-14.
  3. ↑ http://www.ordos.gov.cn/zjeedx/sqgk/ 市情概况
  4. ↑ G. John Ramstedt: Kalmückisches Wörterbuch, Helsinki, 1935, Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura, and Ferdinand D. Lessing, ed.: Mongolian-English Dictionary, Bloomington, Ind., 1982, The Mongolia Society, Inc.
  5. ↑ W. R. Carles, "Problems in Exploration II. Ordos", in The Geographical Journal, Vol. 33, No. 6 (Jun., 1909), p. 669
  6. 1 2 3 Weather China
  7. ↑ GDP 2011 figure of Inner Mongolian divisions is from Inner Mongolian Statistical Yearbook 2012 ( ISBN 978-7-89468-268-0 /F.468)
  8. ↑ Time Photos of Ordos/Kangbashi, Time Photos Website 2011
  9. ↑ Gus Lubin (2011-06-13). "NEW SATELLITE PICTURES OF CHINA'S GHOST CITIES". Business Insider. Retrieved 2011-12-09.
  10. ↑ Barboza, David (2010-10-19). "A New Chinese City, With Everything but People". New York Times.
  11. ↑ "China's Ghost Town". AlJazeera. 10 November 2009. Retrieved 2010-12-21.
  12. ↑ The Ghost Towns of China...The Daily Telegraph 18 Dec 2010
  13. ↑ "Ordos: The biggest ghost town in China". BBC News. 2012-03-17.
  14. ↑ "Ordos Museum by MAD Architects". Inexhibit. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Ordos City.
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