Kunming

Japanese: 昆明 - こんめい

A prefecture-level city in the northeastern part of Yunnan Province in southern China, and the capital of the province. Its abbreviation is Kun. It is located in the Dianchi Basin in the central part of the province, and the city area spreads across the Dianchi region. It governs seven city districts, including Dongchuan, three counties, and three autonomous counties, and acts as the administrative agent for Anning City (as of 2017). It has a population of 5,555,700, and a city district population of 3,177,100 (2015). The city is located on a plateau at an altitude of 1,890 meters on the north bank of the Dianchi Lake, and the climate is warm due to the mountains to the north and west. The average annual temperature is about 15°C, and it is known as the Spring City (the city of eternal spring). The annual precipitation is about 920 mm. It has a sister city relationship with Fujisawa City.

[Chieko Aoki, Michihiro Kono, and editorial staff, January 19, 2018]

history

Since before the Common Era, ethnic minorities have lived in Dianchi and other areas. After Emperor Wu of Han's Southern Expedition, it belonged to Yizhou and was renamed Jinneng County during the Three Kingdoms Period. When the Nanzhao Kingdom was established in the Tang Dynasty, Tuodong City (later renamed Shanxian City) was built here as its eastern capital, and the Dali Kingdom of the Song Dynasty called it Shanxian Prefecture. After Kublai Khan of the Yuan Dynasty destroyed the Dali Kingdom, he established Kunming One Thousand Houses, and when Yunnan Xingshu Province was established in 1276, Kunming County was established there, which became the administrative center of the province as it was attached to Zhongqing Road. During the Ming Dynasty, Zhongqing Road was renamed Yunnan Prefecture, and Kunming County of Yunnan Prefecture became the capital of Yunnan Province. At the end of the Qing dynasty, the Kunhe Line (Kunming-Hekou) was constructed, and during the Sino-Japanese War, the Burma Route (the Route to Aid Chiang Kai-shek) was opened, connecting China with Burma (now Myanmar) via Encho Town, making it a key transportation point with foreign countries in southwestern China.

[Chieko Aoki and Michihiro Kono, January 19, 2018]

Industry and Transportation

The Panlong River runs through the city from north to south, and the city is served by the Chengdu-Kunming Line, Guiyang-Kunming Line (Guiyang-Kunming), Kunhe Line, Nanning-Kunming Line, Kunyu Line (Kunming-Yuxi), Guangdong Line (Guangtong-Dali), the Changsha-Kunming high-speed railway, and expressways such as Dianmen (Kunming-Ruili), Kunluo (Kunming-Daluo), Beijing-Kunming, and Guangzhou-Kunming. Kunming Changshui International Airport, which opened in 2012, is located in the northeast of the city.

The surrounding industrial areas are home to machinery, metallurgy, tobacco, and spinning factories. The counties within the city are home to mines of phosphorus, bauxite, iron, cobalt, lead, and silver, as well as the Ichiheirou coalfield. Local specialties include the noodle dish Kakyo Beisen, mushrooms, and go stones.

[Chieko Aoki, Michihiro Kono, and editorial staff, January 19, 2018]

Culture and Tourism

Within the city, there are historical sites such as the Eastern and Western Pagodas, which are Buddhist buildings from the Nanzhao Kingdom period, the Yuantong Temple, and the Yunnan Army Military Training Hall from the late Qing Dynasty, as well as the Yunnan Provincial Museum, which exhibits Yunnan's ethnic culture, the Kunming World Horticultural Expo Park, and Green Lake Park. In the suburbs, there are Shilin, Dianchi, Xishan Longmen, and Shizhaishan Ancient Tombs. The karst topography of Shilin in particular was registered as a natural World Heritage Site by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) in 2007 as a component asset of the "Southern China Karst" (World Natural Heritage).

It is also known for hosting traditional events of ethnic minorities, such as the Fire Stick Festival of the Yi people, the Water-throwing Festival of the Dai people, and the Luo San Ling Festival of the Bai people.

[Jun Zhou January 19, 2018]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

中国南部、雲南(うんなん)省北東部の地級市で、同省の省都。略称は昆。省中央部滇池(てんち)盆地にあり、市街地は滇池地方に広がる。東川(とうせん)など7市轄区、3県、3自治県を管轄し、安寧(あんねい)市の管轄代行を行う（2017年時点）。人口555万5700、市轄区人口317万7100（2015）。市街地は滇池北岸の標高1890メートルの高原に位置し、北と西に山を控えるため気候は温暖である。年平均気温は約15℃で、春城（常春の町）とよばれる。年降水量は約920ミリメートル。藤沢市と姉妹都市提携を結んでいる。

［青木千枝子・河野通博・編集部　2018年1月19日］

歴史

紀元前から滇池を中心に少数民族が居住し、漢の武帝の南征以後益州(えきしゅう)に属し、三国時代には晋寧(しんねい)郡と改称された。唐代に南詔(なんしょう)国が興るとこの地に東都の拓東城（のち鄯闡(ぜんせん)城と改名）を建て、宋(そう)代の大理国は鄯闡府とよんだ。元のフビライが大理国を滅ぼしたのち昆明一千戸所を置き、1276年雲南行中書省が設立されると、昆明県が置かれ、中慶路に所属して省の行政の中心地となった。明(みん)代に中慶路は雲南府と改められ、雲南府昆明県は雲南省の省都となった。清(しん)代末に昆河線（昆明―河口(かこう)）が建設され、日中戦争中に畹町(えんちょう)鎮を経てビルマ（現、ミャンマー）と結ぶビルマ・ルート（援蒋(えんしょう)ルート）が通じ、中国南西部における外国との交通の要地となった。

［青木千枝子・河野通博　2018年1月19日］

産業・交通

市街は南北に盤竜江(ばんりゅうこう)が貫流し、成昆線、貴昆線（貴陽(きよう)―昆明）、昆河線、南昆線（南寧(なんねい)―昆明）、昆玉線（昆明―玉渓(ぎょくけい)）、広大線（広通(こうつう)―大理(だいり)）、高速鉄道の長昆旅客専用線（長沙(ちょうさ)―昆明）と、滇緬(てんめん)（昆明―瑞麗(ずいれい)）、昆洛（昆明―打洛(だらく)）、京昆（北京(ペキン)―昆明）、広昆（広州(こうしゅう)―昆明）などの自動車道が通る。市街北東部には2012年開港の昆明長水国際空港がある。

　周辺の工業地帯には、機械、冶金、タバコ、紡績などの工場がある。市域の県では、リン、ボーキサイト、鉄、コバルト、鉛、銀などの鉱山や一平浪(いちへいろう)の炭田もある。名産として、麺料理の過橋米線、キノコ、碁石が有名。

［青木千枝子・河野通博・編集部　2018年1月19日］

文化・観光

市街には、南詔国時代の仏教建築である東寺塔と西寺塔、円通寺、清末の雲南陸軍講武堂などの旧跡や、雲南の民族文化を展示する雲南省博物館、昆明世界園芸博覧園、翠湖(すいこ)公園などがある。郊外には、石林、滇池、西山竜門、石寨山(せきさいざん)古墓などがある。なかでも石林のカルスト地形は、2007年ユネスコ（国連教育科学文化機関）により「中国南方カルスト」の構成資産として、世界遺産の自然遺産に登録された（世界自然遺産）。

　イ族の火把節(かはせつ)、タイ族の水掛け祭り、ペー族の繞三霊(ぎょうさんれい)など、少数民族の伝統行事が行われることでも知られる。

［周　俊　2018年1月19日］

[参照項目] | イ族 | 雲南（省） | 援蒋ルート | 成昆線 | 石寨山古墓 | 滇池 | 東川 | 南詔

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