Jilin Province is a multi-ethnic province. Themany peoples of Jilin are hardworking and courageous and have joined together in developing their brilliant history and their charming and colorful ethnic cultures with their labor and wisdom.

　　There are 49 ethnic groups in Jilin Province. Apart from Hans, the population of the 48 minorities of the province totals 2,453,400, accounting for 9.15% of the total population in the province. They mainly include Koreans, Mans, Mongols, Huis, and Xibos. With historically close ties and relationships, they have formed both ethnically based and inter-mixedpopulation centers. Minority population centers have established autonomous jurisdictions, such asYanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture,Qianguoerluosi Mongol Autonomous County, Yitong Man Autonomous County, Changbai Korean AutonomousCounty, and 33 ethnic townships. Since the reform and opening up, the economy and social undertakings in different ethnic minorities autonomous areas have scored fairly rapid development. In 2004, GDP in the autonomous ethnic areas reached 31.559 billion RMB yuan. Out of 30 minority autonomous prefectures in China, the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture isthe only one that was honored for three times (consecutively) by the State Council as a “Model Prefecture for Ethnic Unity and Advancement”.
　　I. Unique Topographic Features

　　Abbreviated as Ji, with Changchun as its capital, Jilin Province lies in the middle of Northeast China, covering an area of 187,400 square kilometers, which accounts for 1.95% of the whole country. In 2004, the population of Jilin Province was 27,085,000 and GDP reached RMB￥ 295.82billion, accounting for 2.08% and 1.81% of the whole country respectively

　　Geographic Location

　　Jilin Province is located between 40o521and 46o181north latitude and between 121o381and 131o191east longitude, about 600 kilometers wide from north to south and 750 kilometers long from east to west, bounded by Liaoning Province to the south, the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region to the west and Heilongjiang Province to the north, bordering Russia to the east and, to the southeast, separated by a river, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. It has a 1,438.7-kilometer international boundary, of which 1,206 kilometers are between China and Korea and 232.7 between China and Russia. Hunchun, a city in the far east of the province is only 15 kilometers away from the Sea of Japan.

　　Topography

　　Jilin Province has a varied landscape, generally sloping towards the northwest. With the Daheishan Mountain Range in the middle, the province is divided into two topographic regions: the mountainous area in the east and the plains of the midwest. The former is further divided into the Changbaishan Mountains and their foothills; and the latter can be divided into high plains in the middle, and grassy marshlands, lakes, ponds, and wet sandy soils in the west. The main mountain chains include the Daheishan Mountains, the Zhangguangcailing Range, the Jilinhadaling Range, the Laoling Range, and the Mudanling Range, etc. The main plains include the Songnen Plain and the Liaohe Plain, etc.

　　II. Pleasant Climate with Monsoons

　　Situated at mid-latitude in the east of the Eurasian Continent, Jilin Province has a continental monsoon climate of the temperate zone, with four strikingly different seasons with precipitation and heat coming in the same season. It is dry and very windy in spring. It’s hot and rainy in summer. In fall the sky is clear and the air is crisp. And the winter is cold and long.

　　There are striking differences in temperature during the four seasons in Jilin Province. The average temperature of the whole province remains below -11oC in winter and above 23oC in summer. The annual temperature difference in the province usually ranges from 35-42oC while the daily difference is usually 10-14oC. The frost-free period usually lasts for 100—160 days in a year.

　　For many years the province’s average amount of sunshine has remained between 2,259—3,016 hours. The average annual precipitation stays between 400 and 600 millimeters. But it varies greatly from season to season and from area to area. 80% of the rainfall comes in summer and the greatest volume is in the east. Climate varies greatly from place to place in the province. The humid climate in the southeast shifts to semi-humid climate and semi-dry climate in the northwest. If the climate is normal, the amount of light, warmth, and water are enough to meet the needs for growing crops.

　　III. Favorable Ecology

　　Eco-regional Distribution

　　The whole ecological environment of Jilin Province is extraordinarily diversified and relatively unified. It is quiteresilient andwell protected. In terms of eco-regional distribution, the province, from the east to the west, has the ecological region of virgin forest in the Changbaishan Mountains, the ecological zone of secondary vegetation in low mountainous and hilly areas of the mid-east, the Songliao Plain in the central region, and grasslands and humid areas in the west.

　　Being the headstream for several main rivers like Songhuajiang River, Yalujiang River and Tumenjiang River, Changbaishan Mountains in the east are endowed with a wide stretches of forest that makes up 70% of the forest coverage, an intact forest ecological system and a rich biodiversity.

　　In the low mountains and hills of the mid-east, there grow dense natural secondary forests and manmade forests, providing a high percentage of forest coverage and there exist rich resources of water and minerals

　　Vast, flat, fertile and with a complete system of protective forest screens for agriculture, the Songliao Plain in the middle of the province is environmentally robust, offeringfavorable conditions for producing high quality farming products.It is lauded as the “Golden Corn Belt” and “Land of Soybeans”.

　　In the west, there are a vast stretch of low-lying grassland, densely scattered natural ponds and a fairly large area of wetland.Despite little rainfall, favorable conditions of sunshine and heat and ample sources of water surface and underground water provide this are with fine prospects for agricultural development.

　　Nature Preservation Zones

　　Since 1960 when the Changbaishan Nature Preservation Zonewas established, the province has set up 33 nature preservation zones of different kinds at different levels, with an area of 2.2 million hectaresaccounting for 11.77% of the whole province. Out of the 33, there are 7 national nature preservation zones (NPZ)— in 1980 the Changbaishan Mountains NPZ joined UNESCO’s world biosphere protective network becoming an international nature reserve. The Momoge NPZ is in the southeast of Zhenlai, and it is mainly for the purpose of protecting rare water birds. The Xianghai NPZ in Tongyu County is mainly for protecting red-crown cranes, other rare water birds, and also the Mongolian yellow elms in desert. The Yitong Volcano Group NPZ lies in Yitong County preserving the area’sunique geological relics. TheTianfezhishan Mountain NPZ lies at Longjing City, Yanbian Prefecture, serving to protect pine tree mushrooms. The national NPZ in Upper Reaches of Yalujing River lies in Changbai County, with the main function of protecting endangered coldwater fish.The national NPZ of Longwan is in Huinan County, mainly protecting crater lakes and wetland.

　　Nurturing the Ecology of the Province

　　In November 1999, the State Council approved the plan that Jilin serve as an experiment in creating an ecological province. In December 2001, the “Overall Outline for Nurturing the Ecology of the Province” was approved by the 27thStanding Committee of the Provincial People’s Congress which proposed that we must scientifically manage ecological resources, continuously improve the ecological environment, relentlessly build an ecological civilization, and gradually develop a mode of economic development unique to Jilin, which is ecologically friendly and beneficial. We must realize that economic, social and ecological benefits are intrinsically linked. We should follow a path of sustainable development that is based on the situation in Jilin. After thirty years of painstaking efforts, we will have changed Jilin into an ecologically healthy province that will have a developed economy, civilized society, an excellent natural environment and resources that will last forever.

　　The construction of the ecological environment in Jilin has achieved an initial result after several years of hard work.By the end of 2004, the accumulated harnessed grassland of salinization or alkalinization totaled 7.53 mu; the land converted to forests and grass was 9 million mu; the timber cutting was reduced by 1.7 million cubic meters, the forestry coverage reached 42.5%; the treated area of soil erosion amounted to 6.92 million mu,; the basic farmland area was maintained around 72.734 million mu; the discharge of main pollutants was decreased by 5.98% on average compared with the year of 2000; and the urban public green area per capita exceeded 6 square meters.

　　IV. Abundant Natural Resources

　　Land Resources

　　Jilin Province has long been calledthe “Land of Black Soil”. The province has 5.5378 million hectares of cultivated land, which accounts for 28.9% of the total area. The cultivated land per capita is 0.21 hectares, 2.18 times higher than the national average. The vast stretches of fertile plains yield large quantities of high quality agricultural products such as corn, rice, soybeans, oil plants, coarse cereals, etc. It enjoys a very favorable condition for developing agriculture that is highly productive and organic.

　　Forestry Resources

　　Jilin Province is a significant center of forestry in China. The forest coverage rate of the whole province is as high as 42.5%. With an 860.89 million cubic-meter reserve of standing timber, Jilin ranks 6th in China. The Changbaishan Mountain region has long been known as the “Changbai Forest Sea”. There are pinus koraiensis, quercus, fraxinus mandshurica, phellodendron amurense rupr, and a variety of other species. The Changbaipine is a unique species. With a tall straight trunk, shiny bark and an elegant shape, its nickname is the “pine beauty”. It has been included in the national list of the most important protected wild plants published in 1999 by the State Council.

　　Mineral Resources

　　89 mineral resources have been identified, among which 11 of them, such as oil shale, diatomite, tabular spar, cinder and so on have the largest reserve in China, and 41 of them including molybdenum, germanium and nickel rank the top ten in the country. With 54% of the total identified reserve in China, oil shale in Jilin Province enjoys great potential for development. Being one of the three resources for good-quality mineral water, Changbaishan Mountain has the best and most abundant mineral water in China. Jingyu County has beenhonored as “China’s Changbai Mountain Mineral Water Town”.

　　Grassland Resources

　　One of the eight main pastoral areas in China, Jilin Province has a rich resource of grasslands. Covering an area of5.84 22 million hectares, the grasslands are mainly in the west. The vast stretches of grassland yield quality grazing, especially well known at home and abroad for their Guinea grass. They are important bases for developing animal husbandry. In recent years, thanks to the development of the ecological grass, the grassland vegetation in Jilin Province has been remarkably recovered and the scene of “Flocks and herds appear as grass bends to wind.” reappears on the land of the province.

　　Wetland Resources

　　Widely and vastly distributed, the wetland in Jilin Province has varied types and enjoys a rich variety of bio-species. The total area of the wetland in the province is 1.7523 million hectares, accounting for 9.35% of the total land area, comprising 741,500 hectares of natural wetland and some manmade wetland from paddy fields and so on.They mainly include Xianghai Wetland, Momoge Wetland, Chaganhu Wetland, Hani Wetland, Jingxin Wetland in Hunchun and the wetland in Changbaishan Mountain Nature Preservation Zone, etc.

　　Water Resources

　　Jilin is situated in the upper and middle reaches of the main rivers in northeast China. The Heavenly Lake on the Changbaishan Mountain is the largest alp freshwater lake. There are 1,648 rivers with drainage basins of over 20 square kilometers, belonging to the five main river systems—the Songhuajiang, Liaohe, Yalujiang, Tumenjiang, and the Suifenhe. Jilin Province enjoys advantaged hydropower resources, with a total amount of 5.0081 million kilowatt developablehydropower. Among the big hydropower stations are Baishan, Hongshi, Fengman and the like.

　　Wild Life andPlants

　　The biological population in Jilin Province is healthy and diverse. There are as many as 5,248 identified types of wild plants and 437 types of wild animals. The province is famous for its “Three Treasures”. The Changbaishan mountainous region enjoys a reputation as one of thethree maintreasure troves of natural herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine. There are 1,452 medicinal plants such as ginseng, Chinese wild ginger, rhizoma gastrodiae, boschniakia rossica, etc. Rare wild animals include Manchurian tigers, leopards, sikas, Manchurian sables, red-crowned cranes, golden eagles, red otters, Wusuli whitefish, etc. Since 1996 Jilin Province has been working hard, enforcing the relevant laws in order to save the wild animals on the verge of extinction. Traces of wild animals like sikas, black bears, wild boars, and lynxes have begun to appear. Even Manchurian tigers, which had not been seen for years, are frequently appearing in Jiaohe and Hunchun.

　　The Three Treasures of the Northeast

　　The three treasures are ginseng, sable fur, and pilose antler of sikas. Ginseng from the Changbaishan Mountains is a precious medicinal material. It gets its name (ren-sheng) from the fact that its shape is like that of the human body (in Chinese ren is the word for person).Jilin Province is the largest producer of ginseng, producing 85% of the country’s total and over 70% of the world’s total amount. In 1981 a farmer at Beigang, a settlement in Fusong County discovered a ginseng root that was 160 years old. It weighed 287.5 grams and was 79.5 centimeters long. People call it the ginseng king, and it is now displayed as a national treasure in the Jilin Province Hall in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Sable is the national first-grade protected animal. Its fur is a dark brown or grayish brown color. Standing out from the fur, individual needle-like white hairs are found here and there. Being lightweight and tough with deeply graceful and resplendent fine hair, the lustrous fur feels soft and warm. It is the best of all furs. The pilose antler of young stags is a precious ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine. It functions well in generating energy and producing bone marrow. It also nourishes theblood, increasesyang, andstrengthens bones and muscles. As a large producer of sikas, Jilin Province manufactures a lot of goods from them, such as stag pilose antler tincture, sika tail essence, sika embryo paste, etc.

　　V. The Long History

　　History

　　Since remote antiquity, generations after generations of people have inhabited Jilin. TheYushu man, Antu man, and Qingshantou man who dwelled here between 10,000 – 50,000 years ago are important indicators of the forming of ancient civilizations in Jilin. As early as the times of Shun and Yu (about 3000 years ago), the ethnic groups in Jilin had a tribute-paying relationship with the central Chinese kingdom, a kind of administrative subordination that became important elements in the composing of the Chinese nation.

　　Gaogouli Relics

　　Gaogouli is abbreviated as “Gouli” in the history record. In the 2ndyear of Emperor Hanyuan (37 BC),Zhu Meng, a member of the Fuyu ethnic group, built his regime in Gaogouli County, Xuantu Jun (now inside Xinbin County of Liaoning Province) where it got its name.At their prime, the sphere of the Gaogouli people's influence covered the eastern part of today's Jilin Province, the northeast of Liaoning Province and the north of the Korean Peninsula. It was conquered by the joint forces of the Tang Dynasty and the Silla Kingdomin AD 668.

　　On July 1, 2004, with the examination and approval of the 28thSession of the World Heritage Committee, Gaogouli Relics, located in Ji’an City of Jilin Province, with imperial palace, imperial mausoleum and tombs for nobles belonging to the ancient Gaogouli regime as the main body, was officially inscribed on the World Heritage list.

　　Evolution

　　The formation of Jilin province has gone through a long evolutionary process. Since the early Qin Dynasty (221—207 BC) the rulers of different dynastieshave had Jilin under the jurisdiction of the central government. In the Han Dynasty the system of county and prefecture administration was established. Bohai (an area around the Bohai Sea) in the Tang Dynasty (about 600—900 A.D.) and the later dynasties of Liao, Jin, and Yuan (900—1300 AD) had administrative divisions such asfu,zhou, andxian(similar to prefectures, cities and counties). The Ming Dynasty haddusi(a military rank) andweisuo(a defence region). In 1653(the 10th year of the Shunzhi Reign, in the Qing Dynasty), the Qing government established Ningguta Angbang Zhangjing (an official and a military zone of the Ningguta area), which was the start of Jilin Province. In 1662 (the 1st year of the Kangxi Reign, in the Qing Dynasty), the post was renamed Ningguta Jiangjun (General). In 1673(the 12thyear of the Kangxi Reign), the town of Jilin was built. Historically it was called “Jilin Wula” (in the Manchu language “along the river”). The name Jilin has been used ever since. In 1757 Ningguta Jiangjun was changed into Jilin Jiangjun. Since then the name “Jilin” has represented the administrative region. In 1907 (33rd year of the Guangxu Reign) the region was officially entitledJilin Province. At the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, Jilin remained closed to the outside and therefore neither society nor the economy made much progress. In the middle and later period of the Qing Dynasty the restrictions were gradually rescindedand there was some progress in the economy. At the beginning of the 20th century, the northeast part of the country became the target of the colonialist expansion of both Russian and Japanese imperialists. Pushed by the May 4th Movement and the influence of the May 30th Movement, one after another tides of struggle against the invaders took place in the province. National industries and commerce made some progress. Cities of contemporary scale appeared one after another.

　　The Manchurian Puppet Regime

　　In 1931, the Japanese imperialists outrageously perpetrated the “September 18”Incident and occupied northeast China. In March 1932 the Manchurian puppet regime was officially founded with Puyi as the executive and “Datong” as the title of his reign. Changchun, which was given the new name “Xinjing”, was made the regime’s “capital”. In 1934, the Japanese changed Manchuria into the Manchurian Empire and the executive into emperor and the title of the year of reign into Kangde. On August 15th, 1945 Japan declared its unconditional surrender and Puyi gave up the throne in Tonghua. Then the Manchurian Puppet Regime became extinct.

　　The Glorious Revolutionary Tradition

　　The braveand indomitable peopleof Jilin have had a glorious tradition against imperialism and feudalism. Confronted with the barbarous invasions of the Russian and Japanese, the Jilin people, in spite of brutality and hardship, demonstrated their unyielding fighting spirit through tenacious struggle. The people of Jilin roseup and defeated their enemies, especially in the war against the Japanese invasion,. In the years after the occupation, there was an explosion onto the scene of the volunteer armies headed by Wang Delin, Tang Juwu, and Wang Fengge, and the bloody battles of the 1st-route army of the Anti-Japanese Amalgamated Army of the northeast led by Yang Jingyu, Wei Chengmin, and Wang Detai. During this time the people of Jilin used their blood to compose magnificent patriotic chapters one after another. On Feb. 28, 2005, Jilin Provincial Committee of the CPC and Jilin Provincial Government convened solemnly a convention in Tonghua City to commemorate the 100thanniversary of General Yang Jingyu’s birthday and recall this great national hero combating Japaness.

　　The Liberation of Jilin

　　Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, during the liberation of the northeast, theNortheast Democratic Allied Army (later known as the Northeast People's Liberation Army) fought earth-shaking battles in Jilin. The “Four Siping Battles”, the “Four Linjiang Defensive Battles”, the “Three Southward Expeditions”, and others were decisive in changing the situation of the war in the northeast. 1948witnessed the start of the Liaoxi-Shenyang campaign. The Northeast People's Liberation Army encircled Changchun. Under intensepolitical attack andmilitary pressure,the Nationalist forcesstationed in Changchun surrendered to the PLA. The whole province was liberated.

　　The Administrative Divisions

　　After the founding of the P.R.C. several changes were made in the administrative division. In the post-liberation period Jilin only had 2 municipalities, 2 prefectures, 1 qi (a Mongolian county), 22 counties and 1 special zone of industry. In 1954, the Jilin jurisdictional system was altered, with 7 counties of Heilongjiang Province being incorporated into Jilin Province to make up Baicheng Prefecture with Qian'an, a county of Jilin. 1 municipality and 9 counties of the original Liaodong Province were put under Jilin's jurisdiction to form Tonghua Prefecture. Liaoyuan Municipality, Xi'an County, Dongfeng County (which had belonged to Liaodong Province) and Siping Municipality, Shuangliao County and Lishu County (which had belonged to Liaoxi Province) were brought under Jilin's jurisdiction. In the same year Jilin Provincial People's Governement moved from Jilin City to Changchun. In 1969 a qi and a county of the former Zhelimumeng League and a qi and a county of Hulunbeiermeng League, Inner Mongolia, were put under the jurisdiction of Jilin Province and in 1979 were reincorporated into Inner Mongolia. Since then there has been no change in the administrative division ofJilin. Now the province has 8 prefecture level municipalities, 1 autonomous prefecture, 60 counties (cities, districts), 765 villages (towns) and 241 street offices.

　　VI. A Harmonious Multi-ethnic Province

　　Jilin Province is a multi-ethnic province. Themany peoples of Jilin are hardworking and courageous and have joined together in developing their brilliant history and their charming and colorful ethnic cultures with their labor and wisdom.

　　There are 49 ethnic groups in Jilin Province. Apart from Hans, the population of the 48 minorities of the province totals 2,453,400, accounting for 9.15% of the total population in the province. They mainly include Koreans, Mans, Mongols, Huis, and Xibos. With historically close ties and relationships, they have formed both ethnically based and inter-mixedpopulation centers. Minority population centers have established autonomous jurisdictions, such asYanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture,Qianguoerluosi Mongol Autonomous County, Yitong Man Autonomous County, Changbai Korean AutonomousCounty, and 33 ethnic townships. Since the reform and opening up, the economy and social undertakings in different ethnic minorities autonomous areas have scored fairly rapid development. In 2004, GDP in the autonomous ethnic areas reached 31.559 billion RMB yuan. Out of 30 minority autonomous prefectures in China, the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture isthe only one that was honored for three times (consecutively) by the State Council as a “Model Prefecture for Ethnic Unity and Advancement”.

　　The Korean Ethnic Group

　　The Koreans have their own language both oral and written. Their tradition honors enduring hardship, toil, bravery and indomitability. For the liberation of the Chinese nation and the founding and consolidation of New China, the Korean people contributed and sacrificed a great deal in the Anti-Japanese War, the liberation War, and the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (The Korean War). The Koreans like plain white dress and value etiquette. They respect the elderly and cherish the young. They are very good at singing and dancing. The autonomous prefecture was founded on September 2, 1952. The Koreancommunity has long beenknown as the “Land of Songs and Dances” and “Land of Soccer”.

　　The Man Ethnic Group

　　The Mans (or Manchus) is an ethnic group with a long history who are industrious and brave. They used to havetheir own spoken and written language but they use Chinese now. The Man women dress in qipao (a close-fitting dress), which is beautiful and elegant. Popular across China, qipao has become a traditional type of dress for Chinese women. The Man’s traditional customs for etiquette, ceremonial offerings, weddings, lifestyle, child rearing etc, still have influence in places. Their painting, papercuts, singing, dancing, folk art, storytelling, sports, etc, have a long history and are still popular with the public. Man cuisine is unique and their formal “Man/Han Complete Banquets” are well known far and wide.

　　The Mongols

　　The Mongols have their own spoken and written language. Their habits in dress, diet, living, traveling, architecture, weddings, funerals, taboos, etiquette, etc, demonstrate unique characteristics. At all the anniversaries of the founding of their autonomous counties or ethnic townships or any other traditional festivals, people hold Nadam (entertainment) gatherings where they have competitive sports activities like horse races, toxophily, wrestling, and other entertaining performances.

　　The customs of thedifferent ethnic minorities are changing with evolving history, social development, and the shifting of time. Politics, economy, culture and lifestyle arealso important factors affecting customs.