CHI-LIN

Pinyin Jilin, conventional and Japanese Kirin, city, Kirin Province (sheng), China. It is a prefecture-level municipality (shih) whose territory was enlarged in the early 1970s to encompass the former Yung-chi Prefecture (ti-ch'). Situated on the left bank of the Upper Sungari River, it lies among surrounding hills about 60 mi (100 km) east of the provincial capital, Ch'ang-ch'un. Chi-lin is one of the most ancient cities in the Northeast. Originally it was a small village in the territory of the Ula (a Juchen tribe of Manchuria). In 1651 the Manchus, concerned about Russian incursions into the Amur River region, set up a shipyard there to construct boats for defense and transport on the Sungari River (a tributary of the Amur). In 1673 Chi-lin was fortified, and in 1676 the headquarters of the Manchu military governor was transferred there from Ninguta (now Ning-an in Heilungkiang Province). The town was temporarily constituted as a regular civil prefecture in 1726-34 but remained under military governorship until 1882, when it was walled and given the status of a superior prefecture (fu). Although a government postal relay system was established in the area in the late 17th century, Chi-lin had poor land communications until the construction of the railway to Ch'ang-ch'un in 1913. The line was later extended to T'u-men on the Korean border, and another main line joined Chi-lin with Mukden (Shen-yang). After rapid colonization of the surrounding area, Chi-lin became a commercial and collecting centre for agricultural products and timber. Various light industries such as oil extraction, flour milling, brewing, and the manufacture of lumber and matches also developed. At the time of the Japanese occupation of Manchuria in 1931, it had a population of about 100,000 but was to some extent overshadowed by the rapid growth of the new capital of the Japanese state of Manchukuo at Ch'ang-ch'un. After the outbreak of war between Japan and China in 1937, large-scale industrial growth began. The Japanese constructed an enormous hydroelectric station at Feng-man, on the Sungari River above Chi-lin, and established various industrial plants in the city, the most important of which manufactured synthetic rubber, petroleum, chemicals, and paper. The city was much damaged during the Soviet occupation at the end of World War II and the Chinese Civil War. Since 1949, Chi-lin has continued to expand as an industrial centre. The Feng-man Dam was repaired and connected by a grid to Harbin (Ha-erh-pin) and Shen-yang. Three huge chemical plants and a paper mill were installed under the First Five-Year Plan (1953-57). The lumber and match industries were expanded, and large-scale manufacture of construction materials such as cement, bricks and tiles, and glass was begun. Sugar refining from local beets and oil extraction are also important. A thermal generating plant, using coal from the Chiao-ho field to the east, was brought into operation in the 1950s. Pop. (1983 est.) 1,071,000.