Regional Demographic Development of Harbin City (1949–1990)

10.54398/1818510Х_2023_3_121

Annotation

Socio-political and economic transformations in the history of China in the period from 1949 to 1990 had a significant impact on the development of large Chinese cities with a non-agricultural population of more than 2 million people. The population growth rate in the capital of the northeastern province of Heilongjiang - Harbin was the highest. A favorable impact on the positive demographic dynamics of Harbin was provided by the processes associated with the fastest liberation of Harbin from the Japanese invaders in 1945, the accelerated implementation of land reform, the relocation of large factories from Liaoning province to Harbin during the Korean War (1950–1953), accelerated industrial construction with the help of the Soviet Union, the mobilization of highly qualified specialists from other provinces to ensure the industrial growth of Harbin, the policy of the Chinese government to expand the boundaries of the city of Harbin by annexing the counties of the Songhua region, the counties of the city of Jiamusi, as well as the unemployment of Harbin women in production and the dominance of traditional ideas about the importance of a large family. Since the founding of Harbin in 1898, this city has been considered a center of attraction for foreign citizens. But it was during the period from 1949 to 1990 that the number of foreign citizens, emigrants from Russia, Italy, France, Denmark, Israel, Mongolia, Sweden, Japan, Korea, Belgium, Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Pakistan and Vietnam significantly decreased from 31 thousand to 201 foreigners. The history of the regional and demographic development of the capital of Heilongjiang province allows us to trace the socio-economic processes of evolution of the northeastern territory bordering Russia, which is strategically important for China.

Keywords

• historical demography
• Chinese history
• Harbin city
• childbearing
• labor force
• national economy
• population growth
• demographic policy
• demography, population
* click on a keyword to go to the search

References

1. Makeeva, S. B. Istoricheskiy opyt realizatsii strategiy prostranstvennogo regionalnogo razvitiya v KNR (1949–2019) [Historical experience in implementing strategies for spatial regional development in the PRC (1949– 2019)]. Vostok. Afro-Aziatskie obshchestva: istoriya i sovremennost [East. Afro-Asian societies: history and modernity]. 2020, no. 4, pp. 196–206.
2. Li, Chzhitin. Vseobshchaya istoriya Severo-Vostochnogo Kitaya [General History of Northeast China]. Zhengzhou: 2003, 670 p.
3. Mi, Davyey. Istoriya provintsii Khyeyluntszyan i istoriya goroda Kharbin [History of Heilongjiang province and history of Harbin city]. Harbin: 2012, 236 p.
4. Nin, Myenchyen. Mestnaya istoriya Severo-Vostochnogo Kitaya [Local History of Northeast China]. Shenyang: 2019, 493 p.
5. Sun, Tszintszi, Fyen, Yuntsyan. Istoriya i geografiya Severo-Vostochnogo Kitaya [History and Geography of Northeast China]. Harbin: 2013, 826 p.
6. Syu, Tszunlyan. Ocherk Khyeyluntszyana [Essay on Heilongjiang]. Harbin: 1985, 161 p.
7. U, Guanyun. Istoriya stroitelstva Khyeyluntszyana 1949–1999. Istoriya Kitaya [History of the construction of Heilongjiang 1949–1999. History of China]. Beijing: 2020, 280 p.
8. U, Futszyun. Ekonomicheskaya geografiya territorii rek Amur i Ussuri provintsii Khyeyluntszyan [Economic geography of the territory of the Amur and Ussuri rivers in Heilongjiang province]. Beijing: 1957, 98 p.
9. Chzhan, Syanlin. Sorok let v Khyeyluntszyane [Forty years in Heilongjiang]. Harbin: 1986, 472 p.
10. Shi, Fan. Istoriya migratsii v provintsiyu Khyeyluntszyan [History of Migration to Heilongjiang Province]. Beijing: 2019, 596 p.
Read more

Popular articles