Karamay

Karamay
Karamay
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese	克拉玛依
Traditional Chinese	克拉瑪依
Hanyu Pinyin
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Kèlāmǎyī
Wade–Giles	Kʻo⁴-la¹-ma³-i¹
other Mandarin
Xiao'erjing	کْ‌لَامَاءِ
Dungan	Кәламайы
Uyghur name
Uyghur	قاراماي‎
Literal meaning	black oil
Latin Yëziqi
Transcriptions
Latin Yëziqi	Qaramay
Yengi Yeziⱪ	Ⱪaramay
SASM/GNC	K̂aramay
Siril Yëziqi	Қарамай

Karamay

克拉玛依市 (Chinese)
قاراماي شەھىرى (Uyghur)
Karamai
Karamay 克拉玛依市 (Chinese); قاراماي شەھىرى (Uyghur) Karamai
Prefecture-level city
	The Karamay River running through Karamay District
	Location of Karamay City jurisdiction in Xinjiang
	Karamay Location of the city centre in Xinjiang Karamay Karamay (Xinjiang) Karamay Karamay (China)
	Coordinates (Karamay municipal government): 45°34′48″N 84°53′21″E / 45.5799°N 84.8892°E
Country	People's Republic of China
Region	Xinjiang
Municipal seat	Karamay District
Subdivisions	Districts Karamay; Baijiantan; Dushanzi; Uroho;
Area
• Total	7,734 km2 (2,986 sq mi)
Elevation	354 m (1,161 ft)
Population (2020)
• Total	490,348
• Density	63/km2 (160/sq mi)
• Major Nationalities	Han - 74.8%
GDP
• Total	CN¥ 97.3 billion; US$ 14.1 billion
• Per capita	CN¥ 210,426; US$ 30,452
Time zone	UTC+8 (China Standard)
Postal code	834000
Area code	0990
ISO 3166 code	CN-XJ-02
License Plate Prefix	新J
Website	www.klmy.gov.cn/Pages/default.aspx

Karamay (also spelled Karamai) is a prefecture-level city in the north of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China. It is surrounded on all sides by Tacheng Prefecture. The name of the city comes from the Uyghur language and means "black oil", referring to the oil fields near the city.

Karamay was the site of one of the worst disasters in modern Chinese history, the 1994 Karamay fire, when 324 people, including 288 school children, lost their lives in a cinema fire on 8 December 1994.^[2]

History

Subdivisions

Karamay City has jurisdiction over four districts (区; qū). They are not contiguous as Dushanzi District is located south of the Lanxin Railway and forms an exclave, separated from the rest of Karamay City by Kuytun City. Together with Kuytun City, Karamay City forms an enclave surrounded on all sides by Tacheng Prefecture.

Map
Karamay Dushanzi Baijiantan Orku
District	Hanzi	Hanyu Pinyin	Uyghur (UEY)	Uyghur Latin (ULY)	Population (2020 Census)	Area (km²)	Density (/km²)
Karamay	克拉玛依区	Kèlāmǎyī Qū	قاراماي رايونى	Qaramay Rayoni	337,188	3,834	87.95
Dushanzi	独山子区	Dúshānzǐ Qū	مايتاغ رايونى	Maytagh Rayoni	84,395	400	210.99
Baijiantan	白碱滩区	Báijiǎntān Qū	جەرەنبۇلاق رايونى	Jerenbulaq Rayoni	50,825	1,272	39.96
Orku	乌尔禾区	Wū'ěrhé Qū	ئورقۇ رايونى	Orqu Rayoni	17,940	2,228	8.05

Geography

Karamay is located in the northwest of the Dzungarian basin, with an average elevation of 400 meters (1,300 ft). Its administrative area ranges in latitude from 44° 07' to 46° 08' N and in longitude from 80° 44' to 86° 01' E and has a maximal 240 km (150 mi) north–south extent and reaches 110 km (68 mi) in east–west width. It borders Hoboksar Mongol Autonomous County to the northeast, Shawan County to the southeast, Toli County and Wusu to the west and Kuytun to the south.

The naturally available water supply in the Karamay area is limited: it mostly consists of two small rivers (the Baiyang River and the Da'erbute River (达尔不特河) flowing into the Dzungarian Basin from the mountains of its northwestern rim. In addition, the city receives water from the Irtysh River, over the Irtysh–Karamay Canal, which was officially opened in 2008.^[3]

A number of natural (Ailik Lake) and artificial (Fengcheng, Huangyangquan) reservoirs are located in Karamay's northeastern Urho District; they all are replenished, directly or indirectly, by water from the Irtysh–Karamay Canal.

Climate

Karamay has an extremely continental desert climate (Köppen climate classification BWk), typified by great seasonal extremes in temperature, varying by 43.0 °C (77.4 °F); with long, very hot summers (for its latitude) and long, severely cold winters with brief spring and autumn in between. The monthly 24-hour average temperature is −15.2 °C (4.6 °F) in January and soars to 27.8 °C (82.0 °F) in July and the annual mean is 8.91 °C (48.0 °F), warmer than most places at the corresponding latitude, due to the long summers. Annual precipitation is 119 millimeters (4.69 in) and the summer months record the most rainfall, despite relative humidity levels averaging around 30%. With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 37% in December to 71% in September, sunshine is generous, only occurring less than 50% of the time in November and December and the annual average total is 2,694 hours.

Climate data for Karamay, elevation 450 m (1,480 ft), (1991–2020 normals)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	5.8 (42.4)	12.9 (55.2)	24.9 (76.8)	35.6 (96.1)	39.5 (103.1)	40.7 (105.3)	44.0 (111.2)	42.7 (108.9)	39.1 (102.4)	29.9 (85.8)	20.2 (68.4)	9.5 (49.1)	44.0 (111.2)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	−11.9 (10.6)	−6.6 (20.1)	6.4 (43.5)	19.7 (67.5)	26.4 (79.5)	31.7 (89.1)	33.4 (92.1)	31.8 (89.2)	25.0 (77.0)	15.3 (59.5)	3.5 (38.3)	−8.0 (17.6)	13.9 (57.0)
Daily mean °C (°F)	−15.9 (3.4)	−10.8 (12.6)	1.7 (35.1)	14.0 (57.2)	20.5 (68.9)	26.0 (78.8)	27.7 (81.9)	26.0 (78.8)	19.5 (67.1)	10.5 (50.9)	−0.2 (31.6)	−11.4 (11.5)	9.0 (48.2)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−18.9 (−2.0)	−14.3 (6.3)	−2.4 (27.7)	9.2 (48.6)	15.2 (59.4)	20.7 (69.3)	22.5 (72.5)	20.8 (69.4)	14.7 (58.5)	6.5 (43.7)	−3.2 (26.2)	−14.0 (6.8)	4.7 (40.5)
Record low °C (°F)	−35.9 (−32.6)	−34.3 (−29.7)	−26.7 (−16.1)	−10.4 (13.3)	2.1 (35.8)	9.0 (48.2)	12.3 (54.1)	8.2 (46.8)	0.3 (32.5)	−7.7 (18.1)	−27.2 (−17.0)	−34.3 (−29.7)	−35.9 (−32.6)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	4.6 (0.18)	3.3 (0.13)	3.4 (0.13)	9.5 (0.37)	14.0 (0.55)	17.8 (0.70)	27.2 (1.07)	17.4 (0.69)	9.2 (0.36)	7.3 (0.29)	5.6 (0.22)	6.1 (0.24)	125.4 (4.93)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm)	7.5	5.6	2.9	4.5	5.3	7.5	9.5	7.1	4.6	3.6	4.2	8.5	70.8
Average snowy days	12.7	10.2	3.8	0.6	0	0	0	0	0	0.5	5.4	13.7	46.9
Average relative humidity (%)	78	75	56	35	31	32	35	34	35	46	63	77	50
Mean monthly sunshine hours	127.2	150.7	218.9	259.9	306.7	299.3	301.2	301.6	264.2	222.3	135.9	97.9	2,685.8
Percent possible sunshine	44	50	58	63	66	64	64	71	72	67	49	36	59
Source: China Meteorological Administration^[4]^[5]^[6]

Demographics

According to the 2010 census, over 80% of Karamay's population are Han Chinese, with minorities such as Uighur, Kazakhs, Mongols and Hui making up the rest. The population of 2010 is 391,008, a rise from the 270,232 of 2000 census. The population density is 50.6 inhabitants per km².^[7] The 2015 population estimate is 401,468.^[8]

Population by ethnicity (2010)^[9]

Ethnicity	Population	%
Han Chinese	319,265	81.65%
Uyghur	44,866	11.47%
Kazakhs	11,620	2.97%
Hui	8,238	2.11%
Mongol	2,348	0.60%
Manchu	754	0.19%
Xibe	681	0.17%
Tujia	678	0.17%
Russian	471	0.12%
Uzbek	177	0.05%
Dongxiang	133	0.03%
Kyrgyz	117	0.03%
Tajik	35	<0.01%
Others	1,625	0.42%
Total	391,008	100%

Economy

In 1955, one of the largest oil fields in China was discovered there. Since then, the city has grown into an oil-producing and refining center.

In 2008, the GDP reached ¥66.1 billion and GDP per capita reached ¥242,391 (US$34,901), ranking first among 659 cities in mainland China.

Transport

Kuytun–Beitun Railway. There are passenger stations in Karamay itself and in Wuwu New Town (五五新镇街道), south of central Karamay.
Karamay–Tacheng Railway (under construction as of 2017)
Kelamayi Guhai Airport
China National Highway 217

Notable persons

Adil Mijit, comedian
Gulimina Mahamuti, pianist

References

^ "克拉玛依市2019年国民经济和社会发展统计公报" (in Chinese). 25 April 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2021.
^ China aghast at ‘sacrifice’ of 288 pupils, The Sunday Times, May 6, 2007.
^ Karamay River Scenic Area
^ 中国气象数据网 – WeatherBk Data (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
^ 中国气象数据网 (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
^ 中国地面国际交换站气候标准值月值数据集（1971－2000年）. China Meteorological Administration. Archived from the original on 2013-09-21. Retrieved 2010-05-25.
^ "KÈLĀMĂYĪ SHÌ (Prefecture-level City, Xīnjiāng Wéiwú'ĕr Zìzhìqū) Population". City Population.
^ "Karamay: Bulletin for the economical and social development in 2015". Archived from the original on February 6, 2017. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
^ Stanley W. Toops (August 2012). Susan M. Walcott; Corey Johnson (eds.). Eurasian Corridors of Interconnection: From the South China to the Caspian Sea. Routledge. pp. 65–66. ISBN 978-1135078751.

External links

Government website of Karamay (in Simplified Chinese)
Map of the City of Karamay

[1] "克拉玛依市2019年国民经济和社会发展统计公报" (in Chinese). 25 April 2021. Retrieved 12 March 2021.

[2] China aghast at ‘sacrifice’ of 288 pupils, The Sunday Times, May 6, 2007.

[3] Karamay River Scenic Area

[cma_graphical-4] 中国气象数据网 – WeatherBk Data (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 10 October 2023.

[5] 中国气象数据网 (in Simplified Chinese). China Meteorological Administration. Retrieved 10 October 2023.

[CMA_old-6] 中国地面国际交换站气候标准值月值数据集（1971－2000年）. China Meteorological Administration. Archived from the original on 2013-09-21. Retrieved 2010-05-25.

[7] "KÈLĀMĂYĪ SHÌ (Prefecture-level City, Xīnjiāng Wéiwú'ĕr Zìzhìqū) Population". City Population.

[2015_Population_Estimate-8] "Karamay: Bulletin for the economical and social development in 2015". Archived from the original on February 6, 2017. Retrieved April 18, 2016.

[2010_census-9] Stanley W. Toops (August 2012). Susan M. Walcott; Corey Johnson (eds.). Eurasian Corridors of Interconnection: From the South China to the Caspian Sea. Routledge. pp. 65–66. ISBN 978-1135078751.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]