Wenchang is a county-level city in the northeast of Hainan province, China. Although called a "city", Wenchang refers to a large land area in Hainan - an area which was once a county. The urban center and the seat of government of Wenchang is officially known as "Wencheng Town", which is also colloquially referred to as Wenchang City.
History
Boon Siou / Wenchang is the source of most overseas Hainanese migrants, with the majority of Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, UK, Australia, USA, Canada & Europe Hainanese population having ancestral roots in Boon Siou / Wen Chang. The Wenchang dialect is considered the prestige form of the Hainanese language and is used by the island's provincial broadcasting media. It was promoted from a county to a city on November 7, 1995, and had a population of 86,551 in 1999.
Geography
Located in the northeastern part of Hainan, Boon Siou/Wenchang covers a total area of. The east side has a long coastline along the South China Sea while the west borders Dongzhai Harbor, Haikou's Meilan District, Qionghai, and Ding'an County. The land is mostly hilly and contains both forest and agricultural areas. The entire area is populated with countless towns, farms, and villages.
Wencheng Town is located in the south of Wenchang, southeast of the provincial capital, Haikou. There is a central park and covered market downtown. Also located downtown is a large, modern campus. A new hospital is under construction on the outskirts. The centre of the town is at near sea level with a canal running between one of the main streets and Wennan Old Street. This area has been subject severe flooding a number of times in the past. Another main road runs from the centre, uphill to the south. This road leads to Yilong Bay. Directly to the north of the town centre lies a fairly affluent hilltop community occupied by numerous housing compounds for retired military and other government workers. Auto-rickshaws and motorbikes provide the taxi service in the town. There are no car taxis.
Wennan Old Street
Wennan Old Street is a visitor attraction located in the heart of the town. The street is lined with fully restored tong lau buildings similar to those in Haikou's Bo'ai Road area as well as the old street in Puqian.
Dongjiao - literally "east suburb" and known as "coconut town", is located east of Wencheng Town over the Qinglan Bridge. This town is coastal, and is forested mainly with coconut trees. Small industries for processing coconut products exist there.
The Wenchang Satellite Launch Center is located in Wenchang. This is China's fourth and southernmost space vehicle launch facility and because of its low latitude, the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center has been selected to launch China's space station. On 22 September 2007, CCTV officially announced the construction of an expanded Wenchang Satellite Launch Center has been approved by the State Council and the Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China after decades of postponement due to political concerns.
