Baitutan, Liling

Baitutan (simplified Chinese: 白兔潭镇; traditional Chinese: 白兔潭鎮; pinyin: Báitùtán Zhèn; lit. 'white rabbit pond') is a town in the northeast of the county-level city of Liling, Zhuzhou, Hunan, China.^[1] The town spans an area of 48 square kilometres (19 sq mi),^[1] and has a population of 35,806 as of 2010.^[2]

Baitutan 白兔潭镇
Town
Baitutan Show map of Hunan Baitutan Show map of China
Coordinates: 27.7926°N 113.6694°E / 27.7926; 113.6694
Country	China
Province	Hunan
Prefecture-level city	Zhuzhou
County-level city	Liling
Area
• Total	48 km2 (19 sq mi)
Population  (2010)
• Total	35,806
• Density	750/km2 (1,900/sq mi)

Toponymy

The town's name, which literally translates to 'white rabbit pond', is derived from a portion of the local Chengtan River (Chinese: 澄潭江; pinyin: Chéngtán Jiāng) with large rocks at the bottom said to look like white rabbits.^[1]

History

Upon the establishment of the People's Republic of China, the area of Baitutan belonged to Hunan's First District (Chinese: 第一区; pinyin: Dì Yī Qū).^[1] Baitutan District (Chinese: 白兔潭区) was created in 1952.^{[citation needed]} Baitutan was established as Tutan Township (Chinese: 兔潭乡; pinyin: Tùtán Xiāng) in 1956.^[1] Tutan Township was merged into the Pukou People's Commune (pinyin: Pǔkǒu Gōngshè) in 1958.^[1] The Baitutan People's Commune (pinyin: Báitùtán Gōngshè) was established in 1961.^[1] In 1984, people's communes were abolished, and Baitutan became a township.^[1] Baitutan was upgraded to a town in 1985.^[1]

Xinghu Village (Chinese: 星湖村; pinyin: Xīnghú Cūn), from the now-defunct town of Nanqiao, as well as the villages of Hetian (荷田), Boda (柏大) and Changqing (长庆) from the now-defunct town of Fuli were merged into Baitutan on November 26, 2015.^[3][4]

Geography

Baitutan is located in the northeast of Liling, 25 kilometres (16 mi) from its center, and is bordered by the prefecture-level city of Pingxiang in neighboring Jiangxi province to the east.^[1]

Administrative divisions

Baitutan administers 2 residential communities (Chinese: 社区; pinyin: Shèqū) and 10 administrative villages (Chinese: 行政村; pinyin: Xíngzhèng Cūn).^[5]

Residential communities

Baitutan administers the following 2 residential communities:^[5]

• Baishi Community (Chinese: 白市社区; pinyin: Báishì Shèqū; lit. 'white city community')
• Jinniu Community (Chinese: 金牛社区; pinyin: Jīnniú Shèqū; lit. 'golden cow community')

Administrative villages

Baitutan administers the following 10 villages:^[5]

• Tianxin Village (Chinese: 田心村)
• Tunxi Village (Chinese: 氽溪村)
• Zhutang Village (Chinese: 洙塘村)
• Huangjia Village (Chinese: 黄甲村)
• Qiaoling Village (Chinese: 峤岭村)
• Shanshui Village (Chinese: 山水村)
• Quanyuan Village (Chinese: 泉沅村)
• Changqing Village (Chinese: 长庆村)
• Hetian Village (Chinese: 荷田村)
• Boda Village (Chinese: 柏大村)

Demographics

Baitutan had a population of 35,806 per the 2010 Chinese Census,^[2] up slightly from an estimated 34,500 in 2005.^[1] Baitutan had a recorded population of 32,360 in the 2000 Chinese Census.^[2]

Economy

The town serves as a center for trade in the eastern portion of Liling.^[1]

Transport

National Highway 106 passes through Baitutan.^[1]