Bohai Sea
Categories: Cleanup from June 2005 | Gulfs | Bays of China
Bo Hai (Chinese: 渤海; pinyin: Bóhăi; Wade-Giles: Po-hai lit. "Bo Sea"), also known as Bohai Gulf or (though redundant) Bohai Sea (previously Pechili Bay or Zhili Bay), is the innermost gulf of the Yellow Sea on the coast of northeastern China. It is approximately 823,000 km², and it's sea lanes are crucial to China's Trade. It is the closest body of water to Beijing, the capital of Peoples Republic of China, and its many ports make it one of the busiest sea ways in the world.
History
In literature before early 20th century, Bo Hai was, officially until January 1929, sometimes called "Gulf of Chih-li", where "Chih-li" (contemporary Wade-Giles for Zhili) was an old name for Hebei Province.
Bohai was a kingdom in Manchuria and northern Korea, from AD 698 to 926.
Geography
The gulf is formed by the Liaodong Peninsula (Historically: Liaotung) to the northeast and the Shandong Peninsula (Historically: Shantung) to the south. Bo Hai consists of three bays: Laizhou Bay (Liazhou Wan) to the south, Liaodong Bay (Liaodong Wan) to the north, and Bohai Bay (Bohai Wan) to the west. The rivers Huang He, Liao He, and Hai He empty into Bo Hai.
Bo Hai borders Shandong province, Liaoning province, Hebei province, and Tianjin municipality. Port cities on Bo Hai coast include:
- Hebei: Qinhuangdao
- Liaoning: Dalian, Huludao, Jinzhou, Yingkou
- Shandong: Longkou, Weihai, Yantai
- Tianjin: Tanggu
Islands include:
- Zhifu Island, part of Yantai City, Shandong Province
Natural resources
In recent decades, petroleum and natural gas deposits were discovered in and around Bo Hai.
cs:Po-chaj